“I don’t get why you just don’t say that on one of the dates you told her y’all had, she always ordered something gluten-free and explained to you she was also lactose intolerant,” Stryker says as he strolls over to join me in the kitchen and begins helping me with the clean-up.
“It’s because I don’t want to mention anything from her real life that might jog her memory. We already have too much to worry about besides her amnesia.”
We work silently together, left to our own thoughts, and when we’re almost done, he questions me with concern in his voice, “Travis, are you sure this is really what you want to do?”
“Unequivocally, yes, I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life,” I say with conviction.
“Well, if it were me in your shoes, and I had a chance of having her, I’d do the same thing. You know I’m not a settling down kind of guy, but that girl would make an honest man out of me.”
“She is one of a kind; that’s for sure,” I comment as I finish wiping the spilt milk off the countertop, then pause as I pin him down with a stare. “You did pick up the package last week in Raleigh, right?” I raise both brows, questioning him.
He lets out a low whistle. “Yep, sure did. Got all fifteen-grand worth,” he says, giving a quick nod upward, indicating he put it upstairs in the locked computer room.
I nod. “Good. You also remember I have an appointment in town today at noon, right?”
Stryker looks at me with bemusement and nods. “Of course I do, I wouldn’t miss this one for the world. Never thought I’d see the day.”
“Yeah, well, that makes two of us,” I pause as an afterthought comes to mind, “and for damn sakes, keep all the gluten out of her path while I’m away.”
~Jules~
Hearing the birds chirping outside first thing in the morning is one of my favorite ways to wake up. It’s a reminder to me it’s the beginning of another day, and everything is new and fresh. I yawn, stretching out my body on the bed. I love it here. It’s so peaceful and serene. A large part of me is going to hate it when I do get my memory back, because it means I will have to leave this place and get back to my life. I can only hope my life will include Travis.
Stryker left last night to go back to Raleigh. He’s such a handsome man in his own right, and I’m sure if I never met Travis, I’d go crazy over the guy. He’s far less tense than Travis; that’s for sure, always poking and jibing at Travis every chance he gets. It’s so funny to watch those two interact.
Travis has been disappearing for a few hours each day, and neither one of them would tell me what he was doing or where he was going. Regardless, the training schedule went on, with Stryker giving me his own tips on shooting during my practice time. My curiosity is in high gear, because after Travis comes back from wherever he’s been gone to, he acts as if he’s up to no good. The man is a vault; his lips stay sealed, and when he turns on his stone wall face, I really have no clue what to think.
The three days Stryker was here, he wouldn’t even make love to me. When I get amorous at night, Travis shuts me down immediately. He says it’s ‘not appropriate to tango while other people are in the house’. Somehow, I have a hard time believing Stryker would care, especially since he sleeps upstairs far away from us. Then last night, after he left for Raleigh, Travis said he was too tired to be intimate. This isn’t the virile Travis I know, but at least he’s just as cuddly, if not more, reassuring me everything is fine between us.
As the sunlight filtering past the closed curtains slowly brings me to life, I roll over and see the most breath-catching, illuminating, bright green eyes staring right at me. He’s beautiful, and I want to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming.
“Good morning, baby,” he says in his gruff, sexy morning voice.
I sneak my fingers under his t-shirt with a sly grin on my face. I’m tired of being cut off, and I’ve missed feeling his bare chest. Now, since Stryker is gone and he’s gotten a good night’s rest, he has to be out of excuses. As soon as my fingertips graze his belly, he grabs at my wrist and stops my hand from going up his shirt. He shakes his head, returning my mischievous grin. He’s up to something as his eyes sparkle with playfulness.
“You can’t touch the merchandise just yet.”