Page 21 of Keep Me Safe

“You’re too young for that,” I scold.

“Bite me,” she says, smirking, grabbing a bottle, and jumping down.

My mind goes to imagining exactly where I want to bite her. God, I shouldn’t be alone with her right now. Grabbing a glass off of the rack, she pours herself a hefty serving and brings it to her lips.

“Don’t worry, I know it’s my bedtime,” she says, turning away from me and sauntering up the stairs. She stops momentarily and looks back, “Oh, and I was at the studio.”

I’m starting to think her staying here will be more difficult than I first thought.

When I go downstairs the next morning, Kira stands at the stove in her pajamas and fuzzy socks, cracking eggs into a pan. Her hair sits in a low ponytail. My eyes trail down to the hem of her cropped sleep shirt. A sliver of skin is exposed above the waistband of her bottoms, and my hands itch to trace it.

Prying my gaze off her, I open the cabinet above the coffee maker. My hand reaches for a mug but stops when I notice a few I’ve never seen before. They each have a distinct design and color theme.

“Did we get new mugs?” I ask primarily to myself.

“Good morning to you, too.”

“Sorry, good morning, Kira. Did we get new mugs?”

“They came from my apartment. I made them,” she says, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.

I finally put it together. She mentioned that she went to the studio last night. I completely forgot she’s into ceramics. I pick one up, inspecting it. It’s a speckled cream color with a landscape of different blues, greens, and browns. It’s beautiful. Flipping it over, I see a signature on the bottom.

“You arereallygood at this.”

Looking over at me, she smiles as her cheeks flush.

“I guess I’m not too bad at it. Darla actually asked me to teach some classes at her studio. You can use that cup if you’d like,” she shrugs, nodding to the mug in my hand. “You don’t have to, though.”

“I want to, princess.”

I pour coffee into the mug, grab the creamer from the fridge, and add a splash.

“Want some?”

“Oh, sure, thank you!”

Reaching up, I find another of her mugs. This one boasts flowy coral and fuchsia flowers with deep green stems. After filling it, I place it on the counter next to her.

“Still like it black, right?”

She nods, smiling, as she dumps the scrambled eggs onto a plate and hands them to me. The food is even more delicious because I didn’t have to make it.

The rest of the morning passes by relatively quickly. After breakfast, Kira has to go to work, so it’s just Jared and I left in the house. In true Jared fashion, he doesn’t get out of bed until sometime after noon, and by that time, I’m already getting ready to leave for work.

When I first step into the station, I know today will be a hectic shift. Half the crew is already out on calls and the air reeks of anticipation. Hurrying to the kitchen, I work to finish dinner as soon as possible. The guys will be thankful for it when they get back. Dave strolls into the kitchen as I pull the pot off the stove.

“Howdy partner, whatcha cookin’?”

“Does it matter? You’ll eat it regardless.”

“You are not wrong.”

Dave is somewhat of a black hole. He’ll eat anything you give him without complaint, which makes my job easier.

“You know how Al is retiring soon?” Dave asks.

“Yeah.”

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