Confusion flashed in his eyes and I tried not to giggle. I was sure Havoc wasn’t a Gloria type of man, but I needed my Modern Family fix so I wasn’t going to let a thing such as the truth get in the way. “Is she in Sydney?” he asked and I bit my lip to stop the laugh bubbling up.
“No, she’s a character on a TV show.” I dragged him out to the television and switched it on while indicating for him to sit on the bed.
He gave me an amused look—that I loved on him—but didn’t argue. I grabbed the television remote and scooted up the bed to sit next to him. When his arm slid across my shoulders a moment later and he pulled me close, I couldn’t contain the smile his gesture caused. We’d never done anything so domestic as this before and I decided I liked it.
The episode hadn’t started yet. While we sat through some ads, Havoc said, “Nash left a message on my phone today. Have you heard from him?”
“He’s left me a few messages, but I haven’t called him back.” I was avoiding him as best I could.
“I’m not going to call him back, but I will go see him when we get back to Brisbane.”
I shifted so I could look up at him. “Really? Maybe you should just drop me off and keep going.” The words hurt as they came out, but if Nash was hell-bent on keeping me away from Havoc, I didn’t want to cause problems for him or for the club.
He listened to what I said but didn’t reply straight away. “A man doesn’t walk away from his problems, Carla. I’ll hash it out with him. I don’t need this to cause shit between the club and me. Not dealing with it would only do that.”
Gloria’s voice blared from the television at that moment, distracting him from the conversation. She had to have one of the most distinct voices I’d ever heard and while it drove some people crazy, it didn’t bother me. A couple of moments later, he turned back to me. “Jesus,” he muttered.
I tried not to laugh. “Keep watching. I promise you this is one of the funniest shows on TV. You’ll get used to her voice.”
The way he raised his brows told me he wasn’t convinced, but he did as I said and gave the show his attention. He even laughed once during the episode.
When it finished, I crawled onto his lap and straddled him. “Thank you.”
His hands moved to cup my ass. “What for?”
“For letting me watch that. It’s one of my favourite shows.”
Frown lines scored his forehead. “Babe, you don’t need me to let you do anything. You wanna do something, you go right ahead.”
I smiled. “I’ve dated some dickheads and trust me when I tell you that most of them tried to dictate what I could and couldn’t do.”
“Carla, you don’t strike me as the kind of woman to put up with shit from any man. You’re not seriously telling me that you let those guys control you, are you?”
Sighing, I replied, “No, but there have been times when a guy I’ve been with has made it clear he’s not interested in doing something I wanted to do, and I let him have his way. And it’s not that I expect a guy to want to do everything I want to do… I think what I should have said was thank you for watching it with me.”
He pressed a kiss to my lips. “You had me intrigued with the Gloria thing.”
“What did you think of her?”
“She’s got a hot ass and tits, but no way could I listen to that voice for longer than about five minutes.”
I loved his honesty. Cocking my head to the side, I asked, “What kinds of shows do you like? I’m picking you for a Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead kinda man.”
His lips twitched with a smile. “I do like those shows. Or any real-life serial killer documentary. The more violent the better.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You’re fucking with me, aren’t you?”
He laughed and fuck, when Havoc laughed, it was a beautiful thing. “Yeah, I’m fucking with you, darlin’. I don’t watch a lot of TV. I do like most movies or shows about spies though. Thrillers more than actions.”
“I should have picked that about you.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m pretty sure you’re a deep thinker, so I can see the appeal of a good thriller over an action for you.”
He sat forward and in one motion, had me on my back while he positioned himself on his knees between my legs with his hands planted on either side of me. Staring down at me through eyes that held too much thunder, he growled, “You’re getting in my fuckin’ head, babe. It’s not a good place to go searching.”
The Havoc who had laughed with me a moment ago was gone, and in his place was the intense Havoc I knew well. The one who held me at arm's-length. I reached for his face and held it with both hands. “Are you scared of what I’ll find there?” My breaths were choppy and my heart rate had picked up.