Page 44 of Protection for Nichole

His brain didn’t seem to want to process what this woman was saying. He stuttered, shuffling through responses, and finally settled on one. “She moved out? Do you have her address?”

Now, the woman looked suspicious, as if she didn’t trust him. Fuck, he’d screwed this up. Of course, anyone who knew Nichole would know where she was moving. A crazy stalker or stranger wouldn’t get that information, and this woman looked at him like he was the enemy and not Nichole’s friend. If she only knew.

“No. You’ll have to get that from her.”

He wanted to roll his eyes. Of course, she had the perfect answer. No way would she give out Nichole’s information. But fuck that. He needed this woman to tell him exactly where she’d moved. Maybe he could hurt her. The elevator opened again and two young people spilled out, saying hello to the woman he was talking to and giving him a huge side eye.

With two new people seeing him, there was no way he would get anything from this woman. This was Chicago, not New York so he had no police officers in his corner, not that many of them wanted to help him after all the money had dried up. Fuck, Nichole had to pay for all the shit she’d caused.

Devon flashed a smile, hoping she forgot him as soon as he left. “Thank you. I’ll call her.”

The woman actually had the audacity to smirk. It wasn’t worth going to jail in Chicago for assault. He turned and stalked back to the elevator. At least he hadn’t paid the stupid fucker who’d been watching for Nichole. The guy had fucked up and not seen her leave. How the hell was this happening?

Something needed to be done, but again, he couldn’t act because Nichole Benton had ruined everything. He pushed out the front door of the building, almost running into some old man with his dog.

“Watch it.”

The guy launched something at him, but he sidestepped, almost dodging into the street and running into a biker. He jumped back just in time and landed on whatever the dog guy had tossed at him.

He felt it give underneath his foot. A quick glance down revealed what he’d stepped on. The scent hit first, making his stomach roil.

“Fucking dog shit!”

Anger filled him, but the old man and dog were gone. Who the fuck tossed dog crap at someone else?

He would have to get new shoes. These shoes stank so bad he couldn’t stand himself.

After buying a pair of shoes, he decided to take public transportation. Money was getting tighter with all his flying across the country. He needed something good to happen, or he would have to rob a bank or something else to give him money.

Once on the commuter train, he remembered why he hated public transportation. There were too many people, way too much humanity. Being forced into poverty had him so angry he wanted to punch someone.

The movement of the train made his stomach pitch. The scent memory from stepping on the dog shit hit just as someone bumped into him. Anger rose, and he spun, ready to tell the person to fuck off.

It was a cop. Luckily, his tongue froze in his mouth. He swallowed his anger, pushing it way down. This was just one more thing Nichole had taken from him. His dignity was gone. He couldn’t move through life like his father had. Money greased wheels, but all he had was dog shit and bile-inducing anger. If something didn’t happen soon, he would never recover.

Chapter 39

Relief filledNichole when the plane landed in California. Jesse was at the airport to pick her up. She’d told him he didn’t need to stay awake, that she could find a ride on her own, but he’d insisted.

When he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close, tears made her eyes sting. She had never wanted to be that woman who cried on seeing her man at the airport, but she was a mess, thankful to be in his arms.

His lips found hers, and the emotions churning inside expanded, taking up every ounce of her. She was a hot mess, feeling thankful to be home.

That word sounded so good. She was home in Jesse’s arms.

The drive home only took about twenty minutes, but it was too long for her. She wanted to be naked and wrapped around him.

Two seconds after they stepped inside, they were both naked. He had her up against the wall, his fingers taking her to orgasm so fast she couldn’t catch her breath. Being away from Jesse had sucked. She needed to figure something out about her work that wouldn’t take her away from him.

Jesse turned her on and kept her on edge, so every nerve sang. She hadn’t ever felt this good before in her life. When he was close to orgasm, he held her face so they were only inches apart.

“My love, you mean the world to me. Stay with me forever.”

“Yes!” His thick cock brushed against her clit, sending her over the edge. She came hard, her body pulsing as he pumped into her.

He didn’t hold back, slamming into her hard twice, then he stilled above her. She watched as ecstasy took over. They belong together. She would make sure nothing came between them. They had the future to look forward to, and she wouldn’t let anything get in the way.

They woke early for a Saturday and made love again before taking a quick shower and heading into the kitchen. Just being home with Jesse was wonderful. She felt so much better having him close by. During breakfast, she remembered the weird guy sitting outside her apartment in Chicago. A shiver worked through her, and Jesse raised his eyebrows.

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