Page 42 of From My Past
Chapter Fourteen
Talia
The sheets were warm against my cheek and I cuddled into the pillow a little more. It had been such a long time since I’d actually gotten a deep sleep that wasn’t induced by alcohol. I wanted to savor the feeling before I had to get up and face the day.
Today, sometime soon, the deadline that Luca had given Kieron and I was going to expire. I needed to know what that really meant and what Kieron and Kellan were thinking of doing about it.
I wasn’t going to claim that I knew more than the head of the Irish mafia or his second, but if there was any way to not go into a bloody war, I wanted to try.
I rolled over and opened my eyes slowly, letting the filtered sunlight warm my skin and the silence wake me up softly. My arm reached over to the other side of the bed and even though I knew I was going to find it empty, it still stung to not have Kieron here.
I threw the covers off of me and swung my feet off the side of the bed so my feet could touch the plush carpet. What was I meant to do? No one told me anything really except for how I was safe here.
I reached my arms up overhead to stretch and I went off in search of coffee. I really wasn’t sure what I was doing; should I wait for Kieron to come back? Should I get dressed and go off exploring? That’s what I wanted to do, but I don’t think I should. It scared me a bit, just being free to do whatever. Like I would get in trouble for doing something wrong or not doing something.
Making my way back into the kitchen, I located a French press and some expensive, fancy-ass coffee grounds and got to work making the liquid of life. I didn’t take off Kieron’s clothes, they were beyond comfortable and really, I didn’t have any other clothes except for my work uniform. As the microwave dinged and I turned to pull the boiling cup of water out, I heard the front door open quietly.
It had to be Kieron, but that didn’t stop the terror that sprang to life.
“Hello?” I forced my dry throat to call out.
“Oh good, you’re awake!” Kieron said with a smile and he came to give me a hug. He must have seen the scared expression on my face because he stopped mid-stride and looked around. He was on guard, his hand started to go for the back of his pants and I was sure there would be a gun there.
“Are you okay?” He said softly after a few moments of surveillance, deciding there wasn’t an imposing threat.
“Yes, I’m okay.” I said, putting my hand on his forearm. “You just gave me a fright when you opened the door like that.”
Understanding dawned on him.
“I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t want to make a lot of noise if you were still sleeping. You were dead to the world when I left and I wanted to make sure you got some sleep.”
“I know, thank you.”
“I have one of my assistants bringing you up some clothes, just enough to get you through the week, but I wanted to see if you had any requests.”
My heart fluttered, how was this man so thoughtful? I didn’t deserve his attention.
“No, anything you think will be fine with me.” I said honestly. I know that I should have been worried and having flashbacks or panic attacks about my clothing being picked out for me again, but this was different. Kieron was different. He wasn’t doing this out of a need to control me, he was doing it to help me. To take one more stressor off my plate. To take care of me.
“Are you sure?” He asked me, his eyes boring into mine in search of any hidden feelings about it.
“Yes,” I smiled brightly at him and took both of his hands in mine. “I’m sure. Now, do you want some of this extremely over-priced coffee I’m making?”
Kieron just chuckled and sat at one of the bar stools adjoining the small kitchen island.
“You pay for what you get. I get good, smooth, rich coffee.” He explained with a smile and a shrug.
“Folgers is pretty decent, you know. And it won’t make you take out a second mortgage on you house to afford it every morning.”
A good night’s sleep was bringing me back to life. A good night’s sleep, a full stomach and a feeling of safety.
“Try it. If you try this and you don’t think it’s any better than your Folgers,” he said with a grimace, “I’ll never buy it again. But, if it’s the best coffee you’ve ever had, I win.”
“And what do you win?” I asked, my heart beating quicker at his deep melodic tone.
“A kiss.” He said, standing up and walking over to stand right in front of me. I couldn’t help but notice that even in the face of our intense tension, he still made sure not to crowd me, not to make me feel like I couldn’t escape if I needed to.
“That’s all?” I asked him.
