Page 77 of Off Limits

“Think she’d really leave us alone?”

“Probably not,” he grumbles.

“I’ll have to just hold it in. Or come up with something. I don’t know.”

“I wish you could stay,” he murmurs as he brushes his fingers down my cheek.

“Me too,” I whisper, snuggling into his chest. Pulling my shirt back down to a respectable place and sliding my panties on, I lean up to kiss him.

“Good night, baby girl. I love you. Dream about me.”

“Good night, Loch. I love you too. I always do.”

When we wake up in the morning, we hear voices in the kitchen, but we can’t tear ourselves away from each other. We just lie in bed, looking at each other, his arm around my waist as he draws little circles on my back.

I know we should get up, that Chelsea is bound to start pounding on the door, but I can’t. The one time I made the slightest move to get out of bed, Lochlyn’s arm tightened around me, so I settled in.

Chelsea’s voice is rising above, closer to the door. If not for Wes, we may have been in trouble, but he steps in. “They got in really late, woke me up. I’m sure they’re just still sleeping.”

The reality of the day, and likely how soon we’ll be leaving, hits me like a freight train and my eyes overflow. Lochlyn’s face twists in pain, his lips tipping down and his brows scrunching, as he kisses away my tears, leaving his forehead pressed against mine. As they start to get worse, I press my face against his chest, pulling at his shirt, breathing him in.

Three weeks, three weeks, three weeks.

If I think it over and over, maybe it will make it go faster.

Tears slowing, we pull apart, ready to face the day. I wipe furiously at my eyes, trying to make sure Chelsea doesn’t see the salty trails left behind. My plan is to make a beeline for the bathroom to give my face a quick splash of water.

Lochlyn has a better idea, though. “I’ll go out first, say you’re still sleeping. Take a few minutes, collect yourself. I’ll distract them so you can sneak into the bathroom.” He brushes his thumb down my cheek, causing the tears to threaten again.

“Hey, hey, hey. No more tears. It’s only three more weeks, then I’mhome. And after that, we’ll be here, together.” He must have noticed my lip beginning to tremble.

All I can do is nod. Kissing my forehead, he gets out of bed and walks out the door. I take a few deep breaths, burying my face in the sheets, before sliding out of bed and putting on my own clothes. One more quick swipe of my eyes and I’m on my way out the door, taking a deep breath to steel my nerves.

Somebody had gone out to get some breakfast, fresh bagels complete with cream cheese, lox, and other various toppings. There’s a mostly full pot of coffee in the kitchen. After a quick rinse of my face, I head straight for the coffee, Lochlyn coming up behind me and pressing his chest against my back and resting a hand on my hip as he reaches up to grab a mug.

My breath catches as he brushes his hand down my back. The look that passes between us is filled with so much emotion. A tiny shake of his head tells me to hold it together.

Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I steady myself, pulling my full mug to my lips and tearing my eyes from his. I don’t know how long until Chelsea will want to leave, but I know it’s going to be torturous.

We leave two hours later, about four hours earlier than I want to. The weekend took an opposite turn from what I wanted it to be. It was the one chance to see each other to break up the six-week stretch, and it had been hijacked by Chelsea.

Not crying while I say goodbye is nearly impossible. I give Lochlyn a hug that’s possibly too long for just friends, but nowhere near as long as I need. When we’re halfway down the hall, I stop, dropping my bag.

“I, uh, I think I forgot something. I’ll be right back.”

“Do you want us to wait?” Chelsea also stops, turning to look at me.

“No, it’s fine. I’ll meet you down at the car.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I’ll be two seconds.”

Chelsea narrows her eyes at me but doesn’t argue, turning on her heel and heading toward the stairs.

Lochlyn opens the door on the second knock, pulling me against him and through the door, lips locking on mine quickly before resting his forehead against mine. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

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