“No. I don’t feel unsafe, but I’ll be a nervous wreck the entire drive. I’ve never even sat in a car this nice before.”
“Layla…” He slides his phone back into his pocket and reaches for me. I go willingly because, in a short amount of time, I’ve learned that there is nothing better than being in his arms. “Life is about to change for you. You’re going to be making good money, enough to stand on your own. You’re going to be able to afford new shoes, and a new car if that’s what you want. Get used to this. This is your new normal.”
“It’s scary,” I admit. “I want that, but it feels like it’s a fantasy and not my life. I’ve never had financial security. I don’t even know what that looks like.”
“I’m right there to guide you. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Sure, until you get tired of my freak-outs.” I rest my head against his chest. “I’m sorry, this is just all new to me, and I’m having a hard time understanding how I got so lucky.”
“Hey.” He tilts my chin up with his index finger. “I’m the lucky one. Don’t ever forget that.” His lips press to my forehead, and I can feel my body relax into him. It’s as if I have zero control over the way I react to him, to his touch, or to his kisses.
“Fine,” I concede. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” I say, holding my hand out for the keys.
“It’s going to be fine. After, we can grab some lunch.”
“We just had breakfast,” I remind him. His eyes heat at the mention of breakfast. We did nothing more than steal a few kisses, yet it was intimate, and I loved every minute of it. If you had told me a year ago I’d enjoy spending time with a man who was bossy and liked to feed me, I would have told you that you’d lost your damn mind. Now, today, it’s not so bad. Not when it’s Owen.
“I’m a growing boy,” he says, rubbing his stomach and grinning.
There is nothing boy-ish about the man. “Uh-huh, let’s go,” I say, taking the offered keys from his hands, and climbing behind the wheel of his extremely expensive car.* * *“See that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Owen asks as we pull out of the lot of the car rental place.
“No, it wasn’t bad, but I white-knuckled it all the way here.” That’s not an exaggeration. My grip was so tight on the wheel my knuckles literally turned white.
He reaches over and takes my hand in his, bringing it to his lips. He takes his time placing a feather-soft kiss on each knuckle. “Thank you,” he says softly, not taking his eyes off of the road, and effectively melting me into a pile of longing.
“Now where to?” I ask him.
“I thought we could stop by Royce and Sawyer’s place to get the keys to the apartment.”
“Oh, okay,” I say, suddenly worried about meeting his family.
“What’s that about?”
“I just didn’t realize I’d be meeting them today. I’m a mess.” I motion at my body that’s covered in worn cutoff jean shorts and a tank top. The only new item I’m wearing that’s not a hand-me-down or purchased at a second-hand store are the flip-flops on my feet. They’re one of the pairs Owen bought me the day we went shopping.
“You’re perfect,” he assures me.
Biting down on my bottom lip, I try to push back the anxiety that’s threatening to take over. I’m meeting his brother and his brother’s fiancée. Am I just the new girl at Riggins Enterprises? Am I more? I don’t really know, and that causes my anxiety to spike. I know it’s crazy; he’s told me that this is more for him, but there is this constant worry that the other shoe is going to drop. It’s like Owen Riggins fell right out of the sky, and my life with him in it is better than I ever could have imagined. I’m scared I’m going to lose that.
“Lay, baby, what’s going on? Tell me what you’re thinking?” His soothing voice washes over me.
“Who are you going to tell them that I am? I mean, I don’t really know what we are, and I’m not sure if it’s just between us or if it’s more. I just… I don’t know, Owen. I’m not good at these kinds of situations. This is all new to me.” He surprises me when he signals and pulls the car over to the side of the road. I watch as he puts the car in Park and turns to face me, or as best as he can with his seat belt still intact.
“What this is between us is just that. It’s us. That means it’s just you and me. There is no other woman in my life and no other man in yours. However, that doesn’t mean that we’re hiding what we are to one another.”