Rocked (The Everyday Heroes World) - Julia Wolf Page 0,72

hoist myself up. He wasn’t the end, but the boost I needed to rise to the top again.

Still…three weeks...

My eyes drifted to Kat, who was laughing her ass off with Carter, not once glancing at me. Not one fucking time.

“All right. I’ve got an obligation in Sunnyville, but after that, I’ll be in NYC, ready to get down to business.” Something inside me was screaming and clawing, raging against my old life, but I closed the lid on that part of me—the part that wanted something more.

This was it. There wasn’t more than this.

Not for me.

I would never deserve anything else.

My eyes flicked in Kat’s direction again. When I didn’t see her, I panicked. Sitting upright, I scanned the house, then the patio. Like a mirage, or an avenging angel, she emerged from the well-lit house, rays of radiant light illuminating her skin as she stepped into the dark. Keating saw her too, standing to greet her.

“Ms. Murphy, how have you been enjoying your Hollywood adventure?” he cooed, offering her his seat, which she declined.

“It’s been surreal, but I think my carriage is about to turn into a pumpkin.”

I stood, taking her hand in mine. “You ready, Cinderella?”

“I am. Just don’t let me lose a shoe. I love them so much, I’d never forgive myself if I did.”

“I’ve got you,” I assured her. “We’ll walk nice and slow so they don’t slip off.”

Keating huffed. “You’re seriously leaving? There are people coming I wanted to introduce you to, Dev.”

I shrugged. “There will be time for that kind of thing later. Right now, I’m going to take my lady back to my house and enjoy the rest of my time off. I don’t really want to hear from you until I’m back in New York.” I said that last part with a smile, but I meant every word. I had three more weeks of anonymous small-town life, and I intended to soak up every minute—every minute with Kat and Ellie and rock climbing and songwriting.

With my fingers threaded between Kat’s, we made our way through the house. Carter stopped us in the living room, his hand on Kat’s arm. She stiffened, but I didn’t know if it was because he touched one of her scars or because he touched her at all.

He took his phone from his pocket and handed it to her. “Put your number in there. I will be taking you up on your offer to go cragging next time I’m up your way. I want to see what you’ve got.”

Her eyes slid to mine, then back to the phone, before releasing her hand from my hold. I had been sure she’d turn him down, but she did the opposite. Right in front of me, she typed her number into his phone and handed it back to him. He grinned down at it, tapping out a message.

“Sent you a text, now you have my number too.” He leaned in and cupped her shoulder. “Don’t sell it, Kat. Changing numbers is annoying as hell.”

She laughed. “I wouldn’t have the first clue where or who to sell your number to. Your secret is safe with me.”

His smile could have burned down the big screen, it was so damn smoldering. This guy, this fucking guy, looking at Kat like I wasn’t standing right there.

“I’m glad I met you tonight, Kat. I wish you weren’t going so soon, but you haven’t heard the last of me.” He brushed a kiss on her cheek, then backed away, saluting me as he went. “See you around, Chambers.”

I tipped my chin, nostrils flaring. “Dawes,” I gritted.

Once we were in the car, I had to sit for a minute to pull myself together. Kat had done nothing wrong. Hell, Dawes hadn’t done anything wrong if I wanted to let him off the hook. So why did I feel like I’d swallowed a spoonful of razors?

“That made me uncomfortable.”

When I looked at Kat, her body was slanted toward her door, away from me. Her head was leaning on her headrest, turned toward the window.

“Which part?” I asked.

“A lot of it. That guy…”

I started the car, my hands gripping the wheel. “The one you gave your number to?”

She didn’t answer, so I drove, my ragged breathing and rubber meeting pavement the only sounds filling the car. This wasn’t how I’d envisioned our night going. We could’ve gone back to my place, danced to my records, fucked everywhere, maybe gone for a swim in my pool, then fucked until we fell