Page 60 of Wild Devotion
“I can’t think right now.” I pulled out of his arms and pressed my back against the porch railing, the cold wood biting through my sweater. “This place is making me sick.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Caleb
Rage had clouded my vision and my judgment.
The second I saw Jeremy’s hands on Zadie, my first instinct had been to protect her, even if she didn’t want or need me to. But that anger had twisted into something more primal. Something I had even less control over.
The urge to claim her. To make her mine. Now and for-fucking-ever.
As I stared at her profile in the dim light of Zane’s porch—beautiful, overwhelmed and barely holding herself together—another instinct hit me. The need to get her the hell out of here.
I took her hand and pulled her back through the house, sidestepping a couple of drunks in the hallway. She kept pace, her fingers tight around mine, her body close enough for me to feel her trembling.
The November night hit us a second time as we stepped through the front door. Stars scattered across a black sky, the first hints of frost sharpening the air. The party still raged behind us, but the rest of town felt dead asleep, like the world had narrowed down to just the two of us.
I didn’t let go of her hand. Not when we reached my truck. Not when I opened her door. Not until she was in the passenger seat and I had to walk around to my side.
The engine turned over, heat spilling through the vents. Zadie leaned her head against the window, her breath fogging the glass, and I kept my eyes on the road while every nerve in my body stayed locked on her.
“Chantel disappeared with a man tonight,” she said quietly, like she still couldn’t make sense of it.
“I know.”
“She looked different with him. Submissive, somehow. Not at all like herself.”
“Maybe that’s what she wants.” I reached across the console and took her hand again, relishing the feel of her skin against mine. “Or maybe it’s something she needs—to not be in charge all the time.”
We made the rest of the drive in silence, our hands still connected, my body still humming with pent-up desire.
When I pulled into the driveway and killed the engine, Zadie unbuckled her seatbelt but didn’t move to get out. “This has been a crazy night.”
“That’s one word for it.”
“Thank you. For dealing with Jeremy. For…” She gestured between us. “Everything.”
“You don’t have to thank me for that.”
“Still. I want to.”
We sat in the dark, the engine ticking as the heat began fading around us.
“Are you going to kiss me again?” she whispered, her eyes on the house.
I looked at her mouth and nearly lost the fight right there. “I want to do a hell of a lot more than kiss you.” So much fucking more. “But not tonight.”
She turned to face me. “Why not?”
“Because you’re exhausted, and you’ve been throwing up all night. And because when I take you to bed, I want you fully present. Not running on fumes.”
Her eyes widened, lips parting softly, but she didn’t say a word.
“Come on.” I got out, rounded the truck, and opened her door. She took my hand immediately, like she’d already decided she wasn’t letting go either.
The front door was unlocked. Again.
One day, I was going to tie a goddamn key around Chantel’s neck.
