Page 34 of Landon (In Safe Hands)
Jeremygives Landon a one armed hug men are so adept at. “About time. You okay?” Helooks around him at me. “Zoe?”
“We’reboth fine. Just ready to get out of here.”
Mycar is right where I left it and appears to be fine, but a large branch liesacross Landon’s sedan. Both cars are pinned in, surrounded by debris.
“Right.”Jeremy gestures to his car. “Let’s do it.” The drive out of the area is slowand we’re stopped twice by police to be sure we aren’t looters. One turn andeverything looks normal again. I can’t begin to describe how surreal it is,like we’ve been transported out of a war zone.
Landondirects Jeremy to stop by my place first so I can grab some clothes and myphone charger. Jeremy waits in the car while Landon follows me inside. Iquickly gather a few days worth of clothes, throwing them into a duffel bagwith my bathroom stuff. I can’t wait to take a shower. Landon is standing inthe living room, looking out of place when I return.
“Iwould ask you to stay here until your house is repaired, but…” I gesture aroundthe tiny living room. “It’s not exactly what you’re accustomed to.”
Witha frown, he places his hands on my hips and looks me in the eye. “I’d love tostay with you, but you’d have to cover all your windows. I won’t drag you intothe dark with me.”
“Whatif I go willingly?”
Chuckling,he smacks my ass. “Let’s go.”
Jeremydrops us off at a large five star hotel downtown. The manager greets uspersonally and escorts us to a large suite. They are well prepared for him.We’re at the end of a hall with no windows, and the large floor to ceilingwindows in the suite are all covered with thick dark blackout curtains. Heexplains there’s a gym and an indoor pool on another floor that don’t havewindows. I should’ve brought a swimsuit.
Whenthe manager leaves with an extremely large tip, I flop onto the bed. Oh my god.It’s not a bed, it’s a pile of fluffy heaven. I never want to get up. Landonlaughs and starts to unpack.
“I’mgoing to go to the gym for a bit and run off some stress. Do you want to go?”
“Ithink I’ll try out that huge tub instead.” I’ve never had a bathtub where mytits, knees and feet could all be underwater at the same time.
“Great,now I’m going to be thinking of you all wet and naked.” He drops a quick kisson my lips. “I’ll give you your workout later.”
Ilie back in the water, letting the heat soak into my muscles and remove some ofthe stress of the last twenty-four hours. Nearly getting killed in a tornadotends to put things in perspective. I’ve been worried, overwhelmed by the decisionsI need to make for Ethan’s future and mine, but it all seems a lot more doablenow.
Thelife insurance money was just deposited. The sight of three quarters of amillion dollars sitting in my account nearly gave me a heart attack. I put250,000 into a trust for Ethan on his twenty-first birthday. I expect to get almostthat much from the sale of the house and the land surrounding it. I’ll have notrouble paying for my college education and Ethan’s.
Iwas shocked to find out my parents also owned the large commercial buildingjust across from the church. Apparently, they bought it when the church hadtrouble keeping up with the mortgage, then just allowed them to use it. I’llprobably put it up for sale too. All in all, I can afford to buy us a house ina decent neighborhood, and a new car for both Ethan and me.
It’ssuch a relief, not having to worry about money. I’ve been consumed with it foryears, with trying to keep myself in school and still keep our heads abovewater. It’s not like I’m rich or never have to work again, but I have a nicebuffer that will allow me to finish school without finding another shitty job.
So,hiring a realtor to sell my parents’ house and find me a new one is next on mylist. When my skin starts to get pruney, I reluctantly wash my hair and getout, wrapping myself in a soft fluffy robe with the hotel’s logo stitched onthe front. I barely have time to dry my hair before Landon comes back, soakedin sweat. His heated expression at the sight of me sends a thrill down myspine.
“Iordered us some room service,” he says, pulling me into his arms. “Although yousmell good enough to eat.”
Ipress a teasing kiss on his lips and peek up at him. “I really wish I could saythe same.”
Hislaughter fills the room. “No one can ever accuse you of not being honest.” Hehands me some money. “Tip the food service guy while I go take a shower.”
Ican’t resist giving his firm ass a squeeze. “Next time I’m joining you.”Groaning about how I’m killing him, he grabs a towel and disappears into thebathroom.
Ihurry to get dressed, changing into a pair of sleeping shorts and a camisolebefore the food service guy can show up. Settling on the couch, I flip throughthe channels on the massive television, finally landing on an episode of Lawand Order SVU. A short, older man knocks on the door a few minutes later, andwheels in a cart full of covered dishes. He thanks me with a kind smile when Ihand him the tip, and pulls the door shut behind him as he leaves.
Theshower shuts off as I’m uncovering our plates and arranging our meal. Steak,baked potatoes, and broccoli make my mouth water. When I uncover the dish withtwo large slices of chocolate cake, I know Landon is a keeper. The sight of himin only a loose pair of pajama pants just hammers in that fact.
“Ifyou’re going to keep looking at me like that, we aren’t going to make itthrough dinner,” he warns. Dinner? Who gives a shit for dinner? Laughing at myexpression, he grabs his plate and sits down beside me on the sofa. “Eat,sweetheart. You’re going to need your strength.”
“Thisis fantastic.” I’m eating like I haven’t had a real meal in a week instead of acouple days.
“Good.I wasn’t sure how you like your steak.”
“Thisis perfect.” We watch T.V. while we eat, finishing just as the detectives nailthe child molester. “Sex offender list,” I scoff. “They shouldn’t need a list.If there was ever a group who should be put to death, or at least locked upforever, it’s child abusers.”
ChapterEight
