“I’ll be the judge of that.” Hero chuckles, a possessiveness in his eyes. Hero is possessive, intruding even, but his intentions are pure, and I know deep down he really is the hero he claims himself not to be.
“We—we really should go.” I tug on Hero’s hand, not wanting to continue the conversation with my parents any longer.
“Excuse me, young lady, but we drove an entire hour to see you. The least you could do is go to dinner with us,” my mother snaps, eyeing me up and down. “And where is your dress? This thing you’re wearing is nothing more than a scrap of fabric.”
The disdain in her features pushes me over the edge. “We’re leaving now. I didn’t ask you guys to come visit me, and I’m a college student. I can’t just dress like I did at home anymore,” I growl, feeling unhinged and angry. My parents bring out the worst in me.
Turning on my heels, I start walking down the stairs.
“Where do you think you’re going? If you think we’ll let you get away with this, you’re poorly mistaken!” my father adds as Hero and I move out of earshot, leaving my parents standing there with their mouths hanging open. I can’t even describe the mixture of joy, excitement, and uncertainty that zings through me at standing up to them. I might have won our little standoff, but I doubt this will be the final act.
“You okay?” Hero asks, interrupting the silence between us.
“Yes. I think so.” I squeeze his hand still holding mine, just now realizing how glad I am he is with me.
There has always been this fear inside me, every time I’ve spoken to my parents. Today, I was braver than ever before, and I know exactly why: Hero. I feel protected in his arms and I know he won’t let anyone hurt me, especially not my family.
Knowing I need to change the subject, I decide to direct the attention back onto Hero. “Jonathan Miller, huh?” I smile.
“Yep, the most common name in America. That’s why nobody called me by my name in prison. There were three other Johns and two more inmate Millers in the unit, plus the guards knew what I was in for, so everybody started calling me Hero, because trying to be a hero was what got me into prison. It just stuck, I guess.”
“Well, you were certainly my hero today.”
At my words, he gives me a panty melting smile.
Now that I think about it, I don’t even know how old Hero is. Or what his favorite color is. I consider asking him these questions, but when I drag my eyes away from him and look where I’m going, I spot Tasha heading in our direction.
She looks between us and wrinkles her nose when she sees us holding hands. “Where are you going with him?” she says, like the word leaves a bad taste in her mouth.
I don’t really understand why, though.
What’s up with her?
“We are going to my place,” Hero answers for me, annoyance lacing his words. He seems irritated by Tasha’s attitude.
Not that I blame him. She’s being unreasonably rude, and I don’t really like it.
“Seriously?” She raises a brow at me in question.
I don’t understand what the problem is. She goes home and out with all kinds of guys. “You shouldn’t go home with him, Elyse. He’s got a bad reputation, not to mention you deserve better.”
My mouth pops open in outrage. I’ve never seen her act this way before. “Tasha, you don’t even know him,” I shout. “And you don’t get to tell me what to do. You do whatever you want to do with whoever you want, and I don’t judge you, so please don’t judge me.”
She seems taken aback by my harsh words, but I don’t really care.
I like Tasha, she has been a good friend to me, but I will not let anyone tell me what to do anymore. I’ve let my parents control me all my life, and I can’t let another person do that.
Hero, obviously pleased by my response, smiles widely.
“I guess if that’s what you want. I’m just trying to watch out for you.” She frowns.
I feel kind of guilty about being so rude.
“Like you were watching out for her at the party you took her to?” Hero interrupts, scolding her. But it’s not like he’s lying. Tasha left me and walked off to do her own thing. If he hadn’t been there, it could’ve been bad.
Her eyes roll. “Don’t be ridiculous. Nothing happened at that party, except you punching that poor guy.”
“Nothing happened, because I punched that guy,” Hero corrects, anger blazing in his green eyes.
“Whatever. It’s not like you’re a knight in shining armor. I’ve heard all about you and the things you’ve done.”
Hero’s nostrils flare. “What you heard about me is everyone else’s thoughts and opinions. I’m real, as real as it fucking gets, so if you want to ask me something, do it. But I’ll tell you flat the fuck out, I will not hurt Elyse the way that bastard tried to the other night.”