Page 38 of Red Hunt

“No, I’m fine.”

His finger gently stroked some invisible line next to my mouth. “You have a terrible poker face.”

The place where he touched my face tingled, and a flush of warmth ran through my body. I couldn’t take my eyes from his, and my breathing sawed in and out of me. His hand dropped from my face, and I immediately missed the contact.

What the hell?

This was it. I was falling. This was that feeling I’d only ever read about in books: lust, pure and simple. And I was the one feeling it. Amazing.

“Look, nobody will die if the library stays closed today, wouldn’t you agree?” He looked up at Sharon, waiting for her reaction.

Something transpired between them, some kind of unspoken truce which I would’ve missed had all my senses not been acutely tuned in to every micro-movement on Max’s face.

“I totally agree.” Sharon turned to me, laid her hand on my shoulder. “Get some rest. Get better. The library will be there tomorrow. Can I do anything for you? Do you have everything you need?”

It felt weird to be the primary focus of the people around me. Weird, but not uncomfortable. Holding back, always keeping my distance even with the people closest to me, might’ve been the safest choice but probably not the best one. “I have everything I need. Thanks, Shar.”

She kissed me on my cheek. “And you”—she pointed at Max with a stern look—“I’d better not hear any complaints about you.”

Max laid one hand on his heart and the other in the air as if he was swearing an oath.

I didn’t know if I should laugh at their antics or reprimand both of them. I wasn’t a child, and yet they both behaved as if I needed to be taken care of.

And even though it felt nice, it was totally unnecessary. Even though, right now, my body wasn’t strong, my mind was stronger than ever.

21

MAX

I procrastinated going home for as long as I could and, when I finally left, a heaviness formed in my stomach. It was a stupid thing to think, but I’d really wished for the day to never end.

All the way home, I fought the desire to turn around, conjured up excuses to see Milli the very next day or to call her right when I got home. The level of attraction and protectiveness I felt was unlike anything I’d ever experienced. I hadn’t lived my life as some kind of monk—far from it—but I wasn’t known for falling in love in an instant or at all. Most of my life, I’d been firmly on the opposite side of the spectrum. I kept my relationships fun and light. Non-attachment guaranteed a level head and a heart intact. On the job, it got me through years and years of mission success and failure. Even during life and death stakes, it kept me sane when all I could do was watch helplessly, when all I could do was to be there for a fellow brother in his last seconds of consciousness. When had I adopted the same strategy for my personal life? And where was my famous detachment now? Nowhere. Because all I wanted, all I needed, was to be by her side.

Gosh, how pathetic.

I opened the door, and the cat came and greeted me, purring as if just my presence was the most awesome thing that had happened all day.

I hunched down, but she escaped my hand. Given her protruding belly and what I’d researched so far, I was fairly certain she would give birth within the next few weeks. Did Milli know that?

I could hear Peaches’ and Goofy’s voices through the open door to the wooden deck that spanned the entire length of the building. I hadn’t known if they would still be here, and when I’d seen their parked trucks, a part of me wanted them gone. I’d enjoyed the day too much. Enjoyed interacting with the people who stopped by the store. Enjoyed her.

And wasn’t the whole point of buying this cabin to find peace and quiet? Having a place to disconnect from everything and everyone? A part of me rejected that thought immediately. I didn’t want to disconnect from Milli, not when I wanted to explore the dynamic between us more. I shook my head at my own ridiculous thoughts and crossed the room toward the deck. Maybe the two of them could knock some sense into me again. Or at least occupy my mind with more important stuff than my ridiculous obsession.

“Hey, Romeo, nice for you to join us. Have a nice day?” Goofy stepped inside, turned to the kitchen, and grabbed a giant bowl of salad. “You’re lucky we made enough, otherwise you’d be watching us eat. Hey, Peach, throw the third steak on the grill; Romeo’s back.”

I suppressed a growl. But what did I expect after taking off earlier today? Of course, there would be a fair amount of shit-talking and hackling. “Thanks, I’ll just take a quick shower and I’ll be right with you.”

“Washing off the sex sweat?” Peaches said when he came inside.

I clenched my fists. I wanted to deck him…hard. But then I took a shallow breath, grinned, and forced myself to release the tension. This was good. This was my brothers blowing off steam. This I knew. I didn’t need to tiptoe around, didn’t need to toe the fine line of overprotective and too dominant. With them, I could be me. Unfiltered. “Wouldn’t you like to know…Peach, but then again, when was the last time a woman gave you a second look?”

Peaches shrugged.

It was almost comical to watch this 6’6’’ hulk of a man, with a genius brain, riddled with insecurities he’d developed back when he was just a scrawny, awkward computer geek years ago. And I immediately felt bad.

“Sorry, man.” I tapped his shoulder, but he had a sly grin on his face.

“I know who you’ve been with.”