42. Xavier

CHAPTER 42

XAVIER

"Hi," she says, it comes out all breathy and squeaky, and it's the cutest sound I've ever heard.

"Hi," I say back with a smirk. One that pops my dimple that I know she loves, and yep, her eyes dart right to it.

I realise that I'm still holding onto her, and I let go. She immediately steps back and half stumbles again, so I grab hold of her once more.

"You all good?" I ask. I rub my thumb gently on her upper arm, not sure if I'm overstepping, but she doesn't yank out of my grip so that's a good sign.

"Mhmm. I'm great. Was just peeing." I laugh and she looks horrified at herself that she just told me that. "I mean, I was just in the bathroom and then you were here, and then you're still here holding me, and um… what?"

I laugh again. I think flustered Ella is probably one of my favourite versions of her. She has no idea what's coming out of her mouth and it's fucking adorable.

"Why are you laughing?" she demands, but there's a slight smile on her lips.

"No reason. How… how are you?"

"I'm fine, I'll be better once I escape and get back to Millie's."

"Oh?"

"I'm on a date." She cringes.

"Yeah, I kind of assumed." I felt sick the moment I saw that guy put his hand on her back. I wanted to rush over there and claim her as my own. Lena talked me off the ledge. "How long have you been seeing this guy?" I have to know if it's a thing.

"Oh, I'm not seeing him. This is the first date. I hadn't met him before tonight." I almost collapse at the relief I feel.

"And given that you told me you want to escape, can I assume it's not going well?" I ask.

She scrunches up her whole face. "Awful. Like there were a few subtle red flags when we got here but I decided to just give him the benefit of the doubt. But he just said something that made me immediately go NOPE. I'm done."

"What did he say?" I'll kick him out of the bar for life if he insulted her.

"He said he doesn't like women reading romance novels because it gives them unrealistic expectations."

My jaw drops.

"That was my exact reaction!" she says.

"What a douchebag. Does he not know how incredibly helpful those books can be? I mean we…" I trail off. I can't bring up our past, that's not fair, so I clear my throat. "He doesn't know what he's missing, I mean."

She blushes and God, I want to just take her face in my hands and kiss her.

"Exactly. He has no idea. But I can't spend another minute talking to him. I need some sort of excuse to get out of the date."

I tap my finger on my chin like I'm seriously pondering a solution for her. She laughs a little.

"Given what you've just told me, I bet if you told him you just got your period unexpectedly, he will end the date straight away."

Her smile spreads until it's a full-blown grin, and I swear my heart stops beating. She is exquisite . That dick bag has no idea what he's missing.

"Brilliant. That'll definitely work. Thank you."

"Anytime. I'll walk with you to the garden."

"Sure."

We walk towards the doors but then Ella stops short and chuckles .

"I called it," she says, mostly to herself.

I follow her line of sight and I see Logan leaning against the bar, very obviously trying to hit on Lena. She's making drinks and remaining polite, but is very clearly giving him zero reason to think she's into him.

"Called it?" I ask Ella.

"Oh, I made a bet with myself that he would try and chat Lena up while I was in the bathroom. He was practically drooling over her when we first got here." I chuckle, but then I take in what she's really saying. That this guy would rather try and pick up Lena tonight and not her. "I mean, I can't blame him really. Lena is gorgeous," she continues.

"So are you."

She looks at me again and that blush creeps back up her cheeks. I've missed making her blush so badly it hurts.

"Thanks." She looks down at her feet. The urge to lift her chin and kiss her is so overwhelming that I have to ball my hands into fists to stop myself from doing something stupid.

"I guess there's no need to give him some excuse to get out of here, he doesn't look like he will be going anywhere any time soon."

"Very true. Guess I should order my Uber before he realises." She unlocks her phone and opens up the app.

"I could take you home if you need a lift," I blurt out. She stops what she's doing and looks at me."If you want to, you know, save money or whatever. I can drop you off."

"I'm staying at Millie's tonight."

I wave a hand. "That's fine, it's no trouble."

"It's half an hour in the opposite direction of your house," she points out.

"I want to make sure you get home safe."

She chews on her bottom lip for a minute and thinks about it. She looks down at her phone and frowns.

"Fine. But only because this Uber would have cost nearly $40, and I'm a cheapskate."

"Great. I'll just say goodbye to Lena. Wait here."

I walk over to the bar and pull Lena aside.

"Hey, I'm taking Ella to her friend's place. That Logan guy is a fucking loser. I'll let security know to stick around once your shift is done to make sure he's not hanging out waiting for you."

"Thanks, Xav, appreciate it. I can handle him. Good luck." She pats me on the shoulder and gets back to work. Logan acts like she hadn't even just walked away from him mid conversation. I roll my eyes and walk back over to Ella who's waiting patiently but fidgeting.

"Ready?" I ask.

"Yep."

We walk outside and around the side of the building to where my ute is parked. She walks around the passenger side, and I follow so I can open the door for her. She smiles shyly up at me and thanks me before sliding into the seat. I close the door behind her and all but skip around to the driver's side. I turn the car on and, almost instantly, music starts blaring out of the speakers. I rush to turn it down, but it's too late. She heard it.

"All Too Well? Really, Xav?" She's trying so hard not to laugh.

"10-minute version. It's a good song," I mumble.

"Oh, don't worry, I know. I just didn't pick you to be a Swiftie."

"I never used to be," I admit.

Her mouth pops open just a little but then she catches herself. I look at her and smile and then focus on the road ahead. But not before I turn the music up just a little bit so we can appreciate it in the background. I see her smile to herself out of the corner of my eye.

We sit in silence for most of the drive, only breaking it when Ella gives me directions to Millie and Clay's house. When we get there, I turn off the ignition and we sit in the awkwardness. Neither of us are sure what to say. Eventually, Ella clears her throat and takes off her seatbelt.

"Well, thanks for the ride, Xav." She goes to open the door.

"Wait."She stops. "Are you busy tomorrow?"

"Um, not really. Just housework and stuff. "

I swallow my nerves.

"Can I bring you a coffee in the morning? Just to talk and you know, catch up on things."

"I don't know, Xav…"

"Just one coffee. For half an hour. 10 minutes even. Please?" I'll beg if I have to. I just need to talk to her.

She sighs deeply and looks at me. I think she can read the desperation on my face because her posture softens a bit.

"Okay. One coffee."

"Done. I'll be there at 10am?"

"That's fine. See you in the morning."

"Goodnight."

I watch her to make sure she gets inside safely. Millie opens the door and they both look over at me and give a little wave. I wave back and they close the door.

I drive home with the biggest smile I've had on my face in three months.