Page 47 of Protector

“It’s not just about us… I— There’s another—”

Just then a phone chimes, and we both stare for a moment before realizing it’s Brooks’s, not mine.

He slides out of bed and bends for his jeans on the floor, his thighs like steel beneath his boxer briefs. Standing, he stares at the phone, seeming to read a text, and I don’t like the look on his face.

“Is everything okay?” I’ve always felt there was a bit of mystery with Brooks, and he never told me who Jade was, the woman he was talking to.

Without looking at me, he says, “I don’t know.” Then he slips into his pants and turns to me. “I need to get going. You’re going back with Cal today, right?”

Disheartened, I nod and slip out of bed, taking the sheet with me. But as soon as I’m standing in front of him, anger bubbles to the surface. “I know I started this. Hell, maybe you didn’t even want what happened, but I can’t keep doing this.” My eyes burn, and I fight the tears I know he can see coming. “I don’t know if I can even be around you if you don’t want me.” I don’t know if I’ve ever uttered more heartbreaking words. “Especially if there’s…someone else, because—”

With one hand clutching my waist and the other grabbing my face, Brooks crushes his mouth to mine. The kiss doesn’t last long enough, and a tear slips down my cheek before it’s over, the meaning so clear.

“That was to make one thing perfectly clear, Shay. There’s no one else. No one! But right now, all I can focus on is keeping you safe. Yes, there are some things I haven’t told you, but I promise I will. I just…”

A knock at the door stops whatever he was going to say, the revelation and the kiss leaving me stunned, immobile. Brooks releases me and moves to the door, then looks through the peephole.

“It’s Cal,” he says over his shoulder. “Do you want to get dressed before I open it?”

I shake my head. “Let him in.” If anyone can bring me back from the brink of a breakdown, it’s Cal.

No sooner does Brooks open the door than Cal is flouncing through it, two coffee cups in hand. “Sugar, if I’d have known you had company…” He leaves the end hanging as he throws a knowing glance over to Brooks, lingering his eyes on Brooks’s bare chest.

“I was just leaving,” Brooks says, swiping his shirt off the floor.

Cal’s eyes meet mine. “Oh, that’s a shame?” The question mark hangs in the air as I shake my head at him, my gaze telling him to cool it already.

Brooks yanks his shirt into place, then turns to face Cal. “Nowhere but this hotel, then straight back to Shay’s place.” His stern tone might have had me on the defensive—not to mention the fact that he’s looking only at Cal—but I’m too drained to fight.

“Yes, sir.” Cal salutes Brooks, but upon Brooks’s flaring nostrils, Cal recovers and says, “Don’t worry. I’ve got her. I won’t leave her side.”

I guess I read myself wrong because suddenly a burst of energy rises in my gut. “Um, I’ve got myself, you pair of misogynistic prairie men.”

Cal’s eyes go wide, while Brooks just shakes his head.

“Honey, baby,” Cal says, moving to my side. “Most women don’t even have one amazingly sexy and strong man who would lay their life down for them.” He grins and passes his gaze between Brooks and me. “You’ve got two. Revel in it, sweetheart.”

All I can do is laugh as Brooks heads toward our adjoining doors.

“Okay, well, you two have fun.” Brooks throws me one last look before he opens the door and disappears behind it. I don’t know how long I stare at his exit, but I snap out of it when I hear my name. “What?” I turn my head to Cal, who’s now looking me up and down.

“I said, you better put some clothes on before you crush every gay man from here to LA by stealing my heart.”

“Oh, shit.” I look down at the sheet covering me. “Give me two minutes,” I shout as I shuffle toward the bathroom, grabbing my bikini from my open suitcase on the way.

* * *

“This is exactly what I needed, Cal.” You never know what you’ll get in the fall in southern California but today feels like summer, but with a slight breeze to cool you down just in the nick of time.

“I don’t know, Shay. I could use a little of what you got last night.”

I let silence fall between us, something I know will drive Cal crazy. I’m simply counting down the seconds in my head until he bursts. He hasn’t said a word about Brooks since he walked into the room, and that’s just not like him.

As if I’m sensing Cal’s discomfort, a grin forms on my face.

“Your eyes might be closed, but mine aren’t,” he says with sass.

Chuckling, I let my head fall to the side, and I look at him. “What?”

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