Revved (Axle Alley Vipers)(44)

“So you’ll talk to me?”

Laying her head on his chest, she nodded against his pec, melting into him, soft and sweet, dropping that barrier. “Okay.”

“I’m listening.”

Her swallow was audible, but then she finally started talking. Thank God.

“I had a major crush on this guy at school, Brian Jamison. I never told anyone but Piper and Alex. I guess it was hard to hide. They pegged me right off. I’d start blushing and stuttering whenever he was around.” She wriggled on his lap, getting comfortable. “I had a reputation at high school. Some of the guys called me a cock tease, frigid, ice queen. You know, that kind of thing. I learned from a fairly young age my looks got me attention, whether I wanted it or not. I hated it. I’ve always hated it. People don’t tend to look any deeper, you know? So I never went on dates or favored any one guy.”

He rubbed her back, encouraging her to carry on. He had an idea where this was going and could already feel his blood pressure starting to boil over. “Keep going, Foxy.”

“Anyway, I liked Brian more than I’d ever liked any other guy. For the first time I wanted to be noticed, I wanted him to see me, get to know me. Our senior prom was coming up and a few guys had asked me out, but I wasn’t interested in any of them. So, nervous out of my mind, I got up the courage to ask him to go with me. He said yes right away. I was excited, really happy that he liked me too.”

Of course he did. Little asswipe.

“Prom night came, and we all went. We had a blast…then afterward Brian took me to the hotel he’d booked for us, and me being naive and, I thought, in love, followed blindly. He started kissing me as soon as we got in the door, no small talk, then onto the bed. It was embarrassing and rushed. He made no attempt to prepare me and just pulled off my underwear, pushing inside me before I was ready. It wasn’t only embarrassing, it hurt as well, and not just for the obvious reason.”

Every muscle in his body went rock solid. He was sure plenty of teenage girls had similar stories, assholes that treated them like shit, but this was Rusty, his Rusty, and the thought of anyone treating her that way turned him inside out.

“He finished a few minutes later. I…” He could actually feel her cringing against his chest. “I tried to wrap my arms around him. I thought he loved me. But he jumped off the bed, did up his pants, and ran to the door, flinging it open. His friends poured in and cheered. High fives were exchanged followed by…money.”

“What?” He growled, a dangerous edge to his voice.

She lifted her head, looking him in the eye. “It was a bet. To see if he could take the ice queen’s virginity. Thankfully, Alex and Piper were at a party in the same hotel, heard the noise, and ran over. Alex went ape-shit and smacked Brian over the head with a chair, and the guys took off.” She rested her head on his chest again. “That was my introduction to sex and relationships. My mother cheating on my father and leaving us a few years before had already skewed my ideas about love and lasting commitment. I guess that’s why I don’t date. Silly, I know. It was a long time ago, and I should’ve gotten over it already.” He felt her slim shoulders shrug. “But I don’t trust easily. It’s kind of hard when the person you trusted most in the world left you behind without a second glance, then the first guy you ever liked, took your virginity on a bet.”

He’d learned more about her and how her mind worked in the last few minutes than he had in the last couple of weeks. Now he understood her hesitation, her wariness.

Reid tightened his arms around her. “There’s nothing silly about any of it. That asshole treated you like shit when he should have treated you like gold. That’s his loss. As for your mother, she missed out big time. That was her mistake, and I can guarantee one day she’ll regret her decision to cut her kids out of her life.” He kissed the top of her head. “But you gotta know. I won’t fuck you over that way, ever. We give this our best shot. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn’t, we part ways like adults. But, Foxy, you gotta talk to me. If I piss you off, you tell me. You talk to me about it. You don’t throw a rock through my window, and you sure as fuck don’t try to hit me.”

She winced, all color draining from her face. “Oh, God. I’m sorry…after your father…” She slid her hands up either side of this neck. “You didn’t deserve it. I let my temper get the better of me. I can’t believe I did that.”

“I get it, babe. But this is finished now. We put it behind us?” She nodded, and he slid his fingers into her silky, red hair, tipping her head back. “Now enough talking for tonight. I want that mouth.”