Page 31 of Liberty
Chapter 14
OAK
I felt resigned.Ellis and Sterling had taken a girl right out from under me in the past. What made Liberty any different? Only, I hadn’t wanted anyone like I wanted Liberty. It was instant, intense. It was all-consuming that she became mine, yet, she didn’t. It was Ellis she was swapping spit with while I searched for a way to save her.
At least it wasn’t Sterling. My mind said on repeat, but honestly, even that wasn’t much of a reassurance.
“Are you going to say something?” She finally asked me as I parked the car.
I grunted, “We’re here.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
What exactly did she want me to say? She did her thing with Ellis, and I caught them. She owed me nothing. They were both adults. Well, at least she was. I wasn’t convinced Ellis ever matured past seventeen.
I didn’t answer her. Instead, I filled the silence by unlatching my seatbelt, opening my car door, and exiting the car with a dramatic slamming of the door. I then jogged around to her side to hold the door open because although I was more than aware I was stewing in my feelings, I was also a fucking gentleman.
She watched me for a long moment, and I almost squirmed, but then she unlatched her belt, grabbed her bag, and stepped out of the car. “Can I ask you a personal question?”
“No.” Though I suspect she would ask me, anyway.
“Come on, Oak. Seriously, this is important,” she begged.
“No.”
We stepped onto the sidewalk, heading toward the building entrance tucked into the back alley. “Please.” She grabbed my arm. “It’s just between you and me; that’s all.”
God, when she touched me, my resistance waned. “Fine.”
She smiled happily as we walked, her hand never leaving my arm, her skin nearly searing into my own. “Are you ready?”
Not really. “Shoot.”
“Why do you wear a seatbelt?”
I blinked a few times, trying to decide if she really asked a question that dumb. “Why do you?”
“Isn’t it obvious? So I don’t die.” We approached a puddle, and I lifted her, then dropped her on the other side.
“Well, there you go,” I mumbled as we continued our walk.
“But by all logic, that makes no sense. You can’t die.”
She wasn’t wrong, and truthfully, I wasn’t sure why I did. Habit? To follow the law? Who really knew? “When I was seven, I was thrown from a horse-pulled carriage as it flipped over, horse and all. I survived, obviously, with a broken arm, which I should add wasn’t fun during that time. Ever get a bone set while biting a leather strap because of the pain? Would not recommend it. But my point was, if getting thrown from a carriage was that painful, and it goes drastically slower, imagine the pain of going through the window? Sure, I would survive, like I did the carriage accident, but I would still feel it.”
She looked shocked at that statement. “So it hurts? Like, if I pinched you?”
She used her tiny fingers and gouged at my skin; I raised an eyebrow. “Was that even a pinch? That seemed more like the tiniest of flea bites.”
At hearing my words, her eyes grew wide, and she reached over, trying to pinch me again, this time in my side. “How dare you!”
“Me? You’re the one trying to pinch me, thinking you can inflict the pain of a lobster when you hardly even qualify as the smallest of crustaceans.”
“I’ll have you know,” she puffed, and I just put my finger up, stopping her outrage.
“No need to get angry,” I stated as I pulled open the door. “I’m not the enemy here.” I was joking with her, but by the look on her face, she didn’t quite catch it. I stopped in front of the building’s door. “Before we go in, I would like to talk about a few things.”
Liberty’s eyes rolled as she grabbed the handle and pulled the door open, walking in. I followed because, honestly, if she didn’t want any of my warnings or information, I would not force it on her. I knew she was sensitive because she pinched with the strength of a toddler, but I would not lie to her either. I probably should have, but it felt good not being the only one stewing in my feelings.