"I'm twenty-four years old. I think I'm as grown as I'm going to get."
"You went from being Daddy's little girl to Marc's Stepford fiancée. I don't want a woman who doesn't even know what she does and doesn't like and who can't make a god damn decision on her own."
Christ. Was that what he thought of me?
"How can I? You won't let me."
"Fine. Do whatever the fuck you want to do. Go to the club, get screwed figuratively and literally if you must. I'm done trying to put you on the right path. You're going to have to wander around the woods and hope you don't get eaten by the big bad wolf, little girl." Gray walked out the door.
Those tears I'd been holding in before streamed down my face. I was mad and sad and so fucking done. I couldn't let him have the last word.
"Maybe I want to get eaten by the wolf. At least somebody would be eating me."
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Fuck It
Slinky black dress. Check. Notebook for writing down and keeping my own list of contacts, and a few questions for Foster. Check. Underpants. Uncheck.
Nobody said I couldn't have some fun while I was at The Asylum. Well except Gray, and I wasn't sure where we stood.
There was still a tiny ping of a headache at the base of my skull from the fight we'd had. He hadn't ever yelled at me before.
He'd been mad at me, plenty of times. I'd been told off and counseled more times than I could count on one hand, one foot, and the other hand and the other foot. But his voice was always low, calm, and almost fatherly or brotherly. Not last night.
I'd tossed and turned all night and with each flip changed my mind about whether to go to the club or not. At about four twenty-seven this morning, I'd said fuck it, out loud, and decided I was going whether Gray wanted me to or not.
He sulked in his garage all day and with his pissy mood, I certainly wasn't asking him to drive me to the club. Even if he was my employee.
We'd both forgotten that recently. Maybe I'd fire him so we could be something else.
I slipped into the stupidly high heels. Any other time they would be ridiculous, but at The Asylum I needed armor. When I walked into the garage Gray had his head under the hood of the one car I wanted to drive. The Aston Martin meant money, but it also let the driver say to the world "don't mess with me, I'm Bond, James Bond."
"Where do you think you're going looking like that?"
The dickhead had eyes in the back of his head because he hadn't even glanced at my badass outfit. Whatever. "I don't want to fight with you right now. Which car can I take?"
Yeah, that was me, all business and no getting busy.
What in the hell was so damn interesting under the hood of that car that he couldn't be bothered to even look up to talk to me?
"Depends on where you're going."
If he was trying to piss me off, it was working. "Out."
He finally took his head out of his ass, uh, I mean the car, and straightened up. He glanced at me, or rather at my boobs and dare I say a twinkle of interest sparked in his eye? Yes, I dare. My dress showed enough skin to get me arrested or get someone's attention.
"Then I'll drive you."
He was testing me. I didn't feel like taking a test right now. "No thanks."
He nodded to the other side of the garage. "You can take the Range Rover."
Yeah, because that'd be sexy. I rolled my eyes and indicated to my dress. "I'm not going on a safari."
He did that irritating one-shoulder shrug that totally meant what I said didn't matter. He was ignoring me. "It has room for the puppies."
"I'm not taking the guys with me." I didn't want to walk in there with an entourage. They'd look like a circle of bodyguards.
"Yes. You are." His voice had that damn sexy Dom ring to it. I almost wanted to do what he said.
Then I snapped out of it and remembered we'd had a fight and I was expressly defying what he wanted from me. "Fine. I'll take a cab."
I turned on my heel, teetered only slightly and strutted toward the door. Gray snort-laughed. More snort than laughed.
I waved his derision away with the tiny purse I was holding. "I've taken a taxi before."
"When?" There was still that laugh to his tone.
I paused at the door to the garage, posing, giving him one last chance to bend to my will and give me a car.
"All the time." Also known as hardly ever, which he damn well knew.
He stared at me, plying his Jedi mind tricks on my brain until I gave in. "Once with Marc."
I guess he was waiting for me to bend to his will with the truth. I cursed that he could see through my bluster. But it got me what I wanted. He tossed me the keys.
"Take the Aston. I'm done with it. But choose someone to go with you."
Could I, should I? Not much left to lose. "I pick you."
Gray's head shot up. I honestly think I surprised him. I shocked the hell out of me.
He looked at me and crossed the garage. Every cell in my body went on high alert.
He took me in his arms and lowered his head for a kiss. I melted, right there, into a puddle in his arms.
Why were we fighting again? He so gently rubbed his lips across mine but didn't go any further. Not even when I whimpered.
"Not this time, Angel, and stay away from the Asylum."
"Eso que ni qué."
I was going straight to hell for lying to him, but I was going to have fun first.
One step at time, I told myself. I'd make my way to Gray... one seduction at a time. I wasn't totally done rebounding. I had some wild rebellion that needed to be allowed out.
And I knew just the place.
The Asylum.