Page 36 of Keeping Her Safe

“Did you sleep last night?”

“No, but I got my book done. Number fourteen.” Her eyes suddenly felt heavy, and she felt her lids lowering.

“I thought there were only thirteen?”

“Only because there wasn’t enough material for fourteen. I took them home now. Because of you.” She was talking, but the exhaustion was overtaking her. From the lack of sleep to their recent intense activity, she was going to pass out soon.

She felt him roll them onto their sides and roll her to face away from him. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her ear. “You need sleep.”

“No, I’m fine,” she said, but she had no idea if he answered her as she lost consciousness.

CHAPTER 15

The buzzing of Zachary’s phone jolted him out of sleep. Opening his eyes, he realized he must have drifted off with Zephyr in his arms. Grabbing it from behind him, he shut off the sound. His eyes quickly landed on her sleeping form, wondering if the sound had woken her. Sliding out from beside her, he grabbed his clothes and left the room.

At the door, he turned back to make sure she was still sleeping. Her eyes were still closed, but when his body had left hers, she had flopped onto her back. Zephyr’s red hair was curly again, and it was wild around her head on the pillow. One nipple had escaped the sheet that was covering her, and he longed to go taste it again.

With a silent curse, he shut the door on her and answered his phone. “What is it, Travis?”

“I just got to your place, bud. The firefighters just got the fire out,” his partner said.

Zachary had put on his underwear and pants as they spoke. A wave of dread suddenly coursed through his body. Zephyr’s books.

“How bad is it?” Zachary choked out.

“The kitchen and garage are gone, most of the living room, too. The back bedrooms have a little damage, but I think it’s a total loss.”

Zachary made it to the top of the stairs and sat on the landing as he listened. “Can you get inside?”

“No, they won’t let anyone in. There’s little left, man,” Travis explained.

“I need you to get to the spare bedroom. This is the most important thing I’ll ever ask you,” Zachary said.

“I’ll try.” Travis had doubt in his voice.

“Call me when you get inside,” Zachary demanded.

Hanging up on his friend, Zachary knew his partner would be calling back soon. They had been partners for three years, and he was the closest friend Zachary had. He needed to get Zephyr’s books out of the house before they were destroyed … if they weren’t already.

As he waited, he slipped on his shirt and wished he was still in bed with Zephyr. Zephyr. His house had burned down, and he couldn’t wipe the grin off his face that she had put there. Houses come and go, but Zephyr was forever.

He tried to rein in his thoughts about Zephyr and forever. He wanted her in his life and couldn’t see going back to the way things were. Now he had to figure out how to convince her she wanted him as well.

The phone buzzed again, and Zachary answered on the first ring. “Are you in?”

“Yeah, I had to sneak in. I’m here in your bedroom.” Travis was whispering.

“Is the safe in the closet okay?” Zachary asked.

“No man, it’s open, and your guns are everywhere,” Travis said.

“Are there some computer disks and USB drives in there?” He had known the save would be open.

“No, nothing like that,” Travis confirmed. They were only files on some cold cases, but he knew what the person was after.

“Can you check the office?”

“Okay.” Then a pause. “The computer is gone,” Travis said.

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