Page 68 of All Twisted Up
He smiled, offering me a nod of reassurance. “We’ve done our homework, teacher.”
I smiled back at him before craning my neck to look up at the captain. He was very tall, only a couple of inches shorter than the big Texan, Rex, who’d thoroughly entertained me when telling me about his two-legged dog. Captain Sorensen was a fierce looking man. The vivid scar running down his cheek, gave him the look of a warrior. Combined with the long, red beard and intelligent eyes, he exuded an air of confidence the moment he walked into a room.
“Hello, Mr. Calder,” the captain said, reaching out to shake my hand.
“Hello, sir. Thank you for being here.”
“Are you sure you still want to do this?”
I nodded. “Oh, yes, if that’s still okay. I love this job and to be honest, it’ll be good to get out of the house. I’ve got a mean case of cabin fever.”
“No doubt…still, if you felt like you didn’t want to go through with this, none of us would blame you for it. It’s not like any of this is normal in the world you live in.”
I darted a glance at Agent Joy who hovered nearby and then over to Nash who stood across the room, laughing at something one of the others said. “Do you think it’s safe?”
“We do.”
I quickly returned my attention to the captain. “Then I do too.”
“We’d better get going then. Do you want to gather your things?”
I smiled, feeling excitement roaring back. “Sure. I’ll be right back.” I caught Nash’s eye before heading down the hall to the bedroom where I’d stashed the teaching materials and my books the team had brought over.
I glanced longingly at the hastily-made bed where Nash and I had spent the night in each other’s arms. The arrival of Agent Huerta and his husband earlier had curtailed any further activities in the sheets, and I felt a pang of hopelessness that we’d never get back to them. I’d really been hoping to have the time to explore more of my attraction to Nash in the light of day, but it hadn’t been possible.
A noise made me turn and Nash came into the room. He walked right over to me and without a word, reached out and pulled me into his arms. I dropped my things on the bed and wrapped my arms around him, at ease almost immediately by the soft thudding of his heart beneath my ear. Being this close to him gave me the same thrill every time.
I inhaled the light scent of his aftershave and underneath it, fresh skin. Every time I was this close to him, I felt giddy, like I was not only safe, but would always be as long as I was in his arms. I could honestly say, I’d never felt this way about a lover before. He kissed the side of my head and loosened his arms, making me drop my own, and step back. I looked up at him.
“Thank you, Nash.”
The look of surprise on his face was sweet. “For what, sweetheart?”
I smiled. “For being here, for always making me feel safe.”
He searched my eyes. “Is that all?”
“What do you mean?”
He looked almost…sad?I wasn’t sure I was interpreting the question the way he meant it. “Is safety the only thing you think of when you look at me?”
Safety wasn’t something I took lightly. From my earliest childhood, when my mother seemed to have a revolving door ofloser boyfriends traipsing into the house, I hadn’t felt safe. I’d stayed as far away from them as I could, ever since waking up one night as one of the men tried to crawl into my bed. The man’s attempt at God only knew what, had been curtailed the second my mother burst into the room and caught him in the act.
Of course, I’d been the one to get a beating from her. But at least, nothing terrible had happened when he ran out, screaming that he’d gone to the bathroom and then stumbled into the wrong room in the dark. After that, safety had always been on my mind, along with any trust in my mother to protect me or my siblings.
I shook my head. “Safety is always important but not with you. Yes, you’ve kept me safe, but there’s more to this.” I put my hand over his heart. “I hope you know how I really feel about you. You’ve gotten under my skin.”
His expression instantly changed. “Me too. Now, come on. We have to get going so that the team is in place before your class starts.” I was almost surprised when he took my hand and began pulling me out of the room, waiting only long enough for me to scoop my things off the bed. Disappointment flooded through me as he dropped my hand halfway down the hall.
Most of the team was gone, leaving only the captain, Nash’s best friend, Agent Mickey Way, and the two men who’d come over earlier, Agents Miguel Huerta and Raven Mathis.
“Where’s everyone else?” I asked, pulling on the backpack with my things.
“I sent them on in a separate car so they could take up positions at the school,” Captain Sorensen replied. “The rest of us will ride over together.”
“Why?”
“Because the captain wanted to go over last-minute instructions,” Nash replied. “You’re good at taking instructions, I’d guess.”
