Page 21 of Come Take Me Now

“Want to get dinner this week?” he asks.

I thought he was going to ask if I wanted to get fucked, but I’ll say yes to dinner, too.

“Sure,” I answer.

He smiles again. “Good.” He gives me a peck and steps back. “Probably should stop before I get reckless. Used a lot of self-control last night.”

I sit up, too. “Do it.”

He lifts my chin up with his finger. “Mm, you’re not ready. But in time.”

Not ready? Okay, fucking slow-burn king.

Chapter Seven

Enzo

“Dude, what the fuck?” I yell, stomping into Mick’s garage Monday afternoon.

My chest heaves, my vision and my better judgment clouded by the anger I’ve been holding in since Saturday night. Spending a few hours with Tilly yesterday helped ease things, as did keeping my hands busy with her brake repairs, but as soon as she left the vineyard, those feelings came right back, leaving me trembling in Dad’s garage. Then, I spent the day dealing with a million problems at work and stewing, and I knew I had to get this off my chest before I see her again.

Mick rolls out from underneath a car on a creeper. “Enzo?” Under my monochromatic tattoos, my neck must be beet red.

“Who the fuck were those guys?”

Mick scrambles to his feet and wipes his hands on his pants. “What? What guys?”

“Don’t be a fucking idiot. Those guys you met up with at that bar.” I approach him, and he stumbles backward.

“Just friends. What’s your problem?” he stammers.

“Those friends had Tilly cornered. If I hadn’t been there—”

He narrows his eyes at me. “Good thing you were, right? That was really convenient for her, E.”

“Don’t put this on me. Your low-life friends—”

“I don’t know what happened before I got there, but it’s weird that you’re sneaking around in your mom’s car. I mean, your truck’s loud. Hard to miss.” He forces out a strained laugh. “She wasn’t expecting you, was she?” Mick says, accusation tainting his voice.

“You don’t know anything,” I hiss. “Just our age gap, you creep.”

He shrugs. “Gotta call a spade a spade. And she wasn’t there to meet you, but I’m sure she was there to meet someone.”

The skin on the back of my neck flares red. “You?”

“No, that was a coincidence. But you won because you cheated.”

My eyes burn in my skull. “What are you saying?”

“You followed her. I don’t know how, but it wasn’t an accident that you were there.”

I raise my eyebrows, looking down at him. “Keep your thoughts to yourself.”

“What’s up with you, E? This isn’t you.” He shakes his head.

I straighten and take a step back. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You were like an older brother to me, but you changed. Like you’re fucking crazy now. Ever since that new job title.”