"No."
"Alright, then I'm walking with you."
"No, you're not." She strode through the open door and didn't look back.
So I did the only thing I could.
I followed after her.
Chapter 14
I was maybe five steps behind her when she reached the front gate. And then, as if sensing someone following her, she turned around. When she spotted me, she stopped.
Trying not to crowd her, I stopped, too.
Her eyebrows furrowed. "What are you doing?"
"Making sure you get home okay."
With a huff, she turned back around and started walking again. Again, I followed after her. It was still dark, and there was no way I was letting her walk home alone
After a block or so, she stopped and turned around again. Her gaze narrowed. "You don't need to do this."
The hell I didn't. "Yes. I do."
There was a lot of weirdness going on. And the thing with Brittney had me thinking. If she had the nerve to apologize naked, what else did she have planned? Did she have another pair of guys waiting in the wings to jump Chloe a second time?
The odds were slim, but not so slim that I'd risk it.
Chloe was still standing there, watching me. "But it's creeping me out."
"Why?" I asked.
"Because I don't like someone walking behind me."
"Then I'll walk with you. But you're not walking back alone."
Chloe glanced around, as trying to make a point. Yeah, I got it. It was a nice neighborhood, with street lights and everything. But the trees were tall, and the sidewalk was cast in shadows.
Chloe could be pissed all she wanted, but it wasn't going to change my mind. Yeah, I wanted her to forgive me for what I'd done. And yeah, I wanted her to take me back. But more than anything, I wanted her to be safe – because I'd rather lose her honestly than see anything bad happen to her.
"Fine," Chloe muttered. "Whatever. But it doesn't change anything."
I strode forward, joining her on the quiet sidewalk. For a couple of minutes, we walked in silence. The wind picked up, and she gave a shiver. Just like before, I hated to see it.
If I were wearing a jacket, I would've gladly handed it over. But I wasn't. And the way it looked, she sure as hell didn't want me warming her with my own body.
I glanced toward her house. In ten minutes, we'd be at her front door. If I were smart, I'd make those minutes count. I spoke up. "I want to tell you something."
She didn't even look. "What?"
"I know you don't want to hear it, but I do love you, and I'm so fucking sorry."
Her steps faltered, and she blinked hard. Was that bad? Or good?
Either way, I took a deep breath and kept on talking. "Which is why you deserve to know why I flipped out on you."
She was still walking, faster now. But she deserved to hear this, for her own peace-of-mind, if nothing else.
