“They’ll be fine.”
“What about my car?” she asks.
“Roman will drop it off at your place.”
“Or I could simply give June my keys.”
“And risk you changing your mind and ditching me for your friends?” I counter.
Amusement plays at the corner of her mouth. “Are you saying you’d miss my company, Mr. Harden?”
More than you know.I keep the truth to myself and lift one shoulder, leaving the ball in her court.
“Fine,” she caves. A pebble skitters across the ground. “Do your lackeys know they’re doing your bidding yet?”
“Already sent them a text.”
She snorts. “Of course, you did.” Hands tucked in the front pocket of my hoodie, she adds, “Thank you, though.”
“For what?”
“For having it all figured out.”
“I don’t know if I’d go that far,” I argue.
“I would.” She hesitates. “You even clocked how much I needed to get out of there. Hell, you figured it out before I did.”
She’s right. It didn’t even take two seconds for me to see the discomfort in her pretty eyes. The way she curled in on herself. She needed a minute. A minute without spectators watching her response to them being given front row seats to her asshole of a father being…an asshole. “No problem,” I murmur.
“Speaking of your lackeys,” she continues, “your brother seemed a little…perplexed I got an invite.”
“Which one?”
“Ford,” she answers. “I can’t decide if he doesn’t like me or?—”
“He likes you fine.”
She gives me the side-eye. “You sure?”
“Yeah. He’s just…not the greatest at letting people in.”
“Kinda shocking, considering how many women I’ve seen him with.”
“Emotionally,” I clarify as we reach my truck. Instead of opening her door, I lower the tailgate, adding, “Physically, he has no problem connecting with people.”
“Connecting. As in, literally.” She snorts. “Gross.”
It is a little gross. Especially when she puts it like that. I’m not judging Ford or where he puts his dick. We all have our vices and our own ways of coping with shit. I like to kick people’s asses and bury myself inside women. Ford likes to gamble and raceand fuck. Hawke likes to…well, I have no idea what Hawke does or where he goes half the time, but still.
“Want to watch the race from here?” I ask. I don’t want to push her. She’s already shaken from my encounter with her dad. But I also don’t want to give him any kind of control, either. If she wants to stay, she should. He can’t hurt her anymore. If he does, I’ll kill him. “Or, I can take you somewhere,” I offer. “Or I can make the decision for you, if you’d prefer. Whatever you want, Vi.” I hesitate. “Do you want me to take you home?”
She shakes her head, nods, then shakes it again. The movement is jerky and forced as she chews her bottom lip, lost in thought.
“Vi?” I prod.
Blinking, she looks up at me again. “Sorry. I’m not very helpful tonight, am I?”
Not in the slightest, but I don’t mind. “What can I do?” I ask.
