Page 55 of Gator

We stayed like that for long moments, panting, trembling, locked together. The only sounds were our ragged breathing. His weight pressed me fully against the bed. With anyone else, it would’ve felt suffocating, but not with Gator. With him, it felt right.

“Okay?” His voice was rough, but gentle.

I managed a weak nod. “Yeah.” My voice was hoarse. “More than okay.” I felt boneless, utterly claimed and profoundly sated. “We’re going to have to change the bedding,” I mumbled, a weak attempt at humor.

He huffed a laugh against my skin, the vibration making me shiver pleasantly. “Worth it.” He slowly, carefully pulled out. I hissed at the sudden emptiness and the faint, familiar ache. He turned me around, pulling me against his chest. His arms wrapped around me, holding me tight, his chin resting on top of my head. His heartbeat thudded steadily against my ear.

We lay there, clinging to each other in the dark, the scent of sex and sweat and us thick in the air. The possessive fire in him had banked to a low, contented ember, replaced by a tenderness that made my chest ache in an entirely different way. He pressed another kiss to the top of my head.

After a bit, he disappeared into the adjoining bathroom for a moment, returning with a warm, damp washcloth. He cleaned me with surprising gentleness, wiping away the mess on my stomach and between my legs. Then he disposed of the condomand cleaned himself quickly before pulling the comforter completely off the bed.

“We’ll worry about that tomorrow.” He climbed into bed beside me and pulled me close, my back tucked against his broad chest, his arm heavy and secure around my waist. His breath stirred the hair at my nape.

Exhaustion hit me like a wave, warm and deep. His body was solid and warm against mine, his heartbeat a steady rhythm against my back. I reached down and tangled my fingers with his where they rested on my stomach. His hand squeezed mine gently.

As sleep pulled me under, wrapped in his heat and his strength, I finally felt it, a fragile sense of peace, a belonging I hadn’t realized I’d been searching for.Safe. With him, I was safe.

Chapter sixteen

Julius

I had no idea how early or late it was when I woke up the next morning, but it was daylight outside, and I needed a cup of coffee like I needed oxygen. I rolled over to find Gator crashed out beside me. The sheet was down around his hips, showing off his toned, muscular body. It was easy to tell he spent a lot of time in the gym downstairs, and it paid off. We hadn’t talked about what happened when this was all over, but I sure wouldn’t mind waking up to this view every morning.

I let out a small sigh. Laying here enjoying the view wasn’t going to get a pot of coffee made, so I sat up on the side of the bed. I reached for my phone and headed to the kitchen. I pressed the brew button just as my phone buzzed, multiple times. I flipped it over to find a series of messages from Migs.

Migs

I know you have a lot going on, but we would love to see you at brunch.

Migs

You could bring that sexy thang with you if you wanted.

Migs

We can sit inside if you want.

Migs

We can tell them he’s your arm candy so you don’t have to answer a bunch of questions.

I smiled. That was so Migs, and truth was, I missed my friends. Or Migs anyway. I missed him. I hadn’t been in the salon much at all, and I’d missed the last couple of Sunday brunches.

I didn’t answer Migs. Instead, I waited until Gator got up so I could check and see if brunch would be a problem. I put some of Trixie’s food in the bowl on top of her cage and then helped her up there. Then I took my coffee over to the big window in the living room. I stood there and watched the people down below as they started their day.

A few minutes later, Gator came out of the bedroom bare-chested and wearing a pair of sweats that rode low on his hips. Damn, he was sexy.

He walked straight to me and brushed a kiss across my lips. “I woke up and you were gone.”

“Yeah, coffee was calling. There’s a fresh pot in the kitchen.”

He gave me a smile and went straight for it.

“So usually on Sundays, my friends all get together for brunch. Do you have anything to do today? Do you think we could go? Migs said he would get us an indoor table if you thought that would be best.”

He finished pouring his cup of coffee and took a long drink. “I don’t have anything to do today, so if you want to see your friends, we can go. Migs is right, though, an indoor table would be for the best.”

I didn’t think that his offering to go had anything to do with being my bodyguard and everything to do with the fact that he wanted to be with me. It seemed I had acquired myself a Daddy. And not like aoh, let’s play Daddy/boy for the night. I mean, like an actual Daddy. The question was, did I want one? I smiled to myself because if it was Gator, then yeah, I thought maybe I did.