Page 21 of Treasured
He kissed my knuckles. “You’ve already been told you’re not welcome here.”
True. I trembled a little, but he unlocked the door and then stood, fully blocking my view.
Half of me wanted to run in the bedroom and lock myself in there with Bruce.
However, I stood where I was and listened as Arthur asked, “Who are you?”
Dwayne didn’t budge from the frame of the door and said, “Mary’s boyfriend. And you’re interrupting our evening.”
Boyfriend? I felt hot. He sounded so serious.
Arthur’s voice screeched like static, “I didn’t know she’d found someone else.”
Dwayne held the door like he was about to shut it. “Look, buddy, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll leave Mary and Bruce the fuck alone.”
Wow. I’d have never sounded half as forceful. Arthur’s voice no longer banged against my skin like nails when he said, “He’s my son. You’re a man. You must understand.”
“Step back,” Dwayne said, and my heart froze. Arthur would be stupid to threaten Dwayne. “I’ve killed men with my bare hands. Mary and her son are under my protection now.”
“Mary!” Arthur called out.
My heart thumped, but I pressed Dwayne’s shoulder and wiggled beside him as I said, “Go, Arthur. Don’t come back.”
Dwayne slammed the door, and I locked it.
Once we were sure he was gone down the hall, I returned to the wine and poured us each a glass as I asked, “Is what you said true, Dwayne?”
He leaned on the countertop and took his glass. “Yeah. In war, hand-to-hand combat happens.”
I sipped from my glass and then put it down. “I didn’t mean that.”
He directed me to my couch. “What did you mean?”
He took up most of the sofa, but I curled up beside him. “Boyfriend. Is that what you want to be, with me?”
“Yeah.” He wrapped his arm around my shoulder. “I’d like that, Mary.”
“We don’t make sense.” I fluttered my lashes, and my heart raced. “You don’t even live near me.”
His lips came closer, and I put my wineglass down so I wouldn’t spill. “We have a lot to figure out, but I want you, and I don’t share well.”
He put his glass beside mine, and our hands brushed. I ignored the racing heat in my veins as I said, “I’m scared of how easy everything is with you.”
He touched my arm and left a trail of goose bumps. “Are relationships supposed to be hard?”
I opened my lips and let out a small sigh. “I’ve avoided them, to be honest.”
Adrenaline coursed through me, and my lips were moist when he leaned closer. “That guy at the door doesn’t represent all men.“
I closed my eyes and said, “True enough. You’re more like my brother.”
He sat back, but his hand pressed on my thigh as he said, “I hope the fuck not.”
I laughed. That had clearly not been sexy. I was out of practice. “No, I mean you’re protective and sweet. But unlike him, you’re sexy and make my heart skip a beat.”
He curled his hand under my thigh to bring me closer. “That’s better.”
Butterflies grew in my soul. “But you’re good to me, and I like that about you.”
