Xavier Cold (Hard Knocks #2)(15)

“Ready?” I ask Anna.

She nods. “Let’s go.”

Once we’re on the bike, relief floods through me. I’m grateful to be out of that f*cking house. The bike rumbles to a stop, Anna peels her body off me and hops off. I balance its weight between my thighs as I grin and reach over to unfasten the buckle beneath her chin. My fingertips lightly trace her skin, causing her to instantly blush. I love the way the slightest touch from me affects her. It’s nice to constantly have confirmation that I can turn her on so quickly with such a simple move.

She pulls the helmet off her head and hands it to me. I throw the kickstand down and then set the helmet on the handlebar before I swing my leg over the bike to get off.

When I turn around, I catch Anna staring at my ass, and it causes me to chuckle. She jerks her eyes away, embarrassed that I caught her looking.

One corner of my mouth pulls into a lopsided grin. “See something you like?”

The blush on her cheeks deepens, and she shrugs sheepishly. “I can’t help it. Your body . . . it’s pretty fantastic.”

I tuck two fingers into the waistband of her jeans and pull her against me. I gaze down at her pouty pink mouth, and all that crosses my mind is the thought of kissing her. “You keep saying things like that to me, beautiful, and I’ll toss you back onto this bike and take you right here in this parking lot.”

Her eyes widen, and her mouth falls agape. “You wouldn’t.”

I slide my bottom lip between my teeth as I contemplate carrying through on my threat. “You’re right, but that’s only because the thought of any other man seeing you naked drives me out of my f*cking mind.”

“You don’t have to worry about that because this belongs only to you.”

“Mmm . . . I like it when you say that,” I admit.

“What?” She blinks slowly as she gazes up at me.

“You saying that you’re mine.”

“I’ll always be yours.”

When I hear those words willingly come out of her mouth, my heart does a double thump. I didn’t have to bring her to the edge of orgasm and force her to admit she was mine seconds before I made her come.

My cock jerks in my jeans, and if we don’t change this conversation, I’ll throw her sweet little ass back on this bike and find a place where we can be alone.

I sigh and then reach down and grab her hand, pulling my brain out of the sex daze it entered. “Food. We came here for food.”

“Right.” She giggles. “I nearly forgot.”

I lead her into the diner. Nettie is busy wiping down the counter, and Carl is throwing food around on the grill.

Nettie glances up at me and smiles. “I’ll be right there, sugar.”

“Take your time,” I call to her as I guide Anna to my favorite corner booth. “Hey, Carl,” I toss over my shoulder before I slide into the booth.

“What up, X?” he replies as he flips a steaks onto a plate.

Anna slips into the booth, and then I slide in across from her. I study her face as she reads over the menu. Her dark hair is down and a little wild from the ride here, but she looks as beautiful as ever. Her green eyes move around from one page to the next as she reads. Those eyes of hers are the first things that caught my attention on the plane. They stand out so much against her tan complexion that it’s impossible not to notice them. When she looks at you with them, you know how sincere she is. You can read it in her eyes.

“I think I’m going to have—” Her eyes flick to mine, and she pauses. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“How am I looking at you?” Is it possible to tell that I’m thinking about her by the expression on my face? I’m typically pretty damn good at hiding my emotions.

“I don’t know,” she says. “You look like you’re lost in thought.”

I stretch my hand across the table and take her hand in mine. “I’m glad you’re here.”

That makes her smile and seems to appease her curious mind.

It doesn’t take long for Nettie to make it over to our table. She focuses on me when she asks, “Did you get settled in?”

The real question she wants to ask is, Were you able to handle going back into that house?

I kept my shit together when we were there, mostly to make Anna feel safe. There was no way in hell I wanted to peel back the curtain on my whole f*cked-up psyche in front of her.

Her seeing my nightmare freak-outs is bad enough.

I don’t deserve a good girl like Anna to stick by my side, but I’m glad she’s here, and I plan on keeping her forever.

I lean back and throw my arm over the top of the booth. “We did. Things are going to be fine.”

I hope my actions are enough to reassure Nettie so that she won’t worry, but I can tell by the pointed look she’s giving me that understands it was harder for me than I led on.

She sighs and then moves to change the subject because she knows me well enough to expect that I’m not going to elaborate any further on the situation. “You still on that protein diet, honey?”

“No. Seeing as how I don’t even have a gym to work out at right now, my training is on hold until I can get back to it.”

“So, you gonna have a cheat meal then? Your favorite?”

I lift one shoulder in a noncommittal shrug. “Sure. Why not?”