Taken by Storm (Give & Take) - By Kelli Maine Page 0,13

kiss it. “Does it hurt?” she asked instead.

He made a noncommittal sound and shrugged. “Had worse.”

Dark stubble lined his jaw, and she knew exactly how it would feel against her cheek. Her face and chest grew warm thinking about it.

If they were any other two people, the silence would be filled with questions like: How’ve you been? How were classes last semester? Have you seen that movie that just came out?

But, they weren’t two other people and they were so far beyond small talk, they couldn’t even pretend. She might as well stick with the sore subjects then. “Where were you going to stay last night? You had a duffel bag with you.”

He contemplated his answer. His gaze dropped to his lap before he spoke. “With this girl I know.”

Her throat constricted. She inhaled a shallow breath and kept her face forward. He couldn’t know he’d just killed her.

Maddie hadn’t thought for a second that MJ had been mourning her in celibacy for the past year and a half. He was a college baseball player. Girls were probably all over him constantly. But, she hadn’t allowed herself to think about him with someone else. Now here it was—the truth—right in her face, in his own words.

Words that killed her. Twisted her into knots inside. Her heart rioted and writhed in pain, but she’d never let on. “Your girlfriend?” The question came out small and quiet. She hated how it sounded.

“You want to talk about this?” he asked in a pissed off rush of words. “Should we dig it all out and talk about our feelings, Maddie? Is that really what you want to do? Maybe you should start by finally telling me why you left.”

MJ would never understand unless she told him why she left. How his grandfather confronted her. How he’d threatened to fire her dad if she didn’t leave.

“No,” she whispered. “I don’t want to talk about it.” She slammed the golf cart to a stop behind the garage.

MJ grabbed her wrist before she could jump out. His lips were drawn tight. His brows knit. “Don’t make me say things that will hurt you.” His gaze dropped to her lips then back up. He closed his eyes and shook his head slightly. She pulled her wrist from his grasp and slid out of the cart.

“I have to get my car keys.” Maddie took the stairs up to her dad’s apartment as fast as she could. She had to get away from him and collect her thoughts, control her emotions. Inside it was dark and cool with the curtains pulled shut. She wanted to collapse onto her bed, hide under the covers and never come out. Instead, she grabbed her purse off her dresser, dug her keys out of the front pocket and headed back outside.

MJ waited on the passenger side of her car. She clicked the key fob to unlock the doors, and they both climbed in. The leather seat was scorching hot and burned the back of her legs. She jumped and practically landed in his lap.

They fumbled trying to get distance between each other, but her hair was tangled in his watchband. She’d given him the watch on his birthday two years ago. “Don’t move!” she yelled. “You’re pulling my hair out.” Her head tilted awkwardly to the side.

“Why did you jump like that?” His fingers frantically worked to free her hair.

“The seat’s too hot.” She bobbed her knees trying to keep the heat off the backs of her thighs.

He gave up and took his watch off. “Here. You can get it out easier than I can.”

She took his watch and slid back behind the wheel, immediately feeling a sense of loss from being so close to him. She unwound most of her hair then gave up and yanked the watch free. Her scalp stung for a second, but she didn’t care. This torturous moment needed to be over. “Here.” She handed the watch back to him, and he shoved it in his pocket.

Maddie wished the drive was longer than the five minutes it took them to get to the Third Base Lounge. Neither of them said one word on the way.

MJ’s car was the only one in the lot. With the top down, he was lucky it was a good neighborhood or it might not have been sitting there still. He’d never been this careless before. This reckless.

“Thanks,” he said, getting out of the car.

His door slammed closed before she muttered, “Welcome.” So, she rolled