The Little Black Dress (Love in Las Vegas)

Ignoring how right she feels, I nod to her friends and lead her toward the door.

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Ava calls out.

“Or anything she would,” Zoey follows up.

Sophie’s hand flies into the air, her middle finger extended in their direction. Her feet falter, and I manage to keep her vertical until she finds her footing again.

“My friends are assholes, making me leave with you,” she mumbles as we step out into the sultry night air. “You don’t even like me.”

I hand my ticket to the valet attendant, and he hurries off to get my car. Sophie leans into me even harder, and I tighten my grip on her waist.

“I promise, I’ll get you home, safe and sound,” I say softly, refusing to correct her statement.

I don’t really dislike her. Not anymore.

“I know you will,” she mumbles sleepily. “I trust you.”

Something inside me snaps at those words, and a rush of emotion courses through my body. I never in a million years expected her to say those three words to me.

I trust you.

My car pulls up to the curb, and I gently guide Sophie into the passenger seat before reaching across her to buckle her seatbelt. She sighs contentedly as she sinks into the soft leather. Closing her door, I hand a twenty to the valet attendant and take my keys.

Climbing in behind the wheel, I turn my body toward Sophie.

“Hey, Red, I need your address.”

“Mm hmm,” she hums, cuddling deeper into the seat.

“Sophie,” I try again. “Just tell me where you live, then you can go to sleep.”

I wait a couple of beats, and nothing but her deep, even breaths fill the space between us. I grip the steering wheel, unsure what to do. I could dig through her purse for her phone, hope it doesn’t have a passcode, and text one of her friends, but that feels like a definite breach of privacy. I could hop out and run back inside, but I don’t really want to leave her alone here, asleep and vulnerable.

I sigh. I know I’m making excuses, so I shift the car into drive, and decide to deal with the consequences later.

I’m going to do what I really want to do…take her home with me, where I can keep an eye on her until she’s awake and sober.

For safety purposes.

Yeah.