The determined look on her face should have warned me, but I was too focused on her… chest.
I inhaled, and my dick twitched, straining against my jeans. Shit. “What the fuck?”
“What do you see?” she asked calmly.
I see… tits. Titties I could fuck. “What are you doing?” I groaned. “Lila?”
She took several steps forward until we were standing toe-to-toe. Lila was my little midget, so tiny that the top of her head barely came to my shoulders. She had to nudge her head back to stare up at me because I basically towered over her.
Her gaze was somber as she waited. “Maddox, look at me.”
My fists clenched and unclenched. I kept my eyes on hers, refusing to let my gaze wander… down. I’d probably bust a nut if I did. “I am.”
“No, you’re not. Look. At. Me. Look closer,” she persisted in that same soft voice.
I did… and I finally saw what she wanted me to see.
“Do you see now?” she breathed.
My heart stuttered, and I lost my breath as my stomach tightened. My eyes fell to her chest, where her breasts were clad in a lacy, black bra.
And I saw…
Pink and white jagged lines… scars…on her beautiful pale skin. Right at the center of her chest and between the two heavy mounds.
“No,” I choked. Jesus Christ, sweet Lila.
Before I could stop myself, my hand came up as if to touch her. When I realized what I was about to do, I stopped an inch away from her skin.
Lila took my hand in hers and placed it on her chest, right in the middle, where her scars laid. She let out a shuddering breath the moment I touched her. Her heart thudded hard against my palm.
“Is this–?” I couldn’t finish my sentence.
Lila nodded. “From the accident.”
My shaking fingers brushed over her scars, feeling the slight bumpiness on her skin, whereas the rest of her was soft and smooth. “It’s ugly,” she whispered, trying to hide a grimace, but her face said it all.
“You’re beautiful,” I confessed, my voice strained.
And she truly was.
Lila had been through hell and back. That was the most beautiful part of her; she was a woman who wore her pain like a diamond choker around her neck. Strong, unyielding… a survivor. Lila Garcia straightened her own crooked crown because she didn’t need anyone else to do it for her.
Lila let me in, not because she needed me.
It was because she wanted me – as a friend, a companion and a partner.
She gave me a bittersweet smile. “Daren can’t hurt me because I’m already hurt. He can’t break my heart because it’s already broken. Do you understand now?”
I nodded. Lila exhaled in relief.
I stepped closer, our bodies pressing against each other. Mine – fully clothed. Lila’s – in a state of half dressed. Her skin was warm underneath my touch. She peeked at me through her thick lashes with a look in her eyes that should have told me something… but I couldn’t understand what she was trying to convey.
She breathed.
I breathed.
The world came to a stop, and the colors faded away, leaving us in a state of black and white.
Lila shivered, a silent tremor running through her body. It wasn’t from the cold because her room was hot, and I was sweating. Her gaze fell to my lips before they wavered, and she looked back at my eyes again.
My head descended toward hers, and my lips brushed against her forehead, a simple kiss. Lila sucked in a harsh breath, and her eyes closed.
I’d never given a girl a forehead kiss before. That shit was cheesy, but it came natural with her. It wasn’t like I could kiss her… lips. Lips that looked so soft, so kissable. She’d sock me in the face if I ever tried.
So, we settled with a forehead kiss. That was safe and friend-like.
“Lila?”
“Hmm?”
“You’re a beautiful dragon,” I said.
Her shoulders shook, and a small laugh escaped past her lips. “Dragon, eh?”
“Dragon,” I agreed. “Daren should be worried because you’ll probably eat him for dinner if he accidentally steps on your tail.”
I closed my eyes and breathed in her scent – she smelled of peaches from the shampoo and body lotion she used.
Lila slowly pulled away, and I let her go. She grabbed her tank top, and once she was dressed again, she checked her phone. “He said he’s on his way to the restaurant.”
“Can I chaperone?” I asked, only half joking. Actually, I was serious.
Lila wasn’t amused. “No, Maddox,” she said. There was a note of exasperation in her voice.
She walked past me and out the door; I watched her go with a sinking feeling in my stomach.
I considered following her to the restaurant and keeping an eye on them, just in case, Dickass-ren tried to do any shit to my girl-friend. But Lila would never forgive me, and I’d rather stay on her good side. She could be brutal, and she had sharp claws.
I never thought of myself as a possessive person… but apparently, I was.
Of our friendship.
Well, fuck.
26
Lila
I watched as Pops let out a robust laugh at something Maddox said. Grandpa said something else of his own that had Maddox shaking his head and grinning. Sure, Maddox worked for my grandparents, but only Gran had welcomed him with open arms. Pops was a little apprehensive; he always had been with any boys hanging around me.
He said he didn’t trust them, and he was right.
But Maddox and I had been friends for months now, and Pops slowly started to warm up to him. In fact, if I wasn’t mistaken, they were on the same team now.
Project: Don’t let Lila date and protect her at all costs.
It only took two weeks for me to realize my best friend had been right about Daren. Dickass-ren, as Maddox liked to call him, was indeed an asshole who was only interested in sleeping with me.
Grandpa was a hard man to win over, but I wasn’t surprised Maddox did. He was… genuine, and even Pops could see that. I was just glad that the two men in my life were finally getting along, well enough for them to share a beer and watch a football game together while discussing sports.
Oh, you know. A usual Sunday night.
Maddox had spent the day with us. Gran even dragged him to church, and he went without complaint. I never pegged Maddox as a religious person and neither was I, but I humored Gran every Sunday and let her drag me to church. Sure, I did believe in God, but if He really loved me, my parents would have still been alive. So yeah, God and I didn’t share an amicable relationship.
We had brunch together, then went over to the grocery store for inventory day. After we closed for the night, Pops invited Maddox over for dinner and football. If I had to guess, Pops was a tad lonely, missing a buddy to talk with and he was making a truce with Maddox.
“I think they’re best friends now.”
My eyebrows rose, turning to Gran as she helped me put the dishes away. “They are?”
“Your Pops doesn’t laugh like that with just anyone.” She smiled, glancing back at them. “Trust me, I’ve known him for too long time and been married to him for decades.”
Well, yeah, it was Maddox after all. He could easily win anyone over. That was my best friend, ladies and gentlemen.