Page 54 of Her Filthy Grump
“No.” He stops in mid-step as his teeth grind together. His eyes are filled with barely restrained anger.
“Why would you care?” Stop it. Why are you fishing for information? You should be shoving him out the door. Not stupidly praying the whole thing was a misunderstanding. Idiot.
“I care.” He steps toward me, and I slide sideways.
My heart might be acting like a twelve-year-old with a crush on the bad boy of the block, but the adult side of me is going to stay strong. No matter what it takes.
“I’m sorry.” He steps back and holds his hands up. “I was an asshole this morning. When I saw you with my phone, it took me back to my ex. She used my phone to screw with a nice person by pretending she was me. It was a big mess, and I lost....” I shrug. “Nearly lost a good friend over it.”
I blink. “I don’t understand.”
“Shit.” He rubs his face. “It’s a long story. I let my ex, Tabitha, use my old cell phone. She pretended to be me and set a five hundred dollar bet with a jerk at the fire station to have sex with this woman, Chloe. One of my friends, Rich, found out and told her what was going on before the guy could follow through with the bet. Tabitha wanted the guy to pretend to like Chloe, screw her, and then publicly dump her.”
“That’s disgusting. Who would do something like that?”
“A bitch. As soon as I found out, I broke up with her.” He shrugs. “We hadn’t been dating for long, and it was pretty casual.”
I cock an eyebrow. “Like us?”
“No.” He closes his eyes for several seconds and then opens them. The vulnerability in his expression takes my breath away. I steady my shaking hands.
“It wasn’t like that at all. When I found out she was using me, I was angry, but chalked it up to another female letting me down.” He walks forward, and my knees buckle. “When I saw you holding my phone, I was devastated. I didn’t want to believe you would do anything to hurt me. You’re not like anyone else I’ve ever been with. You make me feel like there’s goodness in the world. That not everyone is like Tabitha. Or my mom.”
My heart skips a beat. Coming from him, this is the highest compliment. I don’t know his whole story, but what I’ve heard tells me he has feelings for me. At least I hope so.
He grasps my upper arms, and his eyes well with unshed tears. “Layla, I would like to date you. Exclusively. I don’t know what the future looks like, but I need to be surrounded by your goodness. To believe there are relationships that last. That everything isn’t a bullshit lie.”
My head swirls with emotions. I’m falling for him. Hard and fast. I straighten my back. I can’t do this without getting a clear answer about his ties back home. As much as I want to throw my arms around him and block out the world, I can’t. “Are you married?”
He pulls back with a scrunched face. “No. Why would you think that?”
“Just making sure. When people freak out about someone touching their phone, it’s usually because they’re cheating. I can’t be the other woman.”
“You aren’t the other woman. I’m not dating anyone else. I’m not married. I’ve never been married. I don’t have a secret family back home outside of my dad and my siblings. It was just me being a dumbass.” He licks his lips and expels a big puff of air. “Have I destroyed our chance to see what this is?”
He had me at ‘you aren’t the other woman,’ but I don’t let on. He deserves to squirm a little bit for ruining what should have been a beautiful day.
When I don’t respond, he drops his hands to his sides. “I’ll go.”
“Fine.” I roll my eyes. “I’ll give you another shot.”
A slow smile curves up to his cheeks, and the butterflies in my stomach do the tango. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.” I laugh and hurl my body into his arms.
As he embraces me, my heart swells. Home. He feels like home. Even though he can’t promise me forever, he’s where I belong. It’s only a matter of proving to him that his past doesn’t have to dictate his future. Not all people who love him will disappear, destroy, or manipulate him.
His lips claim mine, and I relax against his broad chest. I’m not falling for him; I’m already a goner.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Kameron
Layla grabs a skillet out of the bottom cabinet in her kitchen and sets it on the stovetop. “Do you like taco salad?”
“Sure, but you don’t have to cook. We could go out. Or I could cook.” The fact she’s giving me a second chance is starting to sink in. I don’t want to screw it up by making her feel like she needs to serve me. I know how to cook, clean, and take care of myself. One bonus point from having a disappearing mother.
She twists on her heel. “I’m tired. It’s been a long day, so how about we cook together?”