19. Greedy

Chapter 19

Greedy

now

Steering wheel gripped so tight my knuckles ache, I track Levi's movement as he angles forward and messes with the radio. Again.

He's riding shotgun, insisting on controlling the music like usual.

Except the passenger in the back seat also has an opinion about every song that starts up, and for some goddamn reason, Levi cares what His Royal Highness thinks about what we listen to.

Swallowing thickly, I force myself to focus on the road again.

It's a cool day, and although there are icy patches here and there, it's nothing I can't handle.

Trouble is, every time I check my mirrors, I catch sight of the two passengers in the back.

They're on opposite sides of the bench seat.

Yet Hunter is turned toward Kabir, and he's scrolling on his phone with one hand while the other, affixed with multiple gold rings, brushes up and down her leggings-clad thigh.

It's the simplicity of the moment that slays me .

I don't think he's doing it to get to me. I don't think Hunter's even aware of how affected I am by every move and every look between her and Kabir, as well as her and Levi. The ease of the contact and lack of hostile intention almost hurt worse. Seeing them together, so intimately comfortable, is gut-wrenching.

"Holy shit," Hunter says, bolting straighter in her seat.

Instantly, I seek her out in the rearview mirror.

"Holy shit!" she repeats, smiling from ear to ear as she blinks down at her phone.

She reaches forward, the movement making me flinch. Only she's not even reaching for me.

In my periphery, she grasps Levi's arm, her perfectly manicured fingernails on full display.

"Final grades are posted."

Her voice is filled with more joy than I've observed since her return.

Levi turns around in his seat, grinning. "You fucking aced it, didn't you?"

Without permission, my eyes dart to the rearview mirror. Fuck. Her smile is brilliant.

Kabir's also watching her.

She's smiling so hard her eyes are squinty. She passes the phone up to Levi. "Twenty-one credit hours and a 4.0 GPA for my first semester of undergrad."

"I'm so fucking proud of you," Levi tells her.

He shifts further in his seat, as if he's reaching for her, only to stop abruptly, like maybe he's thinking better of it. With one last half smile at Hunter, he rights himself.

"Let me see," Kabir murmurs.

Even the sound of his voice grates against my insides.

There's a big incline coming up, and I have to breathe through the urge to floor it and whip the truck around the next bend.

I don't want to cause physical harm, obviously. But I wouldn't mind tossing His Royal Highness around in the back of the cab .

"Well done, love," he says to Hunter as he passes her phone back. "What do you say we celebrate tonight?"

His hand glides up her thigh, and it isn't until Levi clears his throat that I refocus on the road.

After a few more seconds—because I'm a glutton for punishment—I check the rearview mirror again.

This time I lock eyes with Hunter.

I clear my throat, realizing I haven't said a word, and as evenly as possible, I tell her, "Congrats. You earned it."

She offers a tight-lipped smile. The expression turns to a shudder, then she's slapping Spencer's hand away.

Fuck, I should be focused on the road.

I drag my attention to the scenery outside the windshield, but a moment later, my eyes drift back to them.

Look at the road, look back at them.

He's abandoned his phone now and is giving his full attention to Hunter, leaning over and whispering into her ear.

I clear my throat once, then twice.

Either he doesn't hear me or doesn't give a shit.

Hunter murmurs something under her breath that makes him pause.

Kabir scoffs and slips his hand up her thigh until it's almost hidden by the hem of her sweater.

"Greedy."

I zero in on the road again, then glance back up at Hunter. But she's not looking at me. She's looking at him.

Am I hearing things? Did she—"Greedy." This time, it's clear she's speaking directly to Spence.

"Yeah?" I ask.

Hunter says nothing for a beat. Then another.

"You okay back there?" I push.

She lifts her head in a jerk, her face flushing. She blinks at me as if she's just realized that I'm here, despite saying my name. "Yeah. All good," she assures me, settling back into her seat.