I’m screwed.
With a sigh, I pull myself up off the ground and walk around to the back of the car. I start searching around for the tool kit and spare tire that are hidden under the flooring of my trunk space and it takes me no time at all to realize that this job is definitely out of my scope of capabilities.
I start going over my options as I drop back down into the driver’s seat and close the door to keep out the cold. I could give dad a call and get his ass down here in the dead of night, he’d hate being woken up but would probably be happy to know I wasn’t just sitting on the side of the road alone. Though, he’s been at a conference in the city for the past few days so I’ll have to wait an hour or so. My other options are to either walk my dumbass home and sort it out in the morning, or I could climb in my car, lock the doors and go to sleep with the intention to deal with it in the morning.
Shit. These options suck, but there’s one clear winner.
Dad.
I let out a breath and suck it up. I want nothing more than to get home and crawl into bed and unfortunately, the only way that’s going to happen is to call for back up. I look down at my phone and start scrolling through my recent contacts list and go to press his name when a sharp knocking sounds at my window.
I scream in terror as my heart leaps right out of my chest. Please, no. I don’t want to die. My head whips around to find a shadow of a man leaning towards my window. My eyes bug out of my head. My feet are too sore to have to spend the next few hours running away from this creep.
The man leans in closer and I finally get a clear look at his grinning face.
“HOLY FUCK!” I yell, grabbing hold of the door handle and pushing my way out of the car, making him hurry back to avoid getting smacked in the face. My hands slam against his rock-solid chest. “You scared the shit out of me, Puck. What the hell do you think you’re doing creeping up at my window in the middle of the night?”
“Me?” he laughs, trying to grab hold of my hands to stop me from hitting him again. “You’re the idiot sitting on the side of the road. Do you have any idea how dangerous this is?”
“It’s not as though I’m doing it for fun,” I snap as I will my heart to stop racing. “I got a flat tire. Trust me, I’d give anything to be home in bed right now.”
“No, shit,” Puck says, looking over my car a little closer. “Why didn’t you change it?”
The frustration of the situation comes slamming right to the front. “Don’t you think I would have if I could?”
Puck looks me over in consideration and while I hate the look on his face and how he seems kind of disappointed, I can’t help but feel a shitload safer with him here right now, despite how much I want to tear his head from his body.
Puck lets out a sigh before walking around the back of my car and opening the trunk. “No,” I say, shaking my head as I follow him behind the car. “You don’t need to do that. I was about to call my dad.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Puck tells me. “There’s no point in getting your dad when I’m already here. It’ll take me five minutes and then you can go home.”
I’m not going to lie, the idea of not having to call dad to come and fix my fuck-up does sound pretty damn good, but having Puck being the hero that comes to save my ass isn’t exactly sitting so well with me. I’d dare say he’s even getting hard over the thought.
“Fine,” I grumble after way too long. “But keep in mind that you’re offering and I’m not asking.”
Puck steps into me, pressing me against the cool metal of my car as an amused grin plays on his lips. “What’s that?” he murmurs low, making his chest rumble against mine. “You don’t need me to save you?”
I shake my head, trying to keep strong but with him standing so close, all I can think about is that kiss that absolutely rocked my world. “No, I don’t, but I’m not stupid. I’m not about to tell you no when it could make my night a shitload easier. Think of it as me taking advantage. You know, kind of like the way you did to me.”
Puck’s playful expression changes into something a little more serious. “Babe,” he says, taking my waist. “You know I never meant to hurt you. It’s been killing me that you haven’t been talking to me these past few weeks.”