Hollis
“Haveyou ever been to a mall before, Holls?” he asked as he slid the key into the ignition of his brand-new, white Camaro.
I shook my head.
“Then I think you’ll have fun today,” he remarked with a sly grin. “Lots of stores in one place, plenty of dresses to look at, and maybe something a little naughtier. For later, I mean.”
I arched an eyebrow when his face turned red and couldn’t help but smile.
I don’t think I could ever recall a time when I had seen him blush before.
Not even on the first night we spent together.
I had expected the usual chain reaction—surprise, fear, disgust, and an assault I wasn’t sure I’d be able to survive.
I had endured a lot in my life falling for the wrong men and being raised by the worst of them.
Bates saw the cracks before I had a chance to start mending them and spent as much of his time as he could at first trying to piece me back together.
Then when he realized that wasn’t what I needed, he gave up on trying to help me fix myself and let a little bit of his soul seep deeper into mine each time we were entangled in each other’s arms.
It was impossible for me to become any more of a monster than I had already seen myself as—or so I thought.
Bates reached over and pressed the power button on the radio, then spent a couple of seconds scanning the stations before settling on an alternative rock station.
Once he found his music of choice, he took my hand in his, kissed the top of it softly, then gave the road his full attention.
I watched the city go by in a blur of houses, corner stores, gas stations, and pedestrians wandering up and down the streets.
“… if you want to check it out.”
“Huh?”
I hadn’t realized that I’d completely zoned Bates out of my thoughts until he squeezed my hand when I didn’t reply to him.
“I was saying that the beach isn’t that far from the mall,” he repeated with a chuckle. “We can go after if you want. Before we go back home, I mean.”
I stole a glance at him and nodded with a forced smile on my face. It was clear to me that he wanted to spend as much time outside of the house today. Kind of like the warden of a prison only he was doing his best to keep his prisoner on the outside of the walls instead of trapped inside.
“We don’t have to, Holls,” he stated in a quieter tone. “It’s okay.”
“No, I’d like to see the ocean,” I insisted as I squeezed his hand. “I bet it’s really pretty around sunset.”
“Nothing compared to you,” he scoffed as he waited patiently at a red light.
It was my turn to blush.
Even though he said it in passing, I knew he meant it. My life had become so unusual and so much more chaotic since I’d met him, but I knew I’d never have it any other way.
Ten minutes later, Bates pulled his car into the parking lot of the mall and my knees began to shake. I didn’t know what it would do to me to be in the company of so many strangers, and I couldn’t help but hope that I would able to handle it.
I always felt like everyone knew just by looking at me.
Judging me, laughing on the inside and out.
Bates found a space in almost no time and parked the car. He glanced over at me with a grin as he wiggled his eyebrows then pushed his door open.
But I didn’t step out yet.