“We’ll use the money I have to get by for now. Once we find a car, I’ll help you steal it. Once it’s sold, you can give me my money back, with interest, for the added risk of being part of your carjacking scheme. Then we’ll go our separate ways. You can move on to your happy ending, and I’ll go find mine. Deal?” I held out my hand to shake.
He wet his lips. “How much interest are we talking about here?”
I dropped my hand and scoffed. “Half.”
“What? Fuck no!” His expression was a mixture of disgust and disbelief.
“It sounds fair to me. I mean, if I’m helping you steal this car and we get caught, I’ll be going away for just as long as you are.”
“That’s the thing. I work alone, and I don’t get caught. Working with someone else makes everything riskier. Plus, you wouldn’t have to help me if you didn’t fuck everything up for me.”
“Fine. Twenty-five percent—that’s my final offer.”
He rolled his eyes.
“Fine. Twenty-five percent,” he agreed.
I smiled and lifted my hand once again. This time, he shook it, and I felt the way his touch burned a path from my hand, all the way up my arm, down my chest, only to settle between my thighs. I squeezed them together to dull the ache that formed and released his hand as quickly as I could.
It felt like I’d made a deal with the devil.
I had no idea what I had gotten myself into, but I knew there wasn’t any going back, and deep down, I didn’t even know if I wanted to. I’d never wanted to break a rule before, but suddenly, being bad didn’t seem so bad. I mean, not when I was with him. I told myself I was stupid. I didn’t need to add car thief onto my list of sins, all because a cute guy looked my way with a sexy smirk. I knew his type. He’d throw me under the bus in an instant just to get himself ahead. I’d been there, done that, and I had the scars on my heart to prove it.
Chapter 8
Oliver
Did I want her getting in on my deal?
Not particularly, but she had cash, and I was going broke fast. There was no way I’d be able to get us where we needed to go. The car only had a quarter of a tank of gas.
I wanted to get some miles between us and the house I stole it from before even thinking about stopping for fuel. I didn’t need someone to see us, recognize the car, and report it stolen. After making our little deal, she settled in for the long ride ahead. She crossed her arms over her chest, leaned her head against the headrest, and directed her eyes to the passenger side window. All talk stopped with neither of us having anything to say, but I had plenty on my mind.
Neither of us mentioned our moment earlier in the day, when it seemed like we were both trapped in each other’s eyes with a million possibilities between us. I felt it again when we were crammed into that tiny closet together.
I’d only known this girl for a total of twenty-four hours, and even with all the trouble she’d already brought to my life, I still couldn’t control the feelings I was having for her. I didn’t know what to do with that either. I’d never been the relationship type. I was always too busy trying to keep my head above water tothink about relationships or a future. I fucked and left. It was what I was good at.
I wasn’t a monk by any means. If I wanted the company of a woman, I’d go out and find someone to spend the evening with, but it never went past that. In fact, Amelia was the first girl I’d spent more than a couple of hours with in I didn’t even know how long.
She was different from any of the ones that came before her, too. She seemed to be everything all at once. She drove me fucking crazy, but I had a feeling she was the only thing keeping me sane since my life went crashing down around me. She was annoying, beautiful, and good, much too good for the life she’d been living. And as I got closer to her, I could only hope that I could be better so I could give her the life she deserved. Those were the kind of thoughts that terrified me.
Since when did I think of shit like that? Since when did I want to provide for someone else? Since when did I ever think of anyone but myself?
My payday wasn’t the only thing that had changed when she crashed into my life. I did too. I just didn’t know how to accept it or what to do with it.
I didn’t tell her my Chicago plan. I wasn’t sure why, but decided to keep it to myself for now. Maybe I was scared she’d tell me she was leaving because Chicago wasn’t the city for her. I didn’t know and didn’t want to find out. I only hoped we ended up there. Together.
Fuck me for that thought.
Just one big job was all I needed to get the hell out of this life, open a mechanics shop, and just relax finally. The only thing I’d ever been good at was cars. I loved them.
We drove for a solid hour in silence before I finally took the off-ramp and rolled into the next town. I stopped at the first gas station I came to, and we both climbed out of the car. I beganpumping the gas while she headed inside to use the bathroom, grab a snack, and pay for our fuel.
I finished up and leaned against the hood of the car to stretch my legs and get some fresh air while waiting for her to come back out. I could see her through the window as she stood at the counter, talking to the cashier. Just watching her made my heart race. When she threw her head back and laughed at whatever the cashier said, I couldn’t help the rush of jealousy that filled my chest. Then I was flooded with anger. Not at her. Not at the cashier, who was clearly hitting on her, but at myself. I was being fucking stupid, and it pissed me off.
I pushed off the front of the car and moved back into the driver’s seat. I started the engine and pulled into the parking space along the front of the store. She glanced my way before cutting her conversation short and exiting the building.
She climbed into the car and slammed the door closed behind her.
