Chapter 58: Chapter 58

Not surprisingly, Charlee spent her entire day, trying to concentrate on whatever she was doing to no avail. Her mind kept wandering, and she kept getting hot flashes. When she wasn’t having thoughts that had her dampening her panties, she was struggling to calm her anxiety about the conversation she’d be having with him tonight.

What did come as an unpleasant surprise was how detached and indifferent Hector had behaved in the chess lab. While he did sit with her and pecked her softly one time, he was very reserved the rest of the time. She didn’t expect him to be all over her, but the way he’d acted, even around his friends and family, she was sort of expecting him to be a little more affectionate. It felt almost as if he didn’t want anyone to know about them.

She tried to not read too much into it. At first, she thought maybe he was just trying to be private about it. Maybe he was reserved about these kinds of things in public. Then she remembered the shameless little show he put on with those two whores in the parking lot just after the tournament and how he hadn’t seemed to care at all if anyone saw him making out with not one but two girls.

Even after the lab as they walked with Walter and a few of the other guys to the parking lot, he hadn’t even held her hand. It wasn’t until they were in the privacy of his truck that he’d practically attacked her. If she weren’t so instantly and incredibly turned on by it, she might’ve had the presence of mind to push him off her sooner. It took a while, but the more she thought about it, even as he sucked away at her tongue and lips, her lifelong battle with insecurity resurfaced, and she pulled off and slid away from him, quickly moving closer to the door.

He stared at her breathlessly, his brows furrowing immediately. “What’s wrong?”

Trying desperately to squash any memories of Danny and how easily she’d been duped by him, she reminded herself this was completely different. Hector said he loved her and she believed him. He wasn’t ashamed of her, and there was no damn reason for him to be. She wasn’t that freak anymore.

Still overcome with emotion and unable to put into words what she was feeling, she reached for the door handle.

“Where you going?”

“I gotta go,” was all she could manage to say, but he reached for her hand and held it.

“Wait. What’s wrong? What did I do?” She tried opening the door and pulling her hand away, but he held it tight. “Charlee talk to me,” he insisted, his voice as panicked as she felt. “This is why I said no guessing games. I suck at this. I’m totally lost here. Just tell me what I did.”

She gave up trying to get out of the truck and let her head fall back against the seat and tried gulping back the enormous boulder lodged in her throat now. “You’ll think I’m petty.”

“No, I won’t,” he said, quickly bringing his arm around her waist and sliding her closer to him. “Tell me,” he whispered in her ear.

That alone was enough to make her shiver even at a moment like this. Maybe she was a freak. She turned to face him. “It felt almost as if you were pretending nothing’s happened between us again while there were people around. Then as soon as we were alone, it was okay to do,” she touched his arm that held her close now, “this.”

This time, he let his head fall back. “I was pretending nothing happened.”

Her heart dropped, and she straightened out this time, successfully managing to pull away from him. “I knew it.” She opened the door and rushed out, slamming it behind her.

Hector was immediately out of the truck too. “Charlee wait!” She saw him rush around to catch her just a few parking spaces away, jumping in front of her. The moment he was face to face with her and saw her tears, his face went hard. “Fuck! I knew I should’ve just told you.”

“Told me what?” She searched his angry eyes. Her heart couldn’t take any more. If it was anything like what she was thinking, she was flying home tonight and never looking back.

“I was pretending, but not around everyone, just Walter.”

She stared at him, breathing hard as he wiped the tears from her face. “Walter?”

“Yes. He’s the reason why I didn’t try anything with you sooner.” He spoke quickly and deliberately now. “He’s why I asked you pretend nothing happened after that first kiss. He was totally into you, and I was supposed to be helping him impress you, but then I started falling for you. I tried my damnedest to fight it, but I couldn’t. It wasn’t until he told me he’d started seeing his grandfather’s nurse that I asked him if he was okay with me asking you out.”

He took a deep breath, pulling her to him, and wrapped his arms around her. She wrapped her arms around him, still processing everything he’d just said. He’d been helping Walter try to impress her? Walter was seeing Natalie now. But most importantly Hector wasn’t ashamed of her?

Pulling away but still holding her hand, he continued. “That was Saturday. I called you as soon as I finished talking to him, but he’d asked me not to mention his being all into you. He said it was embarrassing, so I didn’t think it was a big deal if I left that whole part out. Then tonight . . . It just felt weird. I know he’s seeing someone else now, but realizing how quick I was to move in on the girl he’d been pining for all this time, I kind of felt like an asshole, so I thought I’d at least tone it down a little, maybe give it some time before I’m all over you in front of him.” He shook his head, still wiping the corners of her eyes. “I’m sorry. I should’ve just told you all this Saturday.” His expression went from deeply regretful to suddenly concerned. “But seriously, babe, why are you so quick to believe the worst? Did that sleazy first impression you had of me really stick that hard?”

“I never thought you were sleazy,” she frowned. “I told you, you made the most unforgettable first impression on me. Remember?”

“Yeah, but then I went and made that shithead move, asking you to pretend that night never happened.”

She nodded, glancing down. “I know, but I still never thought you were sleazy.” She kept it to herself that she and Drew did think him a pig after seeing him with those girls, but who was she kidding? The very next time she saw him, she was ready to let him kiss her regardless.

“So why jump and think the worst so fast?” He peered at her. “Talk to me, Charlee. I told you I’d try my damnedest to get this right, and I’m going to, but you need to help me out here. I don’t wanna have to worry you’re going to run off every time you think the worst.” He leaned his face sideways, looking into her eyes. “Tell me. What’s it gonna take to get you to believe I’m not a sleaze and I do love you. I just make stupid mistakes sometimes, but I’d never purposely hurt you.”

Charlee took a deep breath, feeling the enormous relief she’d felt a moment ago replaced with slow-boiling anxiety. “First of all, stop saying that. You’re not a sleaze, and I never thought you were one, but,” she glanced around then back at him, “you are right about one thing.” He lifted his brow now, waiting. “I am too quick to jump and think the worst.” She scoffed, shaking her head. “I was already having visions of jumping on a plane home tonight and never coming back.”

“What?” He spit the word out staring at her.

She wasn’t sure if he was more shocked at that or hurt, and, already, she regretted admitting it.

“Are you kidding me?” If it weren’t for the hurt in his eyes, she’d think him furious. “Just like that you’d walk away?”

“It’s what I was going to talk to you about tonight.”

“Well then, talk.”

“Right here?”

“Yes, right here, right now, because you just scared the crap outta me.”

She shook her head, reaching out for his hand, and he took it. “I didn’t mean to.”

He touched her hair, his expression softening a bit, and stared deep in her eyes. “Okay, but you did. So tell me.”

She wasn’t sure where to start, and she sure as heck hadn’t planned on having this conversation with him here in the middle of the school parking lot, but he seemed adamant. “It’s long, Hector. It goes back to when I was a little girl.”

He startled her by putting his arms around her suddenly and hugging her. The hug was a tight one, and she loved being in the warmth of his big arms. She gave into it completely, leaning her face against his chest. “I’m sorry I made you cry and think whatever it is you were thinking, okay?” She nodded without pulling away from his chest. “You forgive me?” She nodded again. “Are you in a hurry to be anywhere right now?”

She shook her head, smiling at how quick she’d gone from feeling mortified and hurt to utterly in love again.

“Good,” he loosened his hold on her and pulled away. “Because that’s twice that you’ve lost it on me and like that.” He snapped his fingers. “And I need to know what the hell I’m doing wrong so that doesn’t happen again, so start talking, and we’ll go grab something to eat, but the whole time you talk. I have all the time in the world tonight, so I don’t care how long it is.”

She nodded in agreement. This was it. He’d either think her a pathetic freak or this would prove once in for all he really as wonderful as she suspected and she could finally trust that this wasn’t too good to be true.

They started back to his truck. “I’m listening,” he said.

Oh boy. It was now or never, so she may as well get it over with.