“Ancoats.”
It’s out of my way but I don’t tell him that. Pulling out of the car park, I turn in the opposite direction of where I live. Theodore gapes out of his window, his hands drumming nervously against his knees.
“Where are you from?” I ask. I don’t know why I’m interested, but I can’t help wanting to know more about him.
“Rochdale.”
Hmm. “You don’t have the broad accent.”
“Sorry,” he mutters, sarcasm dripping from his voice.
“Brothers and sisters?”
“Brother.”
“Boyfriend?” I ask because I’m wondering if that’s why he’s so pissed off that we had sex.
“No.”
“Do you always stick to one word answers?”
“Not to people I like.”
A wicked grin pulls on one side of my mouth. “Well that was five words. Guess you do like me after all.”
“Whatever.”
Whatever? Seriously? What is he, twelve? I find it oddly adorable.
I give up on trying to make conversation…for now. Using my thumb, I activate the stereo with the buttons on my steering wheel. It connects automatically to my iPhone and Hey There Delilah by the Plain White T’s floods the car. I crank up the volume, expecting a reaction from Theodore but he doesn’t even flinch. So I start singing, belting the words with as much power as my lungs will allow.
Still, I get nothing. Not even a sideways glance in my direction. So, I do something he can’t possibly ignore. Fiddling with the controls, I skip through the tracks until I land on Maybe Tomorrow by the Stereophonics, and then turn it up even louder.
“I know you know this one,” I yell over the music before breaking out into the first verse. Risking a glance to my left, I notice he’s shifted in his seat, turning away from me. It’s not the reaction I’m pushing for, but it’s a reaction nonetheless and I take it with a proud smile.
When the song begins to die down, I turn off the stereo. “You weren’t too shy to sing on Friday night.”
“Stop comparing me to that night!” he snaps, finally looking at me. “That wasn’t me.”
His answer forces my brow to furrow. I feel like he’s punched a hole in my chest. “You sure look like him. Maybe I should take another look at your dick to make sure.”
“Next left,” he says, pointing to the turning I need to take, ignoring me completely.
I don’t understand this man at all. I shouldn’t even give a shit, but I do, and it’s frustrating me. “Do you want me to apologise for fucking you?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Then why are you being so hostile towards me? I’m doing you a favour here, and you’re being an arsehole.”
Eyes focused on the road, I can’t see his expression, but I hear him sigh through his nose. “Look,” he begins, his tone relaxed for the first time. “I know about your reputation and I don’t want any part of it. If I’d known who you were on Friday I never would’ve-”
“My reputation?” I interrupt, curious and slightly amused.
“That you have a thing for fucking your way through the office juniors. Well, I’m not going to be one of them.” He sighs again, sounding flustered. “Not again, anyway.”
“It’s not true,” I say. His knees fall towards the middle of the car and I feel his gaze burning into my cheek. “I don’t discriminate. I’m happy to fuck management, too.”
I see him shake his head in the corner of my eye and, as a result, we’re back to single word answers again. “Sure.”
As told, I turn left and wait for his next command. Presumably, I’ve blown any chance of deeper conversation. At least, I try to keep quiet, but I just can’t seem to help myself. “Were you a virgin?” I ask, wondering if that’s why he’s so uptight about what happened.
“No!” he barks, sounding almost offended. The fervency of his voice makes me believe him. “Please,” he adds, his tone begging. “Can we just forget about Friday?”
I don’t want to, and I won’t. “If that’s what you want.”
“It is.” He points to the windscreen. “It’s those flats over there.”
I make the effort not to scrunch my nose at the unsavoury surroundings. I hit the accelerator a little harder, jumping the amber traffic light before it turns red. If I were to pause in this part of the city for too long, my alloys would be gone before I could yell thief.
Theodore clicks off his seatbelt as the car starts to slow, jumping out the very second it stops. He goes to close the door but hesitates, holding on to the handle as he bends down so I can see his face. “Um, thanks,” he mutters, hardly convincing. “See you around.”
Oh, you can be sure of that. Before I can say my thoughts aloud, the door is slammed closed and he’s jogging away from me. Gripping the wheel, I tip my head back and wait for my erratic pulse to calm. This guy is going to be a tough one to crack, but I will succeed. I have to. Only then, will this bewildering curiosity subside so I can move onto the next.
Damn you, Theodore Davenport.
Chapter Three
~Theo~
Slamming the door to my flat closed behind me, I slide down against it until my arse hits the floor. Drawing my knees up into my chest, I throw my head into my hands. I hate him. James Holden. I detest him, and I don’t even know why.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
My heart flies into my mouth and I almost snap the bones in my neck when I look up to find Tess hovering over me. “Jesus, Tess! You scared the living shit out of me! What are you doing here?”
“Naomi’s got her boyfriend over,” she explains, referring to her roommate. “If I wanted to hear a guy panting and moaning I wouldn’t be a lesbian.”
I manage a small smile and Tess joins me on the floor, propping herself up on her hands while she stretches her legs out in front of her. “Bad day?”
A humourless laugh flies from my throat. “You know the guy I never have to see again? The one who stole my morals and turned me into a raging slut just by looking at me?”