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“Were you there the night of my accident?” she asked. I stopped short, caught off guard. Hell, I didn’t see that coming.

I expelled a breath, my throat dry. “Yeah,” I croaked out. “I was there.”

The fear that she was going to ask me what happened rooted itself in my gut. I wasn’t ready to have that conversation because some twisted part of me wanted her to remember it on her own — to remember me. Us.

Before she could say anything else, I ushered her towards the car. “Let’s go.”

She didn’t fight me, and the car ride was deathly silent for the remainder of the drive. She shifted a few times, but I stayed focused on getting her back to her apartment, and then get back to my house. It was the first time since I’d left my house that my thoughts drifted to Callie.

Fuck.

How was I going to explain this to her?

Was it even worth trying?

She was going to be hurt either way, since it was obvious I wasn’t as ready to move on as I thought. Anger simmered just below the surface of my skin. How much longer was I going to hang on to this shit? How much longer would it be before I realized that Kenzi had already let go?

That reminded me….

“Where’s Alex?”

“He left.”

That’s it. That’s all she gave me.

Not enough.

“What did he do?” I asked gravely. “Did he hurt you?”

Kenzi actually rolled her baby blues at me, and damn if the small, insignificant action didn’t tug at the part of me that belonged to her. Her defiance was one of the things I loved about het. Love about her. It was one item on a long as list.

“No.” Kenzi rested her feet on the seat, and then put her chin her knees. She looked so small, another thing that had always made me want to pound on my chest like a caveman. Small, yes, delicate, no. “We had a fight. He left.”

“He didn’t bother bringing you back?” The bite in my tone couldn’t be missed.

“I told him not to,” she sighed. “I didn’t want to drive back with him. That’s why I called Aiden.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, Makenzie. You got me instead.” And fuck if I knew why.

Her head whipped around. “You didn’t have to come.” She grits her teeth, the anger burning like a bright, blue light in her eyes making my skin tingle. Now is not the time to sport a semi, but hey, my dick clearly doesn’t take instructions from me anymore. And just when I thought this situation couldn’t get any more frustrating.

“Seriously, Vaughan. You chose to come, and now you’re treating me like I asked you to. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience. You can just take me to my Dad’s house, and get back to your girlfriend.”

Whoa. Is it just me, or does she sound jealous?

“You’re not an inconvenience,” I snapped. “Why can’t you just say thank you and be done with it?”

My frustration was starting to get the better of me. And being in my car with Kenzi again, bickering, was doing my head in.

Kenzi threw her hands in the air, exasperated. “You drive me crazy!”

“Join the fucking club, sweetheart!” My chest heaved.

“Pray tell how I am driving you crazy, Vaughan?”

I pursed my lips, and praised the high heavens when Coach Davis’ two-story house came into view.

“Just take the easy way out then,” she muttered. I stopped the car at the curb, and Kenzi climbed out with a huff. I didn’t bother getting out, she may have found something to lob at my head, so I waited in the car. I watched her traipse across the front yard, her overnight bag swinging around her legs, and followed her movements when she stomped up the front steps. I sat back, and breathed as if I’d just gone for a run or something. Fighting with her always did that, and I cursed my traitorous body for remembering with so much clarity what sparring with Kenzi made me feel.