Betrayal of Innocence (A New Adventure Begins - Star Elite 1)

Aaron peered at him over the stays. “Sure?”

Justin shook his head at the doubt in his colleague’s eyes. “Sure,” he grunted.

With that, the conversation was over.

Half an hour later, he was curled up in the back of the carriage Vanessa drove through the village toward town.

“What do I do now?” she whispered out of the corner of her mouth.

“Stop talking to me. People will see your lips move and think you have lost your marbles,” Justin snapped.

Vanessa sighed. “You really are an angry man, aren’t you?”

“I am not,” Justin snorted.

“You are always snapping at someone,” she declared firmly. “You were sharp with Aaron earlier.”

“Aaron now, is it?” He demanded sarcastically, hating the renewed surge of jealousy that didn’t seem to leave him whenever he thought about Vanessa and any one of his colleagues. It pricked at his conscience, urging him to do something rash to get rid of it. But he couldn’t, wouldn’t, succumb to it. There was no need to be possessive of her. His colleagues posed no risk to her. So why did he wanted to make it clear to everyone that she was his?

“I call all of your friends by their first names. They told me to,” she replied briskly, daring him to deny it.

Justin sighed.

“Why are you so angry all of a sudden?” she asked when she couldn’t stand the silence a moment longer. She could feel his presence behind her, and it was unnerving.

“I am not angry,” Justin bit out.

“Yes, you are. I can feel it. You are angry,” she informed him.

“I am annoyed you keep talking,” he whispered. “Now will you shut up!”

Vanessa sighed. “You don’t have to be so rude about it.”

This time, Justin didn’t speak. He bit his lip. He sighed. He mentally cursed. He wriggled around to ease the aching in his hip, but nothing would ease the discontent that had settled deep in his chest and refused to relinquish its tightening grip around his heart. He was annoyed, damn it. It was galling that she had seen it, well, not seen it exactly because she had her back turned, but had felt it.

“How in the Hell can you feel someone is mad?” he demanded suddenly.

“I just can,” Vanessa replied with a shrug. She glanced around the empty fields and felt herself start to relax. There was nobody around for miles, so she felt able to talk freely seeing as there was only Justin to hear her. “You are causing tension.”

“I am causing tension. You should be back here. This place is more suited to a five year old than someone six feet three inches,” he grumbled.

Vanessa grinned. “Would you like to drive?”

“That defeats the object of all of this, don’t you think?” he asked sarcastically.

“There you go, you

are cross again.”

“Look, I am not cross, all right?” he snapped.

“Yes, you are. You are snapping again,” she countered.

“Are you always this argumentative?” Justin demanded.

Inwardly, he was pleased she stood up for herself and argued with him if she truly disagreed with something he did or intended to do. The last thing he wanted was a dutiful, biddable wife.

Wait a minute! Who said I want a wife?