You've Got Fail(64)

“Okay.” I stepped back and grabbed another chocolate bonbon, my fourth, and downed it.

The woman leaned closer to Scarlet and whispered her question. Jina leaned in, getting an earful. Scarlet thought for a minute, didn’t so much as give me a glance, then whispered her answer to the woman.

I returned and gave Scarlet a fresh glass of champagne as the woman walked away. “What was the question?”

Scarlet crooked her finger at me to come nearer.

I had no problem doing that. Her vanilla scent was like a constant demand for me to get closer.

“She said that she has a major problem with queefing. Always queefing, even when she hasn’t had sex for a while.”

“Oh.” I actually reddened a bit at that. “What did you say?”

“To check with her gynecologist. But that kegels might be the best way to help tighten the muscles down there to stop air from getting through.”

I raised my eyebrows in appreciation. “Well done.”

She smiled, my praise lighting her up, which in turn gave me a bit of a glow as well. “Who’s next?”

Jina tapped a large man, possibly a basketball player, on his arm. He turned and walked over, giving Scarlet a shy smile.

“Hi, I’m Scarlet.” She offered her hand, and his meaty palm engulfed it.

“Drake.” His low voice was more of a feeling than a sound.

“Nice to meet you. Do you have a question for me?”

“Yeah.” He cleared his throat, shyness seeming to overtake his enormous frame. “I’ve been dating this girl for a few months. We hit it off really quickly. Whenever I’m in town, we go out and do things. She’s smart, funny, beautiful, has it going on in so many ways. Great in bed, great out of bed, all of that.”

“Got it. So what’s going on?”

“She’s sort of—I don’t know how to describe it—but she seems like she’s always waiting for the other shoe to drop. She’s so confident in her job and with me on most things, but she doesn’t seem sure that we’ll last. And I feel like she’s holding back from me because of it.”

Scarlet’s cheeks began to turn a cute shade of pink as this hulk of a man more or less described her to herself.

“Great question.” I chimed in before draining my glass. Jina hummed her agreement as she tapped away on her phone.

“Thanks, man.” He nodded at me, then returned his attention to Scarlet. “Got any advice for me?”

“Maybe she has secrets, and maybe she’s afraid if you find them out, you won’t want her anymore.”

He cocked his head to the side. “What kind of secrets?”

“Maybe she, I don’t know, has a shopping addiction, or a weird family, or”— Scarlet cast me a sidelong glance—“she’s spent her whole life being this one thing. And when you came along, you made her hope that she could be more than that, you know? You gave her this idea that she could have a happily ever after with you. That maybe she could outrun her demons and be the woman she saw reflected in your eyes.” She took a breath. “But the thing is, she can only run for so long before they catch up. And she dreads that moment, because she doesn’t want you to look at her differently when you find out about the real her—the one that isn’t so put-together, or happy, or good. She’s afraid she’s not good enough for you, and even more afraid that you’ll agree with her.”

All the breath left me. Is this how Scarlet saw herself? Saw us? It took every bit of willpower I had in me to keep myself from dragging her into my arms right then and there. I didn’t care about her secrets, or her past, or whatever darkness she wanted to hide from me. I knew her. And the real her—the one who’d captured my heart—could never let me down, no matter what skeletons danced in her closet.

Drake scrubbed his chin as he thought about her words. “I see what you’re saying. I do. And it definitely helps me. Because now I see that I need to give her that reassurance. Show her that she can trust me to be there for her no matter what. Because I will be.” He smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” She sort of upturned the end, as if unsure she’d helped.

“Thank you, darling.” Jina stowed her phone. “This was perfect for me.” She hurried through the crowd, her peacock feathers tickling noses as she went.

“Come on.” I grabbed Scarlet’s hand and pulled her toward the entrance.

“Wait. We’re not done with—”

“Oh, we’re done here.” I wrapped my arm around her waist, intent on carrying her out if I had to. “But your night’s just starting. I’m going to worship every inch of your body until you open up to me—and I meant that as a double entendre, obviously.”

“Willis,” Jason walked toward me, then stopped and saluted once he got a look at my face and the fact that I was practically caveman carrying Scarlet. “You two are the best.”

“Put me down.” She slapped at my forearm.

“Why?” I had her almost to the front door.

“Because I need to tell you something.” She tried to pry my arm free.

“Can’t you tell me in the car on the way to my place?”

“No.” The iron in her voice stopped me.