Thirteen
1120 Words
Mackenzie
I was a freaking ball of nerves. Any minute now, Maverick was going to pick me up and I hadn’t even brushed my hair yet. Since this morning, I’ve been stressing about what to wear and take with me, and how I should act when we finally see each other. I had been overthinking everything since I kissed him. I didn’t know what came over me, but I felt that at that moment, I couldn’t let him leave without saying anything. Honestly, him telling me that he never got over me hit me hard because, in reality, I never got over him either. The only issue I was having was the fear of getting hurt again. The next day, I told him not to show up any time before today and not to call or send me a message. He didn’t ask why I wanted that, but instead, he asked if I changed my mind about us. Of course, I told him that I hadn’t changed my mind, but that I wanted some time to myself before plunging in.
I paced around my house as I checked everything and when I walked to my room to get my stuff, Maverick was already at the door knocking. I checked my reflection in the mirror for the last time and grabbed everything I was going to bring with me before opening the door. “Hey,” Maverick greeted me, wearing his sexy smile, and already I could feel my legs quake. Why did he have to be so hot every damn time? “Hey,” was my breathy response accompanied by my oh-so-awkward grin. “Let me help you with that,” he simply offered. He waited behind me as I shut the door and when I was sure that it was completely locked, I slowly turned to face him, still unsure about how I should act. I looked around, half thinking that he had brought his motorcycle, but what greeted me made my jaw drop. It wasn’t the SUV we rode in when he and Duke brought me home the other night, but parked in front of my lawn was a black Bentley Mulliner Batur.
This only meant one thing, I thought to myself. No Duke. Just the two of us off to Jaxon's lake house. Holy crap! "You're driving?" I stupidly asked. He looked at me and then at his car before saying, "Yeah, unless you want to drive," he stated, offering the keys to me as if he didn't give a damn if I ended up denting his beautiful and very expensive car. "Nope, no. Not gonna touch that, so you drive. I just thought that Duke was your designated driver," I stammered, shaking my head wildly. "He is sometimes, but mostly he's my bodyguard. He's right there," he explained, pointing at the man on the motorcycle a few feet behind his car. "Oh," I replied, smiling awkwardly at him before waving at Duke, who gave me a two-finger salute. I like that guy and his coolness, I thought to myself. "Don't worry, I'll drive slow and really well," he grinned, and somehow I couldn't help but think that it was an innuendo, or maybe I was just imagining it. And so, I giggled like a silly schoolgirl who wanted to punch herself for being so gross.
We started talking about easy random things as if we were getting to know each other once again as we drove out of my neighborhood. In a way, we were because a lot about us changed and not just the physical aspect of things. I was surprised to know that his parents migrated to London while his sister was now in Chicago and has her own family. The house they lived in growing up was still theirs, but his cousin was the one living there now. I enjoyed every story he had about his family and how he always visits them whenever their band plays in one of those places. It was nice to know that he still cared about his family and that he often bonded with them.
He also told me about the band and the kind of life they have. How they all treated each other like a family and how well they kept each other grounded because they had rules to live by. I was floored at how busy they got for almost an entire year. In fact, they're about to go on a short tour soon. Now, hearing that kinda made me think. We're dating now, right? So if he had to be on the road and in different countries most of the time, how were we going to make it work? Then I thought about James, Sydney, and Riley. James was their manager and their other songwriter, so it was a must that she and her son were always on tour with them. Riley and Sydney had their own careers. I knew for a fact that Sydney was as busy as Maddox being an actress and all, while Riley had her own interior design business, but they still managed to stay in love and keep it together. If that wasn't dedication right there, then I don't know what was anymore.
"You okay?" Maverick asked when I suddenly became quiet. "Yeah, just processing," I quietly answered with a huge fake smile, hoping that he wouldn't sense my sudden lack of enthusiasm. He glanced my way for a second before intertwining our fingers. I watched as he raised our hands to his lips even as he kissed the back of my hand lightly and it made my heart leap and melt. I haven't had this kind of intimacy for years. I mean, I've dated two guys after him, but they were more of a fling rather than the real deal, so they both lasted for a few months, six to seven months at the most, I think, before I got tired of pretending that I enjoyed either of their company. After the last guy I dated, I just went battery-operated as it was more convenient and did its job better than any d**k. To be honest, Maverick was my only real deal, which was why I was so heartbroken when he left me just like that. "We'll make it work or I'll make it work. You'll see," he simply said, interrupting my thoughts, and I couldn't help but wonder if I had said them out loud. "Yeah, I guess," I replied, but not really committing to the idea. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to make it work this time, but f**k, I still got trust issues, especially when it came down to my relationship with him.
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