He rolls his eyes. “Like you can talk. Everywhere I go, you’re right there with those fucking eyes on me. I see you. You can’t fucking stop. You want to, but you can’t.”
My eyes narrow. Do I need to remind him that he’s always the one who comes to me? He’s the one who led me up to the library and he’s the one who couldn’t resist kissing me. I mean, I've had a few slip-ups of my own where I go seeking him out, but it’s usually done in a fit of rage after he’s done something to get under my skin.
“Okaaaay,” Charlie says, standing and offering me his hand. “I’m going to get you out of here before this bullshit goes somewhere none of us want it to go.” I reluctantly take his hand and he pulls me to my feet. “If you behave, I might even stop by Starbucks and get you a proper coffee.”
Well, shit. That cheered me right up.
“What are you waiting for?” I question, smiling up at him. “Lead the way.”
Charlie grins like he’s just won the lottery, but then, I guess winning the lottery wouldn’t be as exciting to these guys as it would be to me. I let him pull me along and as we step through the door, I can't help but glance back at Colton who's staring at the way Charlie holds my hand.
His eyes raise and meet mine and a million messages pass between us but as his lips lift into a secretive grin and he winks, I die.
He speaks right to my soul and everything clenches within me. It’s as though he just became the pussy whisperer.
Good lord. I’ve never seen anything so attractive.
I stop walking, needing a moment to recover, and with Colton out of view, I fall against the wall, trying to catch my breath. I fight the need to run back in there and straddle his waist while giving him everything I've got.
“Woah, babe. Are you okay?” Charlie asks, looking back at my struggle in a panic.
“Oh, ummm … yeah.” Shit. “Just a little dizzy is all. I haven’t had a chance to eat anything yet. It’s probably just that.”
Charlie beams back at me with excitement sparkling in his eyes. “Well, I guess I get to feed you as well. It can be a date.”
I let out a heavy sigh.
Fuck me.
Twenty minutes later, Charlie pulls away from Starbucks and as we get closer to Bellevue Spring Private, he grows quiet. As a general rule, Charlie Bryant is never quiet.
“Spit it out, Charlie,” I say as I try to stop dying over the fact that I’m in a Ferrari right now. I mean, wow. It’s got nothing on the Veneno but I’m never going to get bored of this shit.
He looks across at me and scrunches his face before turning back to the road. “It’s nothing.”
“Charlie. We’re going to pull up at BSP in less than three minutes so you have until then to get whatever answers you’re looking for, otherwise, it’s going to be stewing on your mind all day.”
“Fuck,” he sighs. “I hate when you’re right.”
“Get used to it, Hot Sauce, I usually am.”
He rolls his eyes but I can’t help but notice the grin that spreads wide across his face at being called Hot Sauce, and truth be told, watching him like that makes me want to do it again and again. I wonder what other bullshit names I can come up with that’ll make him blush.
“Stop it,” he laughs. “If you insist on having a nickname for me, it’s going to be Wild Stallion.”
“Wild Stallion,” I say, testing the words on my lips and watching as his eyes heat with excitement. “I don’t know. I think I prefer Hot Sauce.”
He shakes his head as though he’s never been so offended in his life before taking a deep breath and glancing back at me. “Don’t hate me, okay?”
My mood plummets and I narrow my eyes on him. “What did you do?”
“No, it’s not like that. I just have to ask you something and I want you to be real with me.”
I catch his eyes and it all becomes too obvious. He's giving me that same look that he had during the masquerade party when he was watching me and Colton dance so I start preparing my answer before he gets a chance to let the words fly.
“I just … are you and Colton a thing? Are you fucking him?”