He blinks around until he finally spots her then staggers to a sloppy halt. “What? Who are you …? Oh, Ella, is that you?”
“Yeah, um …” She glances back at me. I already know what’s coming before she even says it. “Micha, I think I need to stay home tonight to take care of my mom and dad. You just go, okay?”
I move up beside her. “I already told you I’m not going out without you.”
“What the hell is your problem?” Her dad shouts over me, tripping backwards until his back hits the side of the house. “Why aren’t you in the house?”
Ella clutches the top of the fence until her knuckles turn white. “Dad, you aren’t—”
“Shut up!” he screams so loudly the neighbor’s dog starts howling. “You stupid little bitch!”
My blood boils. I swear to God, I want to punch the asshole in the face. Every fucking time he gets this drunk, this shit happens. And Ella always looks like a wounded dog, ready to curl up in a ball. The girl can fight like no other with everyone else, but put her in front of her verbally abusive dad, and she shuts down.
It fucking hurts to watch her die inside.
“Fuck off, Mr. Daniels!” I snap, enraged. “You’re drunk, and you need to go inside before you say anything else you’ll regret.” Like the fucking douche ever regrets anything. He’s never sober long enough to feel regret.
“All I regret is having this family,” he slurs, flinging his arm at us as he stumbles for the back stairs and lands on his ass. “You and your little shit brother ruined my life.”
I hold my breath and stab my nails into my palms until he gets to his feet and stumbles back down the driveway, probably heading to the bar again, a typical Saturday night for him.
“I’ll be back in a bit!” he shouts as he zigzags across the front lawn.
Once he’s vanished down the sidewalk, I let out a deafening breath. Then, with one more inhale, I face Ella. She hasn’t spoken a word since her father yelled at her, and her eyes are glued to the ground.
“Are you okay?” I ask, daring to place my hand on the small of her back.
She stiffens from my touch yet doesn’t move away. “I should stay and keep an eye on stuff …” She releases a loud breath and then finally looks up at me. “You know what? Never mind. I’m going to go with you tonight and have some fun. My mother has her cell phone. I just have to make sure I check up on her. Although, I doubt she’ll be awake tonight. The meds she’s on are pretty heavy.”
“Aterre you sure? Because I don’t mind—”
She conceals my mouth with her hand. “Nope, you and I are going out tonight. No buts.”
“Yes, boss.” Then, just because I know it’ll make her smile, I lick the palm of her hand.
“Micha!” she squeals, laughing as she backs away, bumping her hip against the fence. “That’s so gross.”
I artfully grin. “My tongue’s been inside your mouth before. How could that be any grosser?”
She puts her hands on her hips. “Hey, who said I didn’t think the kiss was gross?”
“My kisses aren’t gross,” I assure her.
“At fourteen, maybe they were.”
I mock being offended, pressing a hand to my chest like she’s wounded my heart. Really, she has the complete power to do so. “Wow, way to ruin my ego. For four years, I thought I rocked your world, and now you’re telling me I didn’t.”
She flashes me a haughty smile. “No way. I’ve had way better kisses.” She whirls around, and I watch her ass as she saunters over to my car.
“That’s such bullshit.” I chase after her, no longer pretending I’m offended anymore—I am offended. That kiss rocked my fucking world. Hell, it might have been the starting point of the obsession I’ve developed for her.
When I reach her, I dodge around and barricade her path to the passenger side of the car. “That kiss was the best you’ve ever had. Admit it.”
She crosses her arms, giving me a glimpse of my very favorite side of her—the bold, spitfire side. “So you want me to lie to you?”
“Wow,” I say sullenly, massaging my aching chest with my balled fist. “That fucking hurts, Ella. You seriously just broke my heart.”
“What can I say?” She puts her lips close to my face, eliciting a stutter from my aching heart. “Payback’s a bitch,” she whispers then licks my neck, giggling under her breath as she steps back, totally proud of herself. “That was for the hand lick.” She smirks then veers around me to get into the Chevelle, leaving me speechless.
And fucking rock hard.
I adjust my cock then take about one more minute to compose myself before slamming the hood of the car down and climbing in the driver’s seat. Then I rev up the engine, telling myself not to ask, but my need to know overcomes me.
“So, was the payback just the lick?” I rotate in my seat to look at her. “Or was the remark about the kiss part of your evil, heart breaking plan, too?”
Her green eyes sparkle with amusement. “What do you think?”
“I think it was a great fucking kiss, especially for being only fourteen.” I drape my arm on the seat behind her head and play with her hair. “But I want to know what you think.”
She slumps her head against the seat, chewing on her bottom lip as she struggles with something internally, her playful mood shifting. “I think the kiss was … great,” she whispers softly. “You’re great, Micha.” With that, she turns away from me and stares out the window.
“You’re great, too.” And I love you. I’m in love with you, Ella.
My tongue burns to utter the last words, the thing I’ve wanted to tell her for almost two years now, but like always, I chicken out. I can’t have my relationship with Ella end. Can’t—won’t—live my life without her. And, if it means we have to stay friends, then we have to stay friends. I just hope, with time, she’ll finally be able to feel the same way toward me. Maybe when we get out of this shitty town and start our life together, like we’ve been planning since age fourteen.
Burying my emotions, I instead say exactly what she needs to hear. “You ready for some fun tonight?” I pump the gas pedal and the engine roars to life.