Addicted to Mr. Parks (The Park #2) (23 page)

“Green eyes sparkling?” He smirked from the corner of his mouth.

“Oh sod off.” I chuckled.

He moved towards me, wrapping the arms I’d missed immensely around my neck. “We’re each other’s remedy, Princess. Hard work or not. “

“I know,” I breathed against his lips, inhaling watermelon and indulging in his masculine scent.

“Evey? Who is it?” Neither of us turned at the sound of Cheryl’s voice. The air between us was polluted with calming rage, heavy desire, and need. It had been only a couple of hours since I hadn’t had the pleasure of seeing his face, and even though he angered me like no one else, I couldn’t deny how good he made me feel.

“Are you going to let me in?” His cool breath misted my cheek as his gaze fell to my lips.

“I don’t have a choice, do I?” I sassed, swinging around dramatically and leading the way. When Parks followed me in, a wave of apprehension rushed through my bones. He was stepping into another part of my life. Meeting the most important people to me. Even though he’d already met with Cheryl, this was out of my comfort zone.

“Wade?” Cheryl’s voice oozed surprise when she spotted him behind me. “You made it. Evey said you were busy.”

He cocked his brow my way, so I threw him a warning glare. “I was, but I wrapped it up quickly to be here. It’s nice to meet you again, and thank you for inviting me into your home.” He was such a smooth-talking, sexy bastard.

“Oh, it’s no bother. We’re thinking about going out for dinner. Would you join us?” I loved how my auntie’s accent suddenly turned posh around Parks. She was as posh as a dusty old doorknob.

“I’d love to.” Parks smiled widely, making Cheryl’s legs almost buckle. Kevin entered the room moments later in a hideous stripy shirt, which made Cheryl roll her eyes. Obviously, it wasn’t her husband’s best look. For Kevin’s sake, I quickly introduced him to Parks to divert Cheryl’s attention.

“Kev, this is Wade. Wade, my Uncle Kevin.”

Kevin only then noticed Parks was standing in the living room with us. He never paid attention to anything.

Parks gave him a firm, strong handshake, making Kevin look awkward. “Nice to meet you, mate.” Kevin nudged his head to Cheryl. “You’re all my wife seems to talk about.”

“Nonsense,” she faffed, her cheeks glowing.

Kevin made a face towards her. “Why are you talking funny?”

I burst out laughing, because Cheryl’s face burnt red.

“I’m not.”

The attention of Parks summoned Darcy. She came skipping into the room, eying him up suspiciously. “Are you Mr. Parks?”

Parks chuckled, giving me a clueless look when she said his name.
Oops.

“I’m afraid I am.” He smiled.

She pointed a cross finger at him, her other hand on her hip. “Evey told me you don’t like Peppa Pig.”

Parks smiled affectionately. “Well, she knows very little. I love Peppa Pig.”

I laughed when Darcy turned to me and poked out her tongue. Then she pulled at my dress, making me bend down so she could whisper in my ear. “Is he your prince?”

“I think so,” I whispered back.

Darcy skipped to her mother’s side. “Mr. Parks is Evey’s prince, Mummy, and he likes Peppa Pig. So there.”

Kevin questioned Darcy playfully. “Does that mean I’m mummy’s prince?”

Darcy giggled hysterically. “No, silly. You’re just my daddy who has a big belly.”

“Hey.” Kevin patted his stomach. “It’s taken me years to perfect this round belly. Taking of which, ready for some tucker?” He slapped his hands together. Good food was Kevin’s specialty.

“Tucker?” Parks mouthed to me, clueless for once.

“Food,” I whispered for his benefit.

“It’s a beautiful evening. Let’s go to The Royal Oak,” Kevin suggested. The Royal Oak was one of his favourite pubs. It wasn’t the biggest of pubs, but the atmosphere was warm and welcoming, and the food was to die for. It was also near the beach, so that’s another reason he and Cheryl loved it.

“I’m sure Wade would prefer somewhere like The Browns Restaurant or—”

“Cheryl, I’d love pub grub.” Parks was charming my aunty, and it made her giggle like a child. She never giggled. I laughed because I knew he didn’t mean it. Pub grub was a British favourite. Hearty, traditional meals cooked just how we like. But Parks was used to organic foods, healthy cuisine, and sushi. That’s everything British pub grub was not. And I loved it for that.

When Kevin’s mother came to babysit the kids, we walked out onto Cheryl’s driveway only to see Parks’s Ferrari parked there.

“Bloody hell.” Kevin stood back, shocked to see such a car on his drive.

“I apologise,” Parks said. “I can move it if you like?”

“No,” Kevin told him sharply. “Steve, next door, will have a heart attack when he sees this. She’s a beaut.” Kevin began walking around the car like he was admiring a work of art, smoothing his fingers along the bonnet.

Parks began to tell him all about the car as Cheryl linked arms with me. “Boys and their toys.”

Chapter

Twenty-One

“I’m gagging for a drink. A pint of ale, mate?”

Parks waved his hand slightly. “Not for me. Let me get these.” He didn’t have to tell Kevin twice. Kevin put away his wallet and slapped Parks on the shoulder.

“Good lad.”

“You’re a tight sod.” Cheryl scowled at her husband, then glanced at Parks as he waited for her to tell him what drink she’d like. “A G and T, please.”

I accompanied Parks to the bar to order our drinks and quickly spotted the barmaid. She couldn’t have been much older than twenty, and her top showed way too much cleavage. Her neat blonde hair with light pink at the tips tumbled down her back, and her dark eyelashes fluttered over big, brown eyes.

“Hi, what can I get you?”

“A pint of ale, two waters, and a gin and tonic. Thank you.”

“American?” Her doe-eyed expression made me smirk.

“Yes.” Parks tried to dismiss her with a one-word answer, but she carried on talking as she pulled the pint.

“Which part?”

He kissed my lips before he replied, making her wriggle her nose bitterly. “California.”

She passed over the pint and was about to grab our waters until she spotted something. “Wait.” She narrowed her eyes slightly and tilted her head just a little to the left. “Are you…Wade Parks?”

Keeping devoted eyes on me, Parks answered her mindlessly. “No. I’m better-looking.”

I burst out laughing, which caused the barmaid to grunt.

“You’re winding the poor girl up.” My voice was hushed as I stared fondly into his green eyes. When he looked at me so amorously, I was transfixed by him, hypnotised by his powerful aura, his sexual ambiance and confidence. He was like a drug to me. I needed him near because when he left, my light would leave with him.

“What are you thinking, Princess?” He turned slightly to pay the barmaid.

“Just thinking of how much I’m beginning to need you. Tell me you won’t leave me again.” He jerked his head back, exasperated, so I pulled him into me by his shirt. “Just tell me.”

His body relaxed as he pushed my hair behind my ear and ran his fingertips down my cheek. “I promise. The day I leave you will be the day I die. Come on.”

We headed back to the table and sat opposite Cheryl and Kevin on the brown, hand-carved wooden chairs that had red velvet cushioning. The pub had a real British feel to it with a wood-burning fireplace, dark brown woods, and black chalkboards displaying the day’s specials.

“Cheers, son.” Kevin picked up his pint and took a huge gulp.

Parks scanned the menu, taking his time as he read over the dishes. I knew he was fretting inside, so I bumped a shoulder with him. “You look worried.”

Sliding a cool arm around my shoulder, he shook his head, speaking in that English accent I loved him doing. “Don’t be daft, I’m just taking my time.”

I burst out laughing. “‘Daft’?”

“I’m embracing the British.” He chuckled.

“You have no choice.” I smiled, leaning over to kiss him.

“All ready to order?” It was that waitress again, and her boobs looked even more pushed up than they did when we saw her at the bar. She’d even undone a button on her shirt. Kevin ordered first, followed by myself and Cheryl, then I waited anxiously to see what Parks would order.

“For you, sir?” The way her lashes fluttered at Parks made me want to vomit.

“The steak, please. Rare. Could you hold off the sauce and steam the vegetables?”

Fluttering eyelashes blinked, then the she nodded, a little unsure. “No problem.” The barmaid swivelled on her heel and went into the kitchen.

My nerves around bringing Parks into my life, introducing him to my family, and bringing him into our Britishness began to die down. His lifestyle, my lifestyle, our upbringings, even our nationalities were at opposite ends of the spectrum. I was pub grub. He was à la carte. But that’s what made us work. Somehow.

Cheryl and Kevin bonded with Parks way more than I expected. He had their approval, which surprisingly meant a lot to me.

Kevin was on his third pint of ale when the food came. “Can I have another one of those?” He tipped his empty pint glass to Eyelashes when she placed our food in front of us.

“Sure.”

“God,” Cheryl moaned, picking up her knife and fork. “Kevin’s plan to get arseholed is working, then. The last time we were here, he fell arse over tit into a plant pot.” She started laughing, causing Kevin’s face to burn red.

“We’ve all done it.” I left my aunty and uncle bickering and felt my eyes skirting to the side to see how Parks would approach his food.

“It looks good,” I reassured him.

“It does.” I think he was genuine as he cut a small amount of steak and placed it into his mouth. I watched him chew, waiting for his approval.

“Good.” He nodded.

I didn’t realise I was holding my breath until I sagged. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. I can tick eating
pub grub
off my bucket list.”

I nudged him in the ribs. “Shut up.”

“So,” Kevin asked, placing down his knife and fork. He was finished within five minutes. “How much are you worth, Wade?”

Cheryl was mortified, and her coughing and spluttering proved it. “Don’t be so bloody rude.”

Parks wasn’t offended, though. He put down his own knife and fork and causally took his glass of water to his lips. “A little over a billion.”

Kevin’s eyes widened, Cheryl’s jaw dropped, and I held my fork in midair, all of us staring at him in shock.

“A billion?” I mouthed, not actually being able to say the words. A casual slight nod as he swallowed down his water answered my question.

“Wow.” Kevin’s voice was squeaky for the first time since his balls had dropped. He snatched the empty pint glass from the table and held it up in the air. “Love, I think I need another pint.”

Throughout the meal, Parks kept touching my hand and brushing his arm against mine. The tender looks and small kisses to my temple as we all conversed had me melting and forgetting we weren’t alone. Cheryl discreetly smirked as she studied our display of affections.

After our meal, the men were bonding over the snooker table, leaving us women to chat.

“He’s besotted with you.” Cheryl tipped her glass to me.

I gazed over my shoulder and settled on Parks’s frame as he slightly bent over the snooker table to take his shot. “You think?”

“I know. He looks at you like you’re the most beautiful woman in the world. He’s fixated.”

I scoffed. He did not look at me that way. “Now you’re lying.”

“I bleeding ain’t.” She smacked my hand playfully, then pointed a finger. “I see infatuation clear as day. I can also see you’re besotted with him too. You do the same thing. When you look at him, I lose you for a second.”

I smiled down into my lap, well aware I was becoming beguiled by him. Just like I knew I was developing another addiction. But I didn’t want that addiction to conceal my feelings.

“That’s because he consumes me.” My tender remark surprised both of us.

“Bloody Nora, did that comment come from
your
mouth?”

I shrugged, not feeling embarrassed at all. “Nia, my support worker, told me to talk and tell, rather than hide and suppress.”

“Your support worker? I’d love to meet this lady. I can see you coming out of yourself. You’ve calmed down so much. I saw the way that barmaid was looking at Wade. I was proud of you for not lamping her one.”

Nia also told me that when I start to become happy, most of my anger will begin to disperse. Anger comes from unhappiness, and I was starting to understand her theory.

“I’m getting there.” I took another peek over my shoulder to see Parks was watching me. Kevin was taking his turn on the table, and he was pissed, so he took his time with one eye closed as he tried to focus on the shot. The way Parks peered over at me reminded me of how much he absorbed my world and sucked me into his.

“It’s almost unbelievable, isn’t it?” Cheryl’s confused frown made me explain. “You know, a man like him dating a girl like me. Our lives are worlds apart. No, they’re a universe apart.”

“Why? Because he has money and you don’t?”

“Not just that.” I sighed. “His perfect world meets my damaged soul.”

“Everyone has secrets, Evey.”

“I guess,” I agreed, but Parks showed no signs of telling me his.

“You’re falling in love,” Cheryl whispered, pulling me back to earth.

“Whoa.” I pointed to her gin and tonic. “I think you’ve had too many of those.”

***

“Please stay. The kids would love to see you in the morning.” Cheryl drunkenly pulled on my arm.

“I know, but Wade needs to get back.”

Parks had already kissed Cheryl on her cheek and gave Kevin a handshake good-bye. He was waiting by his Ferrari with the door open for me, smirking because Cheryl didn’t want me to leave. She took my cheeks in her palms. “Okay, darling girl. Take care.”

“I always do,” I promised.

“Will you stop fannying around and get inside,” Kevin scolded his wife, which made me chuckle because they made their way into the house, bickering like they always did.

Parks dipped his head down and kissed me softly, taking my breath away. “What was that for?” I smirked.

“Just because I can.” He grinned, tossing his head in the direction of the car. I got the hint and ducked inside.

“Nice car.” I ran my hands over the cream interior as Parks settled in the driver’s seat.

“You must be tired.” He pushed a button to start up the engine after catching my yawn. It was late and I was tired, so I rested my head against the back of the seat and got comfortable for the long drive home. Jessie Ware’s “Say You Love Me” started playing softly through the speakers, making me fall into a contented sleep.