Page 27 of Protect

Maybe I did something wrong, or something I wasn’t supposed to?—

“Stop.” Rowan cups the side of my face, the pads of his fingers caress the back of my hair and his thumb traces my jaw. He kisses me.

“You’re incredible, Vi, I just want to take my—” The buzzing of his phone cuts him off again.

“Fuck,”I hear him mutter under his breath as he flips it over and shakes his head, before finally picking up the call.

“Yeah?” he asks, annoyed.

I can hear a voice through the phone, frantic but I can’t hear what’s being said.

“Calm down, what do you mean? Where are you?”

More frantic mumbling continues as Rowan listens intently.

“Okay, I’ll be there,” I hear Rowan say. He looks over his shoulder at me.

“I’m with your sister, I have to take her home first,” he says, keeping his eyes on me.

Jacob?

By the time he’s hung up, I have myself a little more composed after my intense first orgasm, and my shirt back over my head, but now that we aren’t tangled in the blankets I’m freezing. Goosebumps cover my arms.

“I’m sorry,” he says as he tosses his phone.

“What’s wrong with Jacob?” I ask as I shiver.

Rowan picks his full zip Seahawks sweatshirt up off the blanket and wraps it around me as he answers. “He’s at Max’s. He’s got…some kind of issue, says it’s girl trouble but he really needs my help.”

I narrow my eyes, feeling like I’m missing something. But honestly, it’s my brother so I’m not sure I even want to know. “I’m gonna go help him but I told him it’ll be later, when I’m all done kissing you,” he says, zipping the sweater up tight around me. The scent of him and warmth washes over me. I look up into his cobalt eyes.

“Fuck, it looks better on you anyway,” Rowan says, leaning in again in search of my lips.

“He sounded upset. You should go to him,” I say, not wanting to stop kissing him either. “I told my dad I’d be home by ten anyway and it’s already nine thirty,” I offer.

He nods, then looks down to the still obvious bulge in the front of his jeans.

“Yeah, okay, just need a minute.” He chuckles as heat creeps up my throat with his admission. He leans back on the blanket and extends his hands behind his head, his muscular arms flex as he does. “Tell me all about the pollutants you found in that sample from the sewage plant last week.” He grins. “That’ll probably do it.”

I lean back too, laughing with him, and begin listing the pollutants we added to our project last minute as my arm brushes against him. It feels nice so that I nuzzle in a little closer, but he turns to face me, half serious, half joking, as he scoots away so we’re no longer touching.

“Uh, Vi, for the sake of me being able to say goodnight to your parents without being bricked the fuck up…um, I’m gonna need those few minutes to bewithoutyou touching me.” He grins wide, and I happily realize Rowan Kingsley wants me just as much as I want him, and I know I’ll never tire of that.

PRESENT

Sup

You get our little care package?

I glance over at the window ledge where a huge basket of miscellaneous goods waits for me from my squad. All my favorite snacks, a deck of cards, a porno magazine and some lube—that was fun to pull out in front of the day nurse—and in the center, a children’s book on fire safety and some Band-Aids. Not just any Band-Aid, but kid ones with little puppy firefighters on them.

Fuckers.

Yeah I did. Hospital porn is pushing it.

Cal

Maybe but my girl’s a trooper buying that.

---