Let Me Go (6 page)

Disappointment roots in her face. “Robbie, I know you won’t listen to me, but be careful.”

“I will—I am.” My assurance appeases her for now.

“I’m glad that you have a good in your life though.” She sips her iced tea. I’m sure she remembers the days when only darkness filled both of our lives.

Me too.

I GRAB THE
remote off the table to up the volume on the television to mask Chrissy’s moans of pleasure upstairs. Doesn’t the girl know how to be quiet? As if he has the keen nose of a dog, and can sniff out sex, Rob intrudes in on my solace and plops down on the armchair next to the couch. I peer over to him and then focus back to the Hotel Rescue show.

“This is right up your alley, huh?” He extends his legs out to the coffee table and crosses his ankles.

Propping up on my elbow, I rest my head in my palm. “Yeah, I love this guy.” I point to the bald, no-nonsense guy that’s in charge of the renovation.

“I’ve never seen this one.” He inches closer to hear.

“Shit, again? I swear those two never give it a rest.” He comes over, snatches the remote and then picks up my legs, eliciting a flutter in my belly and sits down.

After he positions my legs back over his lap, he turns up the volume. His eyes never veer my way. It’s comfortable and intimate the way we’re sitting. Knowing he’s probably trying to warm me up to his bed, especially hearing Chrissy’s cries for more to Dex upstairs, I begin to scoot up. His hand clamps down on my legs, halting my movement. “Friends, right?” He winks and those blue eyes are so crystal clear, you can’t miss the torment that swims in them.

“Yeah,” I mumble and relax into the couch. I try to concentrate on the television. How the owners have neglected their property and Mr. Bald man fights to fix it, but all I can focus on is Rob’s thumb massaging mindless circles on my calf. His caressing is nice and gentle, as though he’s perfectly content and doesn’t realize he’s even doing it.

Ten minutes later, Dex barrels down the stairs with basketball shorts on and a bare chest. He’s muscular, bulky, and tattooed. Good-looking for sure, but not my type. I prefer the lean muscle, like the guy whose fingertips are giving me goose bumps right now. When he stops in the doorway, I chance a glance toward Rob. His relaxed muscles still defined with his T-shirt tight along his biceps. He’s my type and God would I love to screw him, but there’s no way I’ll set myself up for failure. Guys like Rob only stay interested until you give them what they want.

“What are you two doing?” Dex asks, bringing me back to the present.

“What does it look like?” Rob’s hand never stops the motion on my calf and when I attempt to slide my legs out, he grips them tighter to keep them in place.

“Looks like you’re about to piss Chrissy off.” His eyebrows arch. “I just thoroughly fulfilled her every wish, so I’d like it to stay that way for awhile.” His fingertips grip the frame of the door and his body leans into the room. His muscles are impressive; I’m not going to lie.

“Obviously, if she’s not in complete exhaustion on your bed and unable to get up, you didn’t do too good of a job.” Dex shakes his head and then steps into the room and picks up a pillow from the chair, throwing it at Rob’s head.

The two of them chuckle and then Dex struts into the kitchen. “Hey, grab me a beer,” Rob calls out and then spins in my direction. “Do you want anything?”

“Sure . . . a beer.” I figure with no classes tomorrow, I’ll indulge.

“Paige, too.”

Dex comes back in with the beers in his hand. “Thanks.” Then he departs the room just as quickly, running back up the stairs.

“You invested in this show?” Rob asks and I face him, knowing an idea is swarming in his brain as he moves to sit up.

“No, why?” I cautiously ask, fearing I’m setting myself up for a sexual advance.

“You want to play a little rummy?”

“You mean a card game?” I clarify because I didn’t peg Rob as a guy who lounged around on a Saturday night, playing cards.

“Yeah. Do you know how to play?”

“I do, but I guess—never mind. Sure.” My legs slide out from his calloused palms and he never moves until my feet clear his body. He’s stepping up his game and from the heat between my legs, it’s working.

Rob flicks off the television, digging into a drawer and then we venture to the kitchen. He shuffles the cards and I grab a piece of paper and pen from our junk drawer. “So, how often do you play this game?” I narrow my eyes to get an idea of how easy I should go with him.

“I don’t think I’ve played since I was twelve.” He shuffles like a pro, bridging the cards and allowing them to fall in his hands.

“For some reason, I don’t believe you.” I open the pantry door and grab a bag of my microwave popcorn. “You don’t strike me as the kind of guy who doesn’t have motives two steps before his actions.”

He laughs. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”

“I know I’m right.”

I place the package in the microwave and press the button. “I’m a little surprised you’re missing your signature apparel this evening,” Rob comments, and when I swivel around, he’s leaned back in his chair, his fingers strumming along the table. This incredible sexual response comes over me, that he was admiring me going about doing a mundane task. The pleasure brings so much warmth through my veins, I wish he was mine and I could saunter over and straddle his lap. I ache to grind against the hardness I created, as his hands would find my ass.

Instead, I swallow the urge. “Oh, well, laundry day.”

He nods, his eyes moving up my legs. “I’m not sure which one I prefer.”

I laugh. “Really? Pajama pants with absurd expressions are your things?”

“Not usually, but on you they are.” My breathing stops before sputtering back up. Our eyes meet and an unbearable inner excitement flows through me. The more I swim in the blues of his eyes, the more he spins me in his web of magnetism. Just as I’m about to ignore my mind’s resistance, I jolt from the beep of the microwave and quickly spin on my heels. Grabbing the bag, I toss it back and forth in my hands because it’s so hot.

Rob laughs behind me and then the chair legs scrape along the floor and his footsteps thump behind me. “Let me help you.” He relieves the burn in my hands, opening the two corners. Steam rushes out of the bag and I grab a bowl to pour it into. We accomplish the menial job together as a team. He’s about to retreat back to the table, when he stops, leaning forward. “I like that I give you that reaction.” He whispers and I lick my lips out of reflex.

“Keep doing that and I won’t stand a chance in keeping my distance from you.”

“What if I don’t want you to?” The words slip out of my mouth before I can filter them.

“Hmm . . .” He places the bowl on the counter and then nears closer, gripping the counter on either side. “Believe me, Paige, you do.” My heart stammers and the edge of the counter digs into my palm.

Then he backs away and goes back to the table, leaving me mute stricken and frozen in place. Perfect timing when Chrissy strolls into the room. Her hair is a mess, and she’s wearing boxer shorts and a tank top. She’s giving off her cute and hot look. “What are you guys doing?” She passes by me, questioning me from the corner of her eyes.

“We’re about to play rummy!” I announce a little too excitedly.

Her head rears back and she appraises me. “Okay,” she giggles. “Sounds awesome, do you guys want to order pizza, or Philly cheese steaks?” She begins digging in the overstuffed drawer filled with menus and Dex penetrates into our little party, finally wearing a shirt.

“Babe, let’s do Chinese.” He offers a suggestion and Chrissy digs in the drawer again. Rob’s eyes narrow to Dex.

“Way to ruin our moment,” Rob says and Chrissy’s head whips around to him and then flashes to me. Her eyes filled with assumptions.

“Did we?” she asks curiously, but I shake my head.

“No, I just made popcorn.”

“Bullshit,” Rob coughs out and I peer over Chrissy’s shoulder and widen my eyes from his immature behavior at Chrissy’s expense.

“We bonded over our roommates fucking like damn rabbits,” I joke and Chrissy’s face beats red.

“You heard us?” she whispers.

“Fuck yes, we heard you. Seriously man, stuff her panties in her mouth,” Rob tells Dex, and I shoot him a confused look like is that something he’d do.

“Shut up,” Dex demands, flipping the chair backward, which I’ve come to realize is his favorite way to sit unless Chrissy’s on his lap.

“It gets Paige and me all hot. Pretty soon, we’ll have no choice but to screw each other just to relieve the pressures your screams entice.” Rob doesn’t stop his complete babble.

Chrissy doesn’t look at the guys, her face getting redder by the second. I swing my arm around her shoulders. “It’s okay, girl. I’m jealous. I’ve gone through more batteries these past months that I’m about to look into rechargeable.” She giggles and I’m glad I can lighten her embarrassment.

She pulls out the menu and we both spin around, finding Rob dealing the cards. Chrissy sits next to Dex, which leaves me the seat between her and Rob. He stares at me through the corner of his eye when I sit down. Once the cards are spread on the table, he grabs a fist full of popcorn. “Maybe we should play strip poker. Or better yet, we could play for sexual favors. How about it Paige?” He eyes me and now it’s my turn to flush.

“We aren’t having an orgy, Rob.” Chrissy speaks first and hands the menu over to me. “What do you want to eat, Paige?”

I’m glancing over the menu when Rob leans in closer to look himself. “You want to share something, I’m not all that hungry,” he asks me and there’s something about sharing a meal that is too intimate. With Chrissy and Dex in some discussion about what they are going to order, he leans in close so only I can hear him. “I’m asking you to share a meal, not be my meal.” I gasp from his words and then his hand grazes my knee. The excitement that comes over me from the stroke of his fingers still surprises me. My body has never reacted like this to a guy before.

My eyes catch his when I face him and my stomach flutters, but I try to maintain a stable infliction so he doesn’t sense my desire. “How about Sweet and Sour Chicken?”

IT TOOK MORE
convincing than I would have liked for Paige to agree on coming to Ace’s for our show tonight. Watching her in the circular booth with Sadie and Chrissy, she fits. She wiggles and shifts along the vinyl seat, indicating maybe she’s not as comfortable as I presumed. The booth is reserved for The Invisibles and our girlfriends, or girls we choose to sit there on the nights of our show. Once Sadie started dating Brady seriously, the girls we used to want to screw were no longer welcome. Sadie and Jessa made it theirs from the first night they came.

Fixing the string on my guitar that broke last night, I sit on the edge of the stage. With my guitar propped up on my legs, I admire the girls chatting. As much shit as I threw at Sadie when she first lodged a wedge in our band, she’s forgiven me and surprisingly she’s not so bad. Paige laughs with the other two girls as Roni shuttles back and forth from the bar to tables. I’m impressed with the girls. They’re all taking shots and drinking vodka tonics. If their alcohol consumption keeps going the way it has, I’m positive Paige will be swung over my shoulder tonight.