Trucker (The Good Guys #1)(17)

Although I'd temporarily found a place to stay, I still felt lost. I had  no idea how I would ever be able to pay Travis back. I didn't enjoy  feeling like a mooch. Plus, what was I supposed to do on days when  Travis worked at the shop? I couldn't just sit around his apartment all  day.

Well, I could, but that would be really boring. I wondered if there was a  business in town looking for temporary help. Although I didn't have a  lot of skills, I was a hard worker.

I was drawn from my thoughts when Travis's arm tightened around me and  his hips thrust forward. He stiffened as though he just realized what he  did. Slowly, his hand traveled down the bare skin of my thigh, then  back up to my stomach where one of his fingers grazed the underside of  my breast over my shirt. My nipples tightened and I involuntarily arched  back into him.

"Baby …  you're killing me," he croaked into my neck, and the heat from his breath sent shivers down my spine.

I felt a swooping sensation in my stomach and throbbing heat in my  center that made me press my thighs together and squirm against him.

"Angel," he warned.

I laughed and wiggled again because he was kind of sexy when he got all growly.

Suddenly, I was on my back and Travis was over me. My legs parted of  their own accord, making room for him between my thighs. I could feel  his erection right where I needed it and my breathing picked up.

"What happened to the pillow wall?" he grumped and it made me smile.

"It's over there." I pointed across the room. "And over there." I  pointed to the other side of the room. "And over-" I gasped loudly when  he rocked forward once.

He was in just the right spot.

"Do it again," I pleaded, my voice no louder than a whisper.

The expression on his face was pained, but he obliged when he rocked once. Twice. Three times.

My mouth fell open and my eyes closed at the sensations from his hardness rubbing against my clit.

Last night, Travis had changed into a pair of gym shorts and the  material was thin and slinky, making it easier for me to feel him. He  let out a tortured moan and rested his forehead on mine.

"Angel," he rasped. "I want this. God, I want this, but … "

"It's too soon," I finished for him and he nodded.

My stomach chose that moment to growl, asserting its need for breakfast and giving him an easy out.

"Come on." Travis smiled before planting a quick kiss on the tip of my nose. "We'll need to go shopping if you want to eat."

*

It's amazing how much you can learn about a person by going grocery  shopping with them. At the store, Travis insisted I pick out whatever I  want and I told him I would make my famous sloppy joes for lunch.

Well, they weren't actually famous, but they should be. They were that good.

We walked through the aisles picking out our favorite foods, and I  raised my eyebrows at Travis when he loaded the cart with five frozen  pizzas.

He shrugged. "Colt and I like pizza."

In the cereal aisle, I learned his favorite was Fruity Pebbles and told  him about my love for waffles with Nutella. Or just waffles in general.

When he dropped a carton of coffee ice cream into the cart, I couldn't stop smiling because he'd remembered it was my favorite.

At check out, I cringed when the cashier announced the total and Travis got out his wallet to pay.

It reminded me that I needed to find a way to make money somehow. The  dog-walking and pet-sitting I'd done in Maine had been a great way to  make extra cash.

"You're being quiet," Travis pointed out as we drove back to his apartment.                       
       
           



       

"I was just brainstorming. Do you know anyone who wants their house  cleaned? Or I could be a dog-walker. I want to be able to pay for stuff  while I'm here. I already owe you for the past few days."

"Don't think of it like that." He shook his head. "You don't owe me anything."

"Yes, I do." I gave him my best ‘I mean business' look. "I was serious  about paying you back. Plus, it would be nice to have something to do.  To feel useful."

"Okay. I can understand that. I tell you what-ask my mom tonight. She  has a lot of friends at church who might be looking for some help."

*

The sloppy joes were a hit. Colton staggered out of his room sometime  before noon, grumbling about being hungover. His grumbling turned to  words of praise as he devoured at least four sloppy joe sandwiches.

"These are amazing," he said around a big bite. I snickered because his  face was a mess and a big glob of sloppy joe meat was smeared down the  front of his shirt. "I think I might need you to marry me."

"Hey," Travis said sharply. "You've got your own girl."

Colton just grunted in response. After the argument I'd witnessed last  night, I wasn't sure how stable things were with Tara, and I didn't want  to ask in case it was a sore subject.

I went over to the counter to get two paper towels for the guys because  gooey hamburger meat was spattered all over their faces. Travis tore his  paper towel in half and crooked his finger at me.

"What?" I asked, walking over to him.

"You've got a little something right here," he smirked as he wiped at a spot near my mouth.

Dang. I thought I got it all.

I shrugged, trying to play off my embarrassment. "They're called sloppy joes for a reason."

"Crack-joes. They should be called crack-joes." Colton laughed at his own joke before leaning back and patting his stomach.

"They're really easy to make. I can write down the recipe for you, so  when I'm gone you can make them whenever you want," I said, and the room  got quiet.

I'd meant the suggestion to be helpful, but all I'd managed to do was  remind everyone, including myself, that my time here was temporary.





TRAVIS

"So Tara and Kendra showing up last night … " Colton began. "That was a crapshoot, huh?"

Beads of sweat dripped from my forehead as I finished my last set at the bench press.

Every Saturday, Colton and I went to the gym if our schedules allowed.  We'd asked Angel if she wanted to come with us but she said she had  laundry to do and felt like staying in for the afternoon, which was cool  with me.

I kind of liked the idea of her being at my place even when I wasn't.

"Yeah," I said as I racked the weights and sat upright. "Not gonna lie,  that sucked pretty bad. How much trouble are you in with Tara?"

Colton grunted and shrugged. "She gave me a ride home last night, so I  guess things are alright. Speaking of which, can you drop me by my car?  Left it at Brick House last night."

I laughed. "I guess if I had to hang around those two, I would've drunk  myself into oblivion, too. I thought Kendra was supposed to work at  Buck's last night."

"She was," he said. "She called in sick."

"Seriously?" I asked, a little shocked that she would risk her job like that. If word got back to Buck, she could get fired.

He nodded. "I'm really sorry, man. I never should've had you go out with  her. I knew that shit was a bad idea from the start." He made a sound  of frustration. "I thought setting up that date would finally get Tara  off my back, but it just made things worse."

"You should be sorry," I said as we made our way to the pull-up bar. I  couldn't help giving him a hard time about it. He seriously owed me big  time.

"How much trouble did that cause with Angel?" he asked, concerned. "You guys left pretty early last night."

"We talked things out. It's cool," I told him and we finished the rest of our workout in silence.

After leaving the gym, I spilled my feelings about Angel. "I've dated  before but it's never been this intense. Is it too soon for me to be  feeling like this? Am I crazy?" I asked, gripping the steering wheel a  little too tight. Waking up with Angel this morning still had me all  wound up. "I've never met anyone like her. I didn't even know it was  possible to feel this way."

"Is it fast? Yeah," he confirmed. "But I've never felt the way you're  feeling. Hell, I've been with Tara almost a year … " He trailed off  because he didn't need to finish the sentence. It wasn't a secret that  their relationship wasn't great. "You and Angel have known each other  less than three days and you have a connection I've never experienced.  Fact is, I like Angel and I think she's good for you. She's genuine. And  she makes kickass sloppy joes." He grinned.                       
       
           



       

"Damn right, she does," I agreed.

"You said things aren't so good with her mom?" Colton asked. I just  nodded because I didn't want to give away too many details without  Angel's permission. We never told Hank or Colton that her mom was in  jail. "Well, maybe you could convince her to stay here." He voiced the  best-case scenario I was too afraid to hope for.