Rock Chick Renegade (Rock Chick #4)(25)

Vance watched me while I talked but at my last words, he broke in. “They gotta save themselves.”

“They’re kids!” I protested.

“They’ve learned enough to know their lives are in their hands.”

“They’re kids, Vance.”

“Jules.”

“No,” I shook my head. “No. They’re special and if I don’t do anything else in my life, I’m gonna make sure they have one.”

“Jules.”

“No!” I shouted.

Vance stared at me then I could tell he came to a decision. “I’m not gonna change your mind, am I?” he asked.

I shook my head.

“Then you gotta stop what you’re doin’ at night so you can be around to take care of them.”

I went back to silence.

Vance stared at me again. Then he muttered, “Shit.”

I couldn’t help myself. I knew he was giving up so I grinned.

He caught the grin and his eyes flashed. I stopped grinning.

“You go out, I’m your shadow,” he said. “Someone has to keep you safe.”

Um… no. I thought.

“No,” I said out loud.

“Yes.”

“No!” I yelled. “I know what I’m doing.”

“You don’t have a f**kin’ clue.”

I frowned at him. “Leave it alone, Vance. I know what I’m doing. I know you and all the boys think that I’m some kind of idiot female but I’m not. I know what I’m doing.”

He dropped to his side, taking me with him so we were face-to-face. “I’m keepin’ you alive,” he said.

“Vance –”

“You’re gonna stay alive. At least until we have a second date.”

I rolled my eyes.

It was my turn to give up. It was his turn to grin.

Okay, then I was going to get something out of it. “I want a favor,” I said.

His grin deepened and the change happened, this time it was the sexy change. “Yeah?”

“You’ll get a second date if you come into King’s tomorrow and talk to Roam.”

The change vanished. “I’m not takin’ him in.”

I shook my head. “No. I don’t want you teaching him. I just want you to walk up to him, talk to him in front of the other kids like you know him, like you respect him. Roam and Sniff. All the kids know about you, they respect you. You act like Roam’s your boy, it’ll enhance his reputation. It’ll mean something to the other kids. It’ll give him confidence.”

It would do more than that. It would give him just a tiny smidgen of what he wanted. It would be the first time he got even a taste of a life’s desire.

To Vance, it was taking thirty minutes and talking to a kid.

To Roam, it could change his life.

Vance didn’t answer, he just looked at me.

I leaned in, a bit, not much and then I whispered, so low you almost couldn’t hear it, “Please.”

Vance’s eyes changed again, they went soft and sexy and I felt my breath catch.

“I’ll do it.”

I didn’t realize my body was so tense but when he agreed I relaxed into him. His arms got tight and his hands drifted up my back, pressing me to his body.

“One condition,” he said.

Oh crap.

“What?” I asked.

“This second date is tomorrow night, you’ll be here and you won’t stand me up.”

“Okay,” I agreed instantly.

“That’s not the condition.”

Fuck.

“What?” I repeated.

“I take you out, after, I spend the night here. You don’t go out huntin’ drug dealers. You stay in, all night, with me, in this bed, na**d and when I make you come you say my name.”

My stomach plummeted again, it felt good again but still, I just stared at him.

I couldn’t promise that. “Crowe –” I started.

“Take it or leave it.”

I could just not believe this.

“I’m asking you to do something nice for a kid and you’re asking… you’re… I don’t believe you.”

“Maybe I should tell you somethin’ about me. I learned early you don’t do somethin’ for nothin’ and you get the best deal out of your end as you can. I want you. I want to taste you. I want to f**k you. I want to make you come and I want to hear you moan my name when you do so I know that you know it’s me who made you come. You don’t agree, I don’t see Roam.”

I frowned at him. “I think you might just be a bastard,” I snapped.

“Get over it,” he returned.

I stayed silent trying hard not to scratch his eyes out or knee him in the balls.

“Jules, you want it too,” he told me and even though he was right, it still pissed me off.

“All right, fine,” I clipped. “Tomorrow night.”

God, the things I did for my boys.

He rolled into me again, pushing me to my back and I glared at him.

“Is our talk over?” I asked irritably.

“Yeah,” he said but the change was over him and he was smiling at me. It was a small smile but a satisfied one.