I open my mouth and close it again. It doesn’t feel like it’s been that long, that much I know.
Casually, as if his comment doesn’t affect me, I say, “We were different people then, we’re older now, we know what we want.”
“Right, and she doesn’t want you,” Brew grunts. “So just get it into your thick skull and move on already. We’re all sick of hearin’ about it every day.”
“I don’t talk about her every day,” I interject, watching my girl smile at the crowd.
“Yes, you do,” they both say in unison.
Yet I don’t hear a thing because Willow’s eyes suddenly meet mine from across the room. She has the prettiest soft green and hazel eyes I have ever seen. I swear to god they’re like one of those mood rings — they change color, depending on the day.
Today, however, they look more black onyx than a pretty shade of jade, narrowed in my direction as she slowly shakes her head. Okay, so maybe she doesn’t like me being here, but it’s for her own protection. She may be the ‘captain’ now but that doesn’t mean I’ll ease my vigilance when it comes to her safety. Far from it.
Willow is a precious commodity that must be protected at all costs. I wasn’t asleep during our marriage vows. I meant every word, and frankly? Enough time has passed.
We made a pact after all, and I might just remind her of that.
I jiggle my eyebrows at her, grinning — a move I know will only infuriate her further.
Of course she looks sexy as fuck, nothing new there. Her hair is long but tied back neatly into a bun, her ample rack shielded by her uniform, and I know for a fact she has an ass. There’s nothing hotter than a woman in uniform, and Willow wears it well. Standing at just five feet tall, she’s tiny, and kind of sweet looking if I’m being honest. But what she lacks in height she makes up for in everything else.
Attitude.
Snark.
A smart mouth.
If you ask me, Willow usually has too much to say for herself, but she also has the knack of being in the right place at the right time. Unlike our wedding. She may not have very fond memories of that auspicious occasion, but I certainly do.
After homecoming, we hung out as friends, not hooking up until we got to college, and even then it was casual. Willow was a scholar, I was anything but.
Where she excelled in everything she put her mind to, I struggled. I wasn’t a dumb kid, I just didn’t enjoy studying. I preferred to get my hands dirty rather than sitting in class, bored out of my mind.
Needless to say, I dropped out and learned a skill, trying my hand at mechanics and metalwork. On the side, I became a fighter in underworld boxing. It paid well, and I enjoyed using my fists, but Willow didn’t enjoy seeing me beat up all the time.
What are you doing here?Willow mouths.
I shrug.
Someone steals her attention away, and she averts her gaze, smiling at them. That familiar smile? I know it only too well. It’s polite. The one she reserves for work, colleagues or parents. Willow hates crowds. She’s never been one for praise either. Well, only in the bedroom, but that’s another matter.
“I think she hates your guts,” Sawyer tells me helpfully.
Before he can deflect, I elbow him in the ribs and he doubles over, groaning.
“You always go for the cheap shot,” Brew says. “Are we done here?”
I ignore him. “When you’ve had a relationship for longer than five minutes, come back and talk to me, until then, shut the fuck up.”
Sawyer likes to think that he is the world’s leading expert on women and relationships, but he doesn’t know shit. Nova, our cousin who works for us, has taken a shining to him but there’s no way Sawyer is gonna act on it and keep his balls intact. Not. Gonna. Happen. Even though Nova’s a fully grown consenting adult, that doesn’t mean she knows what’s best for her.
I wish my wife knew what was best for her…
You look great.I mouth when Willow’s gaze finds me again.
Another eye roll. Some things never change.
My wife may be teeny, but she scares the living shit out of people. I could see how that could happen. Being beautiful and sharp doesn’t mean she has to have long legs, not when she can kill a man at ten paces just with her glare.
