by Lex Martin
I chuckle, agreeing. “Well, I’m not so sure much has changed.” I know my words catch him off guard, but he reaches for my hand and ignores my comments. I don’t know if this is going to be the end of whatever we had, or…
“You know you’re going to have to learn to trust me, now that we’re together.”
His words stop my thoughts, and I’m immediately silenced.
I look up and see a smile spread across his face, his fingers gripping mine tighter.
“Oh?” My brows rise. “We’re together now?”
“Well, yeah. Do you see any other girls walking around here?”
I burst out in easy laughter. “Give it a few days. I’m sure they’ll be here in no time.”
“Guess I deserved that.” He grins, rubbing the pad of his thumb over my hand. “You know you can trust me, Viola.” His voice sounds sincere. “I may be a lot of things, but I’ve never lied to you.”
He’s right. Travis King may be a lot of things, but he’s not a liar. He’s always been honest and straightforward about everything. Even when his honest words weren’t what I wanted to hear.
“So, Mia being naked in your back seat?” I cringe at saying the words aloud again. “Nothing happened between you two?”
“Viola?” He places his finger under my chin and locks his eyes on mine. “Do you trust me?”
He’s not exactly answering the question, but deep inside, I do trust him. Remembering what Drew said back at the hospital, Travis would never betray him.
I nod.
“Good, because I’m not sharing you with anyone else.”
“You can’t just be a caveman and claim me,” I tease as his thumb lingers over my bottom lip.
“Sure, I can. You’re mine.”
Goose bumps.
His words send shivers down my spine at how genuine his words sound. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted to hear him say.
But I won’t give in that easy. At least not right away.
“Come closer,” he says.
“You aren’t the boss of me, Travis King.”
He smirks, knowing damn well I’m full of shit. “I think we both know that’s not true. I’ve had you counting until you lost your voice.” His lips turn up, obviously very impressed with himself.
“So arrogant.” I sigh. “Some things never change.” I shake my head, trying to hold back a smile.
“And some things do,” he says, cupping my face. “No more games.” He rubs the pad of his thumb over my cheek, and I nearly melt into him. If he weren't injured, I’d be ready to strip all his clothes off.
I nod in agreement. “No more games.”
I know we’ll eventually need to have a conversation about that night and talk about what all happened, but I also know I trust him. Even after all the hurt, anger, and heartache, Travis King will always be the boy I loved as a child.
He pulls me toward him, pressing his lips to mine. It’s nothing like our previous kisses. This one is slow, soft, and passionate. I don’t push for more because I know he’s using every ounce of energy to kiss me.
I pull back, even though I don’t want to. Sitting next to Travis, I make sure to avoid touching or putting pressure on him.
“Since I’ll be dropping by between classes, there needs to be some rules.”
He grins slightly. “There’s the V I’m used to.”
I roll my eyes at the V comment. “We have to act like nothing’s changed in front of Drew. And while you’re hurt, no sex or sexual innuendos or making sexual comments.”
He groans. “You're just like the nurses at the hospital. No fun.”
“You mean they didn’t turn to mush from the Travis King charm?”
“Nope. Wouldn’t even let me get to second base.”
I roll my eyes again and fight the urge to curse and kiss him. “How rude of them.”
“But at least I’m back home with my own private nurse.” He winks. “If there’s going to be this no sex rule, can you at least provide other accommodations for your patient?”
I throw my head back and laugh at his ridiculousness. “I’m starting to wonder if they missed something when they did your brain scan.”
He pulls me closer again but winces before our lips meet.
“You need to rest.” I press a hand softly against his chest. “Take some meds and get some sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.” I smile, and he does, too.
I watch as he grabs his medicine bottle off his nightstand and takes out a couple of pills. He swallows them down with some water and settles against the pillows, adjusting his ice pack before finally settling in. Once his eyes flutter closed, I carefully scoot off the bed and lean down to kiss his cheek. Just as I’m walking toward the door, he speaks up, stopping me in my tracks. “I love you, Viola Fisher.”
Chapter 4
Travis
When I wake up hours later, hunger and soreness both fight for my attention. My phone says it’s three in the afternoon. My body says I need out of this bed. I need to eat, but more importantly I need Viola.
I hate asking for help, but I’m in no position to allow my pride to rule. But first, I’ll try. After managing to roll myself out of bed, I stand with the help of a few choice words. I showered at the hospital before I was discharged, and it was the most humiliating thing I’ve experienced in my life. Nancy and I had formed a decent relationship at night, but once her shift ended, Helen took over; let’s just say she was much less patient with me. She was a nurse sent straight from the pits of hell.
Once I’m out of my room, I walk down the hall to where I hear the TV and Viola’s sweet laughter. Yes, this is home. I instantly smile when I hear her.
I pause for a second and take a deep breath, watching her curled up in the corner of the couch with a blanket tossed over her legs. She’s focused on some chick flick, and I’m focused on her. I clear my throat after a moment, and she turns and looks at me, concern on her face.
“You feeling okay?” She moves over slightly, giving me room that I wish she didn’t feel she needs to give me. I want her as close as possible.
I sit on the couch next to her, and she watches me.
“Never felt better.”
She smiles.
“You mind if I watch this with you?” I nod toward the TV.
She flashes me a look. “You want to watch Bridget Jones’ Diary with me?”
I swallow my words of disdain and plaster on a cocky grin. “Yeah, of course. BJ’s my homegirl.”
She bursts out laughing, her head falling back as a sweet roar releases from her throat. “Oh my God,” she says between tears. “I should be recording this.”
“Recording what?” I furrow my brows.
“You.” She wipes under her eyes. “You’re as high as the Empire State Building.”
I snort. “Get your mind out of the gutter, princess. BJ is Bridget Jones, not—”
“Okay!” she interrupts before I can continue, a faint blush covering her cheeks.
I roll my eyes at her expense, getting another chuckle out of her.
I try to focus, but I can’t. “Are you going to catch me up on whatever the hell is happening?”
“I thought BJ was your homegirl?” she throws back, the corner of her lips turning up as she continues watching the movie. This is the Viola I adore—simple, funny, cute. God. I wish I weren’t in pain. I wish Thursday night would’ve never happened, and I could pull her into my lap.
“She is. I mean, she reminds me of a cornier, klutzier you.”
“Rude!” She playfully smacks me on the arm before realization hits that I’m already bruised. “Shit! I’m sorry!” She closes her eyes for a moment. “I didn’t mean to hit you.”
“Just a natural twitch?” I smirk, not wanting her to feel too bad.
She cocks her head.
“Lighten up, princess.”
“Are you hungry?” she asks sincerely, changing the subject.
“Yes.”
“What are you hungry for?”
<
br /> My eyes widen as my lips tilt up in a cocky pout. “Well…”
“Food,” she clarifies. “I meant, what kind of food are you hungry for?”
“Why do you assume I was going to say something else?”
She rolls her eyes, shifting her body toward me. “Because I know you. You have a dirty mind.”
“And you’re going to deny a broken man his dying wish?” I arch a brow.
“You aren’t dying, but you are definitely being dramatic.” My eyes follow her as she stands up and walks toward the kitchen. “My mother always told me a man is the biggest baby when hurt or sick. Guess she was right.”
I laugh, knowing her mother well enough to know she would say something like that.
“Are you calling me baby?” I shout, hoping to get a reaction out of her.
“A baby, yes.” She pokes her head around the wall with an arched eyebrow.
“Fine, I’ll make my own food.” I shift off the couch, trying to prop myself up.
She walks back in and points her finger at me. “Sit back down. Drew will have my head if he thinks I’m not helping.”
“Still afraid of your big brother, huh?” I ask in amusement.
She crosses her arms. “No. But I don’t want to hear about it from either of you.”
“Whatever you say, princess.” I sit back on the couch as she walks toward the kitchen.
“Don’t make me poison your sandwich, King,” she shouts loud enough to be heard, but I can hear the smile in her tone.
“I’ve assumed you’ve been doing that all along, V.”
She saunters in with two sandwiches and a bag of chips, and I’m grateful for something other than Jell-O and juice.
“Enjoy,” she says, picking up her sandwich and taking a bite with a side of an evil grin.
After a very tasty unpoisoned sandwich and finishing up a second chick flick, Viola falls asleep against the arm of the couch. I desperately want to lie next to her and wrap my arms around her, but I know that’d be playing with fire. Drew’s been gone for hours, and I can only imagine that the moment I’m too close to Viola, he’d come prancing back in.
Instead, I grab the blanket that’s fallen from her body and cover her back up. She looks absolutely breathtaking. Her chest rises and falls evenly, and her lips are lined in a soft pout. I miss the taste of her lips, and I desperately want to kiss them again.
But I can’t.
If I’m going to prove myself to her, that she can trust me and that I’m all in, I need to change the game.
After turning off the TV, I slowly make my way back to my room and sleep off another round of pain meds. They make me so damn drowsy that I can barely see straight. As I sink into the sheets and my body goes numb, my thoughts drift to Viola and the girl who sat up on the rooftop with me when we were just kids.
“What’s your favorite movie?” she asked me, twirling her dark hair around her fingers.
“Hmm…” I thought about it for a moment. “Lord of the Rings, probably. I’ve seen it over a dozen times now.”
She rolled her eyes and sighed. “That’s boring.”
“Well, then tell me yours, if you think it’s so much better than mine.”
She smiled and looked up at the sky that was fading to black. “No laughing,” she warned, and I flashed her a devious smile.
“No promises.”
She glared back at me. “Then I’m not telling you.”
“C’mon, I’m just kidding. What is it?”
She shook her head no and pretended to zip up her lips.
I reached over and poked her in the side where I knew she was ticklish.
“Stop it!” she squealed, her feet kicking toward me. “Fine! I’ll tell you!”
I released her, but the touch of her warm skin on mine doesn’t go unnoticed.
“All right, spill it.”
“13 Going on 30,” she said with a shy look in her eyes. I’d seen her watching that several times since it came out, so I’m not surprised, but that didn’t stop me from teasing her about it.
“That’s because you have a huge crush on Mark Ruffalo!”
“Is not!” She pushed both hands against me, and I laughed.
I snorted. “Typical chick flick.”
“Oh really, Lord of the Rings? That’s a typical guy flick.”
“Men don’t have guy flicks,” I corrected. “We have action movies.”
She rolled her eyes again. “Boring.”
“So are chick flicks,” I countered.
“So you’d never watch a chick flick then?”
“No way. I’d lose my man card.”
The only reason I knew the term ‘man card’ was because Drew had said it several times to me. He mocked me for hanging out with Viola, but I tried to ignore it.
The sound of the front door closing shakes the house and wakes me. I think about the memory and how close Viola and I once were. We had formed a friendship that was bonded and full of trust. I want to feel that again. Most importantly, I want her to feel that again.
“Travis, are you awake?” Drew’s voice comes from the hallway as he knocks quietly on my door.
“Yeah, come on in.” I push myself up and lean against the headboard. “What’s with all the commotion?” I ask once he steps inside.
“Oh, sorry. I went to the gym for a couple of hours after work, and then I did some grocery shopping and bought you a few things.”
I raise my brows. “Really? Getting all domestic for me?”
“You wish,” he spits back. “But I figured you’d get sick of Viola’s PB&J specialty sandwiches pretty soon, so I grabbed you some cans of soup, ramen noodles, and chips.”
“Bon appétit,” I tease.
“I’ll bring dinner home after work tomorrow, but you guys are on your own for breakfast and lunch.”
“Thanks, man. Appreciate it.”
“Hopefully Viola doesn’t strangle you before the week’s over.”
I shrug, hoping he doesn’t see right through me. “I think my charm is starting to win her over.”
He laughs. “Right. That’ll be the day.”
Thumping from the kitchen startles me awake, making me nearly fall off the couch before I realize where I am. A blanket is over me, and I vaguely remember Travis covering me up before I fell deeper.
“Jesus, Drew!” I scold, looking over my shoulder to where the racket is coming from.
He pops his head around the kitchen wall and frowns. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were catnapping on the couch that you hate sleeping on.”
“Maybe you two should think about getting an upgrade. You’ve had this couch since you were freshmen.” I stand and fold the blanket and throw it over the back. “What the hell are you doing anyway?”
“Unpacking groceries. I figured it was the least I could do for making you help this week.”
“It’s fine. He’ll probably sleep most of the time anyway.” I walk toward the kitchen and see bags covering the counter. “Did you buy out the whole store, or what?”
“Well, I wasn’t sure what you wanted or what you could make without burning it, so I got a little of everything.”
I arch a brow and pout. “Funny.”
He shrugs, unapologetically. “I know.”
I help unpack everything and put it away, although I have no idea where he wants all this stuff, so I just randomly put them in the pantry.
“I’m going to check on Travis,” he says as we finish unpacking. “I have three more bags in the car...if you don’t mind grabbing them?” He flashes a wide grin my direction, knowing I can’t say no.
I groan. “Fine. You better have bought ice cream.”
He winks before walking away and heading down the hall to Travis’s room. I grab the rest of the bags and unload them all before I hear Drew waltz back in. “That was fast.”
“Well, I wasn’t sure where everything went, so I just stuffed them all into the same cupboard.” I flash him an evil smile as I toss the
empty bags in the recycling bin. “But I did manage to put the cold items in the fridge.”
“Why do you enjoying messing with my OCD?” I can almost see the twitch in his eyes and laugh.
“Because it’s just too damn easy.”
He groans and begins opening the doors to the cupboards and pantry. “Jesus, Vi.”
“That’s what you get.”
“For what?” he asks with genuine confusion.
“For making me drop by between classes and cutting into my study time,” I throw back in his face even though I don’t mind it that much.
“Well, according to Travis, you’re coming around to his charm.”
My heart begins to race in panic. “What?” I gasp, turning to read his expression. “What’s that mean?”
“Relax,” he says, chuckling at my expense. “You’re so jumpy today.”
“Am not!” I argue, although it’s a childish move.
“Man, I hope Travis lives to see this weekend.” He cracks a grin. “Should’ve warned him he’d be rooming with Aunt Flo, too.”
“Oh my God!” I squeal, throwing the first thing I can reach off the counter.
A banana.
“You’re such an ass sometimes!” The words come out between laughter, so I’m not too convincing. “I am not PMS-ing!”
“Could’ve fooled me,” he teases, throwing the banana back at me.
“Is this some kind of weird family tradition I’m unaware of?” Travis’s question comes from behind me, and the closeness of his body to mine sends a thrill down my spine.
Drew chuckles and shifts around me. “Need anything?”
“Nah, man. I’m fine.”
Travis glances at me, giving me a look that makes me want to ask what he’s thinking, but with Drew around us, I know I have to act as I had pre hate-fuck.
“Would you like me to reserve your daily one-night stand before or after your dinner?” The words shoot out of my mouth before I can stop them, and the sly grin that spreads across Travis’s face isn’t missed. I swallow down my words. I don’t want to say crass things, but I’ve been on defense mode around Travis for so long that it comes out whether I mean it to or not.