Page 27 of Protecting Talia

“Like you have no agenda. I mean, I know you want to have sex.” Her gaze slid down his body, and when she glanced back up, his eyebrows were raised.

“Like what you saw?”

She rolled her eyes. “I would be stupid to think you didn’t want to have sex.”

He quirked up an eyebrow. “The question is, do you want to have sex?”

“Duh. Of course, I want to have sex with you. I just don’t know if I can.”

“We don’t have to rush. We can take time and get to know each other better.”

“So you can keep your hands off me?”

“I’m not a total jerk. If you’re not ready, I can wait.”

“I’m surprised.”

“We certainly aren’t doing anything while you’re injured.”

Laughter bubbled up. She felt lighter than she had in a while, though she’d just lived through something horrible.

“You’re laughing. That’s a good thing, I guess.”

“You make me feel better. I don’t know. I think it’s just you’re a nice guy.”

Zip threw back his head, and laughter boomed through the room. Smiling up at him, she felt better than she had in ages.

“I have a load of other people who would fight you about that.”

“You tried to convince me you were a jerk when we first met. But I’m right. You’re a soft, squishy cinnamon roll.” She stood and moved to him, putting her hands on his shoulders. She pushed him, and he dropped to the chair behind him. She was sore, but she straddled him, wrapping her arms loosely around his shoulders. “You’re sweet, and I bet if I licked up your body, it would taste like sugar.”

His expression changed to serious, and his eyes grew darker. “You’re pushing your luck.”

“I know, behave. But what if I wanted to be bad? We could be bad together.”

“Jesus, woman. You’re still black and blue. We’re going to take this slow and just hang out. Later, after you’re better, we’ll test out your theory that I’m a cinnamon roll. For now, we’ll hang out.”

She slumped against him, resting her head on his shoulder. “Thank you for being so nice. Thank you for giving me a place to sleep where I feel safe.”

“Of course. I wouldn’t want you anywhere else.”

She had to get off his lap, but him holding her this close felt nice. It was unfair, and she knew it. He wouldn’t have sex with her until she healed and she was pressed up against him, using him like a bed.

Though she didn’t want to, she pushed off his chest and stood. They both ignored his raging hard-on as she moved to the kitchen to grab more coffee and then started cleaning the space.

“Hey, you don’t have to clean.”

“Sorry, habit. I’m probably overly obsessive about the kitchen. Just had food poisoning too many times as a kid. I don’t even like letting coffee sit in the pot. It’s weird. Not the weirdest thing about me, but at least you know the kitchen will be clean.”

He moved to her and kissed her on the side of her head, giving her a loose hug before stepping back. “I like a clean kitchen, too. I just don’t want you wearing yourself out. I’ll clean. You go sit.”

She stared up at him, wondering if he would always be this nice. He wasn’t like anyone else she’d ever met. Living in the same space as Zip would be challenging, but at least she felt safe. Better safe than sorry. But would he be sorry he’d let her in? She had a history that could derail them, and that fact was painfully obvious after what had happened with her new landlord. Leaving the area would be best, but she wasn’t ready to walk away from Zip. Not yet.

18

Having Talia in his space was heaven and hell. She was everything he wanted, and yet he couldn’t have her. Not until she healed. Even then, he knew he would be bad for her. Guys who watched porn would come onto base and assume things about her, just like her idiot landlord had.

She needed his protection, but having her close would open her up to comments that were totally unacceptable. She wasn’t a toy for horny guys to use. Even if she’d gone into porn on her own volition, that wouldn’t give guys the right to cross her boundaries. He didn’t want to bring on trouble, but he feared that staying with her was doing exactly that.

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