False Start - Jessica Ruddick Page 0,30
out, but I ignored it. Despite his apology, I could have rammed my fist into his nose and not lost any sleep over it. His goddamn mouth had been on Zizzo’s skin.
Jake wisely led him away.
Behind me, Ziz practically growled. “I cannot believe you.”
I turned, and she shoved me with both hands. I outweighed her by at least double, so it barely registered. “What was that for?”
Fire burned in her eyes, and her chest heaved. “I cannot believe you,” she repeated.
What couldn’t she believe? That I’d stopped a guy from pawing at her in the middle of a bar? Part of me was tempted to give her a sarcastic “you’re welcome.”
“He touched you,” I said instead, which took admirable restraint.
“With my consent,” she said, suddenly eerily calm. She peered at me like she was looking at a stranger. It was an expression I’d never seen on her before. “We were joking around.”
“He—”
“Save it. I’m leaving. Find your own way home.” She brushed past me and went to our table to retrieve her purse.
Not thinking twice about it, I followed.
When she turned, she nearly ran into me. “I’m taking your Jeep.”
She pushed past me, and I continued to follow her as she left the bar. I didn’t give a shit that she was taking my Jeep, but we’d parked a few blocks away in a dark lot. It wasn’t safe for her to walk alone. If she hadn’t worked herself up, she would realize that.
“You can’t keep doing that, Carson.” Though she addressed me, she didn’t turn to face me as she continued the trek to the Jeep.
“He—”
Spinning, she laughed bitterly, cutting me off. “Let me guess. He showed interest in me. He talked to me. He touched me. Which one is it?”
All of the above, actually. But she wasn’t in the right frame of mind to listen to reason.
She laughed again. “Or how about this one? He’s not good enough for me.”
“He’s not.” I didn’t know the guy since he was new, but Ziz didn’t need to date a football player. I’d yet to meet one who wasn’t beneath her. She was this exquisite, beautiful being, and if that weren’t enough, she was supremely intelligent. We were just thugs who played with a ball and knocked each other around.
Her anger dissipated, and her shoulders slumped, leaving her looking worn down and tired. I wanted to gather her into my arms, but even though I was drunk, I still realized that she wouldn’t want that. And why would she? Hell, I was one of the thugs she needed to stay away from. Still, I would do anything to make her not look so sad, so broken.
“You can’t keep doing that to me, not when you… when I…” She swallowed, and I would have done anything to take that look off her face. “You have to stop.”
Except I couldn’t do that. “I’ll never stop protecting you.”
She was kind, smart, and accomplished, not to mention gorgeous. Basically, she was perfect in every way. But she was small. The thought of someone putting his hands on her, hurting her, filled me with rage. I could never let that happen.
She shook her head. “That’s not what you’re doing. You’re preventing me from living.”
I recoiled. “I’m protecting you.”
“From what? From meeting a nice guy who wants to date me?”
“Guys aren’t nice.”
“Some of them are. Roman is. My dad is. Evan is.” She put her hand up. “Before you go all caveman on him, Evan and I are still just friends. And anyway, it doesn’t matter. I have the right to figure that out on my own.”
“I don’t want you to get hurt.”
She stepped closer until we were only inches apart. “You’re the one who’s hurting me, Carson.” Her words penetrated my skin, my muscles, and my bones, going straight to pierce my heart.
I inhaled sharply, which only intensified the pain. “No…”
But the sad look in her eyes told me her words were true, or at least she believed them to be. I only wanted what was best for her—she had to be able to see that.
“I need a break from it, from you. I’m sorry. But it’s more than just this. It hurts too much to be around you when…” She covered her eyes with her hand for a moment. Then without finishing her sentence, she turned and continued walking.
I waited a few seconds before following at a distance, only leaving to return to Bleakers once she was safely driving away in my Jeep.
CHAPTER 8
Becca
THE NEXT