Anger fills the pit of my stomach at the idea of her keeping that shit to herself. “So you let that bitch and other bitches treat you like shit, just so you wouldn’t upset your dad? The same way you kept the shit Lisa spewed at you to yourself to protect me?”
“I—”
“No,” I cut her off, dropping my face closer to hers. “You do not let anyone treat you in any way that makes you feel uncomfortable, and if by some fucked up chance something like that does happen again, you tell me and I’ll deal with it,” I order, and her jaw tightens.
“I can take care of myself.”
“By what, keeping everything in and trying to make shit smooth for everyone else around you in the process?”
“Well…”
“Baby.” I give her a squeeze. “I hope to God that if you would have told your father what was happening that he would’ve protected you from it happening again. That said, your dad is no longer here, but I am, so it’s my job to look out for you. So let me.”
“I’ll try,” she whispers, and my eyes close as I press my forehead to hers. Feeling her hand rest against my jaw, I open them back up and meet her gaze. She doesn’t say anything, but neither do I. Leaning in, her lips touch mine and her tongue touches my bottom lip. I don’t think as I deepen the kiss and roll her to her back. Settling myself between her legs, I spend the next half an hour making love to her, which means I’m late getting to the gym to meet Tide. Not that I give a fuck.
~**~
Stepping out onto the deck three days later, I lean against the rail with my cup of coffee in hand and watch Gia, who’s wearing jeans, a hoodie, and sneakers, attempt to get Loki to play fetch with her. He has no idea what the hell fetch is, but he does like the fact that when he runs and gets the ball, she chases him around to get it back. Shaking my head at the two of them, I smile into my mug. She’s been trying to teach him fetch for the last two days, since she learned he didn’t know how. He still hasn’t gotten the hang of it, and at this point, I don’t know if he ever will. Then again, she’s determined, so who the hell knows?
“Loki, come here, boy.” She pats her thighs, and he comes toward her but stops a few steps away with the yellow tennis ball sticking halfway out of his mouth. “Drop the ball,” she instructs. He doesn’t drop it; he backs up a step then takes off again, running away from her. Flinging her hands up into the air in frustration, she takes off after him once more, making me chuckle.
“Dimples, I think you’re fighting a losing battle,” I inform her when Loki runs off into the woods, and her eyes come to where I’m standing and she smiles huge. God, I’m so fucking done for when it comes to her, and I don’t even care.
“He’ll get it eventually,” she tells me, coming toward the deck. “I still don’t get why you didn’t teach him how to play fetch when he was a puppy.”
“He wasn’t a puppy when I got him. I picked him up at the pound after I moved out here.”
“I didn’t know that,” she says after coming up the steps and taking the coffee cup from my hands to take a sip.
Wrapping my arm around her waist, I pull her closer to me then kiss the side of her head, saying, “Now you know.”
“Now I know,” she agrees, tipping her head back toward me. Seeing her offer, I take her up on it and touch my lips to hers. “What time are we supposed to head to your parents’ place?”
“Dinner’s at six, but mom usually wants everyone there at four to help get set up.”
Pulling her cell phone out of her back pocket, she hits the button to light up the screen and checks the time. “I should go shower and get ready,” she murmurs, putting her phone away when she sees it’s already 2:30 p.m.
“I could help you out with that.”
“I’m sure you could, or you could distract me from actually getting ready. Which would mean we would be late to your parents’.”
“Would I do that?” I ask innocently, while sliding my hand up the back of her sweatshirt then down into her jeans, grabbing a handful of her ass in the process.
“Did you not make me late for work yesterday because of the same reason?” she prompts, sounding slightly breathless, and I smile remembering taking her in the kitchen after she ate a bowl of cereal. Then again in the shower, against the wall.
“You weren’t even fifteen minutes late,” I remind her, and her eyes drop to my mouth.
“The answer is no. I don’t want to make a bad first impression on your family,” she says, sounding like she wishes we had more time.
“My family already loves you.”
“I haven’t met your brothers yet,” she reminds me of something I know. She’s nervous about something she shouldn’t be. My brothers will see in her exactly what she is—a sweet and kind woman who is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside.
“If we were late, my brothers would understand why once they saw you.”
“Seriously, you didn’t just say that.”
“Dimples, you’re beautiful and you have a body that takes time and dedication. Believe me, I’m dedicated to the job I was given when you gave yourself to me.”
“I can’t even deal with you right now,” she laughs, rolling her eyes and taking another sip from my coffee before handing it back to me. “It shouldn’t take me long to get ready. Maybe while I’m doing that, you can try to teach Loki how to play fetch.”
“Not likely.” I transfer the coffee mug so I can wrap my hand around her ponytail and tip her head back. “Let me know if you need help.”
“I’ll let you know.” She smiles before I kiss her. Reluctantly letting her go, I watch her head into the house before I walk around to the garage. Punching in the code for the door, I look at the mess on the side of the garage where my Suburban had been parked. The space is now filled with boxes and some furniture from her grandmother’s place, things she needs to go through, and donate. We took some clothes to her grandmother, but there is a lot that still needs to be washed before she can wear it, since it still smells like smoke.
Walking past the stacks of boxes, I go to the back wall where my gun vault is and punch in the code for the door, wanting to get some cash so I don’t have to use my card to get gas. Opening it up, I frown when I don’t see my gun where I put it after the last time I had it out. “What the fuck?” Looking though my stuff, I notice that nothing else is missing, not even the stack of money lying on top of a box of bullets. Pulling out my cell phone, I dial my dad’s number and wait.
“What’s up?” he asks as soon as he answers, and I look down at my boots, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Did you or did Mom by chance take my nine from my vault in my garage?”
“What?” he asks, sounding confused.
“My gun is missing. My nine-millimeter. The one you got me for Christmas four years ago.”
“It’s missing? I didn’t take it. Hold on. Let me ask your mom,” he says, and I hear him move around then shout to wherever my mom is, asking her the same question I asked him. “She said she didn’t take it.”
“What the fuck?” I lift my head and stare at the place it used to be.
“Is anything else missing?”
“Nothing, not even my stack of money I keep in the safe.”
“You need to call the cops to let them know.”
“Right,” I mutter, wondering who the fuck would have the code to my vault and why the fuck they would take just that gun when there are five others in there that are worth a whole lot more. And that’s not even including the thousand dollars in cash I always keep in there.
“You want me to come down to you?”
“No, I’ll take care of it.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah,” I sigh into the phone. “I’ll see you in a couple hours and let you know then what the cops say.”
“All right,” he says, as I hang up.
Searching online, I find the number for the sheriff’s station and call them directly, not wanting to dial 911 when it’s not an emergency. I’m transferred to a Detective Mitchell, and I let him know about the gun and give him the serial number and information. I thankfully don’t have to go in to see him in person, but he promises to let me know if the gun turns up.