Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 79940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
A younger guy, I’d guess to be about college age, did a double take as he was waiting on his order. I saw the slow grin cross his face, and I rolled my eyes and muttered a curse. This was going to require me to step in again. She had no idea what a picture she made to all the fucking swinging dicks out there. They saw needy, helpless, alone, and their radar went off. Straight to their cocks.
He stepped closer to her and said something I couldn’t hear. Whatever it was caused her to step away quickly and tense up. The guy laughed as if he’d made a joke and leaned close to her again. I could literally see her trembling from across the damn store. How did he not notice this? Shaking my head, I took a long drink of my water and waited. I needed her to be desperate enough to trust me. The more she had douchebags messing with her, the more likely she was to get inside my truck.
The guy held up his hands and shrugged, flashing her an I’m harmless smile. He was really bad at this. The kid needed to learn how to read a woman. She was about to run from this goddamn store with the unpurchased items in her hand and probably get chased down by security.
When he held out the pizza he’d just been given toward her and she shook her head, he took another step toward her and tilted his head as he spoke to her. She took another step back and bumped into a man on the other side of her who was ordering something. He glared down at her, then realized who had run into him. His face instantly turned to a pleased grin. Fuck me. Another damn trucker.
Her entire body went stiff as the man began to talk to her. I couldn’t stand here and watch this anymore. Sure, I needed her to be at a point where I was the best option she had, but she was fucking shaking. They were scaring the hell out of her. It was too damn painful to witness.
“Hey, sis. You order the pizza yet? I’m ready to get out of here,” I said with my best charismatic smile as I stepped between her and the younger kid. Him I could scare off with a scowl. The trucker, however, might require me to be a little more threatening. I had to be careful with that though. If she saw how scary I could be, I’d never get her out of this place. At least not willingly.
Her green eyes swung to me, and for a moment, I saw the relief there. It was only brief. The uncertainty came in real close and shoved that right on out of the way. But it was something. I was clearly the lesser of all the threats.
“N-n-not yet,” she stammered, her eyes locked on me as if she was trying to see my soul. I hoped like fuck she couldn’t because she’d realize just how dark it was.
“I’ll get it. You never add the pepperoni anyway,” I replied with a smirk.
“You’re with him?” the trucker asked her.
I smiled at her, then shifted my gaze to his and made sure he saw the threat. “Yeah, she is.”
His eyes went back to her, and I knew he was checking out her bruising. “Seems someone needs to be taking better care of her.”
No shit. “Yeah. And they are now,” I replied.
He leaned down toward her. “Are you safe? I’d be happy to take you if you need to escape.”
She took a step in my direction. “I’m with my…brother…now.”
The trucker didn’t seem thrilled, but he wasn’t going to cause an issue. The man on the other side of the counter slid a box of pizza toward me, and I took it. I hadn’t come in here, planning on getting food, but now that I could smell it, I realized I could eat. I thanked him, then looked back at her.
“Ready? You didn’t get a drink,” I said, ignoring the trucker.
She blinked and stared up at me. I could see the indecision in her eyes, but I also saw that I was about to win this thing.
“I forgot to get my water,” she finally said.
“If I let you get it, can you keep from getting hit on?” I asked teasingly as I took the cashews and pretzels from her free hand and placed them on top of the box of pizza.
The man on the other side of the counter laughed, and I shrugged, grinning as if I thought it was funny too.
She nodded, then looked around as if she was making sure no one else was about to accost her before going to the drink coolers to get her water. I stayed close enough behind her that I wasn’t following exactly, but I was there if needed. I also wasn’t sure if she was going to try and leave the store or come back to me. She hadn’t seemed as if she was even sure what she was going to do next.