Page 18 of Ox

Walking out of Mel’s, I stored Kayla’s meal, wrapped in two plastic bags, in my saddle bag, and we headed back to her apartment.

“I’m going to go change,” she said, leaving her lasagna on the counter. “I’ll be right back. Help yourself to anything in the fridge or the pantry. I won’t be long.”

I’d gone shopping for a few odds and ends when Kayla had been at work. Taking her car, I’d filled the fridge with food and beer so I didn’t eat the poor girl out of house and home. On the ride back, I’d filled her gas tank because it was obvious how tight her budget was.

When she entered the kitchen, Kayla was wearing a pair of sleep shorts that made her ass look like a peach, and a silky tank top that outlined her full breasts. Fuck me! It was about to be another long night filled with fantasies and blue balls.

“I’m starving,” she declared, going to the fridge.

I knew the feeling. When she opened the door, she looked inside and went still.

“Where did all this food come from?” she asked, in total awe of the now packed space.

I shrugged, twisting the top off one of the leftover beers from the other night. “I figured if I was going to be staying over at your place for the next couple of days, I could pull my weight by stocking up on the essentials.”

Kayla’s pretty eyes became glossy and she cleared her throat. “You didn’t have to do that. I owe you for everything you’re doing to keep me safe from Ghost.”

My chest tightened at the very real, raw emotion in her voice. “It’s no big deal, Babe. I would have had to feed myself anyway.”

A knock on her door sounded then, causing Kayla to jump. “Get in the living room,” I commanded, not wanting her anywhere near the door. “I’m going to check who’s there and I don’t want them to see you.”

Kayla nodded and hurried into the living room. Reaching for the gun strapped around my ankle, I skinned it from its holster and tucked it into the waistband of my jeans just to play it safe. Ghost was a crazy son of a bitch. He’s the kind of guy to shoot first and ask questions never. Of that I had no doubt. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if he showed up armed. Just in case he did, I wanted to be ready.

Unlocking the door, I pulled it open. It wasn’t Ghost, as I’d thought, but it was another man. One I didn’t recognize. About five-ten, he had glasses, dark hair, and was dressed like an insurance agent. I was guessing he didn’t do much manual labor in his time off, either, on account of how soft he was.

“Can I help you?” I asked as the man took a measured step back from the threshold of the apartment when he got a load of me.

Looking up, he blinked, checked the door number, then looked back up at me again. “Um, I’m looking for Kayla. Is she home?”

“Who are you?” I demanded, feeling like a guard dog standing in front of the vulnerable sheep’s pen. People could be deceiving. I didn’t know what this guy was here for. Until I did, and determined he wasn’t a threat, I wasn’t answering any of his questions.

“I’m Kenny,” the confused man explained, and it took my brain a second to remember who the fuck that even was. “I’m a friend of Kayla’s.”

When I realized who it was, the guy who’s beer I’d been enjoying and who’d tried to shove his tongue down Kayla’s throat when she hadn’t wanted him to, I raised a brow. “She’sbusy,” I declared, a challenge in my eyes as I stared him down, letting him know this topic wasn’t up for debate.

“Look, I don’t want any trouble. But if you don’t get Kayla, I’m going to call the cops to make sure she’s okay,” the man weakly threatened, his words becoming higher pitched as he reached for his phone.

I had to hand it to the kid. He wasn’t just turning tail and running. I knew he didn’t mean a word of what he was saying. He’d clearly fold faster than a cardboard box. I could tell by the way he was nervously licking his lips and mapping out his escape route. But at least he’d tried the bluff for Kayla’s sake.

“Like I said, Kayla’s busy. Take a fucking hike.”

I made to close the door but the woman in question must have heard the conversation from the living room and came forward then. “It’s fine, Ox. I can handle this.”

Kenny visibly relaxed when he saw the beautiful woman appear. “Kayla, I just wanted to make sure you were okay and—” he glanced at me then, becoming self conscious. “Can we talk in private?”

“Now’s not a good time,” Kayla answered, her stance both irritated and annoyed.

Standing behind the curvy woman, I towered over her petite form, watching to make sure this conversation didn’t get out of hand. As he spoke, Kenny’s gaze kept swinging toward me, hoping I’d leave him alone with my girl.

Okay, my girl wasn’t exactly the truth. But she was mine. My responsibility. Mine to care for and to protect. So yeah, my girl worked for me because I liked the fucking sound of it in my head.

“Look, I’m sorry about what happened the last time we hung out,” Kenny apologized, his gaze trailing my hand as I rested it on Kayla’s hip.

I felt the woman tense for a second, then soften when she realized what I was doing. Giving her the excuse she needed tomake this man go away fast. I’d heard women say it a million times before. Men only leave you alone when they think another man has staked his claim. Well, I was more than willing to oblige old Kenny with that belief, as well as do something I’d been fantasizing about since we’d met. Get my hands on this beautiful woman’s ripe curves.

And fuck, they did not disappoint! They were everything I’d dreamed of and more. Soft. Lush. And so feminine. I could just imagine holding on to her hips while I was plowing her from behind. My dick, totally on board with this action, began to boldly rise at the lusty imagery.

“You really hurt my feelings,” Kayla said then. “You never answered any of my calls or texts after you left that night.”

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