Protect Me (14 page)

“Hey,” he says as he looks me square in the eyes. “It was no problem. I would rather be safe and check everything out than to be sorry I didn’t. If you say something didn’t feel right, then we’ll go with your gut feeling. Why don’t you come inside and take a look around and make sure nothing is out of place or missing, okay?” he says as he leads me inside the apartment.
 

I scout from room to room looking for any sign of something - anything - out of place. Maddox follows me as I take in the unmade bed, the piles of discarded clothes, and the toothpaste open on the sink. Everything is just as I left it.
 

“Everything is fine,” I all but whisper as we return to the tiny kitchen.
 

“Well, that’s good,” he replies. “Listen, if you ever have any problems or see anything out of the ordinary, give me a call,” he says as he pulls out his wallet. He takes a receipt and an ink pen and writes his name and number on the slip of paper. “This is my cell. Call me day or night,” he adds as he hands over the paper.
 

“Thank you. I feel so silly now,” I say with a grin.
 

“Trust your gut, Lia,” he says with a half grin. I can totally see why Avery fell head over heels in love with the man. Hot cop with bulging biceps and triceps and all the other kinds of ‘ceps, plus a smile that causes traffic jams.
 

I walk him to the door and step onto the landing with him.
 

“Listen, Lia, I don’t know your history or anything and you damn sure don’t have to tell me anything. You seem like a great woman whose maybe had a rough go of it in the past. Listen to your heart when it comes to things like this. Don’t hesitate to call me, Jake or Nate if you notice something funny. Your gut instinct is one of the greatest gifts you have. Use it.”
 

I look up at him with question in my eyes. He can see that about me? My pain, my past? Is it written all over my face like a flashing sign?
 

His eyes are intense and all-knowing as if he can read my thoughts. “It’s part of the job,” he confirms. “Plus, I take the protection of my friends very seriously,” he says with the very slight rise of the corner of his mouth.
 

“Thank you,” I whisper as he descends the stairs. Maddox looks up and gives me a final wave before opening the door below my stairs and stepping inside the bakery to see his wife.
 

I step back inside the apartment, securely locking the door behind me. I give the place one more look-over and conclude that I’m losing my mind. Besides a little embarrassment that my boss’ husband just saw my messy place, nothing is wrong. Not a speck of dust is out of place.
 

But if that’s the case, why do I get this strange feeling that something dark is looming?
 

I arrive at the Stevens household at six o’clock sharp. The driveway is so packed with cars I have to park in the yard close to the end of the driveway. I take off up the driveway towards the large, white house. Laughter filters around the side of the house and when I step around, I see the reason for all of the extra vehicles.
 

The entire male Stevens population and a whole slew of other men are standing around the side of the
house, shotguns in one hand and beers in the other. Nate notices me instantly; his eyes seek me out as if they are a heat-seeking missile and I am the target. He casually swaggers over to me, a cocky smile plastered on his too-handsome face. Damn.
 

“Hey, beautiful,” he says when he reaches me.
 

“Hey. What’s going on here?” I ask as I take in the group before me.
 

“Clay pigeon shooting. We’ve been here since early afternoon shooting for Jake’s bachelor party,” he tells me.
 

“Ah, I see. So, all of the girls are inside I take it?”
 

“Yep, spa night is inside. We’re getting ready to head up to Jack’s Pub for dinner and more festivities,” Nate says as he slides a strand of hair behind my ear.
 

“What kind of festivities?” I ask with a knowing smile on my face.
 

“I plead the fifth,” Nate replies with a laugh before taking a pull from his beer bottle.
 

“Well, then I must let you get to it,” I tell him with another soft smile.
 

Nate leans in closer so that our bodies are practically touching. “Can I text you later?” he asks seriously. All signs of the playfulness in his eyes are gone, leaving in its wake smoldering ash just waiting for that little spark.
 

“Well, I don’t know how late I’m going to be
rocking the spa treatments, but I suppose I could squeeze you in,” I reply playfully.
 

Nate leans forward ever so slightly until his lips are a mere breath away from my own. His warm breath fans out on my face and my lips tingle in anticipation of his touch. “Well, I might have to pull you away from your gossiping, wine, and foot rubs, but I think I’m going to need to see to you later.”
 

“I look forward to it,” I whisper moments before his lips touch mine. The kiss is soft, sensual and our lips barely move. It’s more of a touch than a kiss.
 

“Put it in your pants, Stevens,” Maddox yells from behind Nate. “We’re supposed to be celebrating Jake’s last fling before he’s shackled to one woman for the rest of his life. No fraternizing with the enemy,” he adds, drawing the attention of everyone in the yard.
 

“The enemy better go inside before the natives get restless,” I tell him as I pull back from his lips. I miss his touch instantly.
 

“Go inside and I’ll text you later,” he adds with one long stroke with the outside of his pointer finger down the column of my throat. I shiver uncontrollably at the intimacy of his caress.
 

I can’t even get words past the lump in my throat. I find it hard to swallow so I just turn and walk towards the house.
Quickly, walk quickly.
 

When I reach the front door, Avery throws the screen door open and pulls me inside. “Sheesh! I
thought you’d never come inside. What were you doing out there, anyway? Fraternizing with the enemy?”
 

“What is with you people? Your husband said the same thing.”
 

Avery leads me into the living room bursting with laugher and smiling women. “It’s not every day you get an evening away from your children and your husband. Although, I’m definitely looking forward to after the bachelor and bachelorette parties, if you know what I mean,” she says while leaning in to make sure no one hears her. “I made a trip to the lingerie store just for tonight.”
 

I blush three shades of pink as I turn to survey the room. There are two portable pedicure stations set up on one side. Erin and another older woman that I’ve never met are sitting in the pedicure chairs and receiving full foot and lower leg treatments.
 

“My mother-in-law, Christine, is there in the chair next to Erin. She’s here for just another hour, and then she’s going to go pick up my kids from the sitter’s house. Mom is back in the guest room which is set up with a masseuse. Our friend, Holly, is the one getting the manicure.  Sarah and Claire are over there at the wine bar with Josselyn,” she says as she points out everyone in the room. “Everyone, this is Lia,” Avery announces to the room.
 

I hear a mix of greetings from the room at large and follow Avery towards the bar. “How much can I
contribute towards this evening?” I ask Avery as we approach the other ladies.
 

“Nothing. It’s all taken care of.”
 

“Are you sure? I’d be happy to pay for my share.”
 

“Nope. All covered. My mom brought in the manicurist and pedicurists from a salon in St. Charles. And believe it or not, it was Jake’s idea and he brought in the masseuse,” she says with a smile. “If you want to, you can tip at the end of the evening. You should have seen my brother before Erin. He bed hopped as bad as Maddox did. He ran into Erin again, after twenty years of her loathing him. She grabbed him by the balls and shook some sense into the boy. I’m so proud of her,” Avery says with a chuckle.
 

I dive into the delicious array of finger foods and help myself to a glass of sweet white wine. I’ve never been a big drinker. Alcohol leads to clouding of the mind. Clouding of the mind leads to not being able to think quickly on your feet and having slow reflexes. When I dated Garrett, having delayed reflexes could have meant the difference between spending the night in the hospital or not.
 

I shake off the vivid, unwelcomed images and go about enjoying my evening. Tonight, I’m going to have a few drinks and unwind with my new friends. Tonight, I’m going to have fun. And tonight, I’m doing it for me.
 

After my manicure, Mrs. Stevens comes out and
announces her own form of entertainment for the evening. “I picked up a little surprise at the store this morning. We’re going to watch ‘Magic Mike’,” she exclaims with a little sparkle in her eyes.
 

“Mom,” Avery groans and shakes her head.
 

“Oh my gosh, this is hilarious,” Erin says as Mrs. Stevens puts the DVD into the player. “When we had Avery’s bachelorette party, Mrs. S dropped more money into the stripper’s g-string than anyone else!”
 

“Seriously?” I burst out laughing along with Josselyn.
 

“The story never gets old,” Josselyn says. “But you need to have Avery tell it so you can hear her true mortification when she relives it in colorful detail,” she adds laughing with Erin shaking her head next to her.
 

The next thing I know, all of the wine is gone, Mike has shown all of us ladies how magical he is, and the party is clearing out. I’ve had several glasses of wine tonight, which is just enough to know that I probably shouldn’t be driving.
 

“Come on. My mom is driving all of us home,” Avery says as she leads me towards the door. When I get my slightly foggy head to focus, the dashboard reads twelve-thirty. How in the world did it get to be so late? Or early? I guess, technically, it’s early, right?
 

My phone buzzes in my purse as I slide into the backseat between Josselyn and Erin. I can’t control the smile that crosses my lips when I see Nate’s name on the
screen. I slide open the text message screen and go all school-girl giddy when I read his message.
 

Hey, beautiful. Having fun?
 

I try to reply back quickly, but my fingers aren’t working properly for some reason.
 

Yep. I can’t feel my fingers.
 

Why the hell did I just tell him that? Oh. My. God.
 

LOL Well it sounds like fun. Where r u?
 

Ur mom is driving me home. I’m sandwiched tween Erin n Joss. ;)
 

Seriously. Someone take the phone out of my hands, STAT!
 

That’s something dreams are made of.
 

You wish, Hot Fireman.
 

LIA! Put the phone down!
 

My phone dings again signaling his reply.
 

Hot, huh?
 

Duh. He has to know how hot he is, right? If I used a thermometer to check his hotness, he’d blow the glass ball of the tip of it! My fingers fumble as they type one word. Thankfully, spellcheck corrects it so it’s spelled right.
 

Scorching
 

I stare straight at the screen – waiting for his words to appear. Ding.
 

What if I told you I was sitting on your steps right now?
 

I’d ask if you were naked.
 

Well, I’m outside so I’m definitely not naked…yet.
 

Can I touch your tattoos?
 

Baby, you can touch whatever you want ;)
 

I’m on my way
 

See you soon
 

And with that exchange, I find us driving past the Welcome to Rivers Edge sign. Josselyn is smirking in the seat next to me.
 

“Hot fireman?” she asks under her breath.
 

“Well, he’s a fireman and he’s hot. And I apparently can’t control my fingers when I text him. Remind me not to drunk text.”
 

“Yeah, but if it gets you naked and underneath my brother-in-law, I’m pretty sure that’s not a bad thing,” she says with a wink.
 

We drop Erin off at her place that she shares with Jake. She’s surprisingly sober considering we all just consumed enough wine to keep a third world country hydrated for a week. She throws a wave over her shoulder as Jake meets her on the front steps. He pulls her tight against her, practically mauling her in front of his mother, sister, neighbors, and God. When we pull away, Jake is carrying her inside the house, fireman style. Suddenly, I’m itching to get my hands on a certain tattooed fireman.
 

Mrs. Stevens pulls into the alley behind the
bakery to drop me off next. Just as he mentioned, Nate is sitting on the steps waiting for me. The catcalls from Josselyn and Avery start immediately, bringing an uncontrollable smile to my face. Any other time, I’d be completely mortified by the unwanted attention, but with all the liquid courage buzzing through my bloodstream, I’m surprisingly calm. Excited. Nate stands up and saunters over to open my car door. I practically fall out of the car as I try to get both legs to work properly – or trying to hurry out to get to Nate. Take your pick.
 

“Nathan Michael, you make sure that Lia gets some aspirin and water before she goes to bed,” Mrs. Stevens says from the driver’s seat.