“Come on,” I tell her. “I’m taking you away from that creep.”
“How…what…you found me,” Macy splutters.
My face creases into a frown.
“I went to your apartment and you weren’t there. I figured there must have been something going on.” I pause for a second. “I thought you’d wait for me there.”
“And I thought you’d wait for me this morning,” Macy whispers, her voice suddenly laced with hurt.
I sigh.
Clearly, some wires have been crossed here. But what’s important is that she’s safe and that I’m going to fix this. It’s clear to me now that Macy is going to be a challenge. She’s broken, hurt, and she doesn’t trust easily. And who can blame her after the way she’s been treated over the years? Who can blame her when almost every man seems to make it their mission to either harass her or hurt her feelings? I’ve seen both since I met her, but I refuse to be like the rest. I’m going to be the man that breaks the cycle. The one who takes good care of her and teaches her to trust. The one who makes her realize that it doesn't always have to be this way.
She’s a challenge, but I’m not backing down from this, from her. I care about her too much to ever let her go. My life was stagnant before I met her. But I know for a fact that it’ll never be the same again now that I have her. Why would I give that up over a dumb misunderstanding?
“Where are we going?” Macy asks as I lead her to my car.
“I’m taking you home, of course,” I tell her. “I’m not leaving you out here on the streets alone. I know you’re angry and upset right now, but this was a misunderstanding. I’m going to fix this, and make it better.”
“You could just walk away,” Macy whispers. “That’s what most people would do.”
“I’m not most people,” I growl. “And neither are you. I’d be crazy to walk away from you, Macy. Come on. Let’s go back to your place. We can talk properly there.”
Macy wraps her arms around herself, looking uncertain.
I get the feeling she’s not too keen on talking about anything right now. But after a moment, she gets in the car and I breathe a sigh of relief. I know this isn’t going to be easy, but I don’t mind fighting through it. I want her more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life.
So I’m going to fix this misunderstanding, no matter what it takes.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Macy
I can feel my heart race in my chest as Tate drives me back to my apartment. We don’t speak but the weight of the conversation we need to have hangs over my shoulders. I know I shouldn’t have run off the way I did, but I felt like I had my reasons. Now, I’m not so sure. Not when he just showed up, looking for me. When he proved to me that he cares by looking everywhere for me.
So what am I missing here? Why did he just leave me without any warning and then come back to me when my guard was down?
There must be some way to explain all of this, but I feel too upset to talk about it right this second. I look out of the window, wondering what might have happened if Tate hadn’t shown up to save me. That awful man had his hands all over me and was trying to take me away with him. Awful doesn’t even begin to cover it. But once again, Tate came to my rescue. It seems like he’s always in the right place at the right time to come to my aid.
The thought sends warmth through my body. But I’m still so confused. That’s the problem.
I’m new to all of this, but I feel as though I had reason to be upset when he left me without warning, thinking he’d used me then dumped me.
My feelings are valid, right? It all happened so fast. I never had any time to prepare for whatever is going on between me and Tate. It just came out of nowhere and blew my entire life up…
But in the best possible way. He’s given me joy like I’ve never felt before, even if today has been completely miserable. And even though I felt abandoned this morning, he came back for me when I never expected that he would. That’s what makes him so surprising. Most guys would go and stay gone.
But not him.
I glance over at him.
I can tell he’s still angry but the way his jaw is clenched tight and his cheek twitches as he stares out at the road. He’s not angry at me though, but at the man who tried to attack me. And it makes me realize just how damn protective of me he is. No one has ever stood up for me like that before. It’s like something takes over his body every time I’m around him. Like he needs to take care of me, protect me. And deep down, I’m aware that I not only want this man, I need him, too. No matter how hard it is, no matter how much I have to break down my walls, I need him to be in my life.