“You can do it, Kit. Don’t think about it too much. Just do it.”
“Just do it,” I whispered and put the car in Reverse. I slowly backed out of the driveway. All the time, my heart pounded inside my chest. My hands were sweaty, but I gripped the steering wheel tight and did exactly as Sully said.
When I didn’t crash into anything, my confidence grew a bit until I had to brake at a stoplight and I came entirely too close to the car in front of me.
“It’s okay. You’re doing fine.” Sully squeezed my thigh.
The driver in front of me didn’t think so. When the light turned green, he switched to the lane next to me.
“You fucking asshole!” the man shouted out the window. “Get off the road until you know how to drive properly.”
I flinched. Sully stroked my thigh. “Don’t listen to him. He’s nothing but a distraction, and the streets are filled with them. You just need to focus on the road.”
“Sully.” I bit back my smile.
“Yes?”
“You’re being a distraction.”
Sully let go of my thigh. “I was just helping you to stay focused.”
He was such a cheerleader, always believing in me. I snickered at the thought of Sully in a pleated skirt.
“What’s so funny?”
“You in a cheerleader outfit. The kind the girls wear.”
Sully groaned. “I don’t want to know. But you—you’ll have to dress like a cheerleader for me sometime. I can be your big, strong jock boyfriend.”
I squirmed. “Distraction.”
“I’ll just be quiet, then.”
Miraculously, I made it to the apartment building with us in one piece, and I hadn’t even crashed the car. My parking was horrendous, though. I couldn’t parallel park decently. Reversing was a pain in the ass too.
“Good job, babe,” Sully said when we got out of the car. “I knew you could do it.”
My cheeks burned. “Thanks for believing in me.”
He kissed my forehead. “Should I go up with you?”
“No way. Remember that one time you were with me when we helped one of these guys? He tried to get you to replace me with him.”
“Yet you still helped him. That’s one of the reasons I love you, Kit. You have the biggest heart of anyone I know.”
I stood on my toes and kissed his neck. “Later you can tell me all the other reasons.”
“Call me when you’re ready to leave.”
“I can call a cab, Sully.”
“No. I’ll have Geoff come for you if I can’t make it.”
“Okay, I’ll call.”
I waved him off, and when the car disappeared from view, I walked into the building. As far as apartments went, this one was decent, and the price wasn’t bad. Sully had suggested it for a home for one of the guys who worked for Nolan and had wanted to get out. Word had traveled among them that I was helping those working for my ex-boss to move on to the next chapter of their lives. So far, I’d arranged to relocate five prostitutes—four of which already had jobs. Sully was helping to pay for one to do evening classes to get their GED.
Sully’s support of how I spent the money I earned working for him was the best sign of his love.