Wording it over in my head. And re-wording it. And re-re-wording it.
Dad was—how shall I put this—protective of his only child. He wasn’t going to just shrug everything off and say “as long as Lucas loves you”. Lucas did love me, and, as I knew all too well, would kill to protect me, but that very fact was probably a negative in Dad’s eyes. Who wants a killer for a son-in-law? Even if the killer only does so for love?
Whoa, even my internal argument for why ours was a true Happy Ever After was making me unsettled. Dad was going to…
So, dawn sky, fading stars, deep breathing, and a sudden thirst for milk.
Without waking Lucas—who looked too peaceful, and way too sexy sleeping naked as he did in our bed—or getting Fluffy and Francis, I bundled Groot into my car and drove to the local market. I’d done some serious self-defense training since Lucas revealed who he really was, and I going to a public place crowded with people. It was totally going to be okay.
I love farmers’ markets. The bustle, the fresh produce, the delicious aromas wafting from the food trucks, the energy of all the people there. It’s a great way to spend your morning. Groot pulled on his leash, sniffing everything.
People smiled at him—how could you not? A puppy Doberman is adorable, especially one with floppy ears and a long happy tail—and at me. I smiled back. Nodded hello.
A wonderful morning.
I bought three gallons of milk, some fresh croissants (Lucas and Fluffy love croissants for breakfast, but despite once working in a bakery, I can’t make them successfully no matter how often I try), fresh eggs, a big bag of cherries, and some tulips for the dining table.
Oh, and a big bone for Groot to gnaw on once we returned home.
After all my purchases, I decided to grab a coffee and just chillax for a while. I was sitting at a picnic table away from the main crowd, with the morning sun warming my face, sipping at my hot coffee, when my phone vibrated in my bag.
Lucas, it would seem, had woken. And found me not there.
The first thing he would have done was check with Fluffy to see if the Marine was with me.
The second thing Lucas would have done, on discovering Fluffy wasn’t, was curse. A few choice f-bombs. Then he would have called me.
Hence my phone vibrating in my bag now.
“I’m in trouble, Groot.” I grinned.
Groot woofed back at me.
Yeah, neither of us were worried. What was going to happen at a farmers’ market, for Pete’s sake? Lucas (and Fluffy) needed to relax a bit.
“Good morning,” I said into my phone, letting my grin dance on my greeting.
“I’m in bed, naked and alone.” Lucas’s growl sent a delicious shiver up my spine and made my nipples pinch hard. “You know how I feel about waking naked and alone.”
“Cold?”
He laughed.
My body reacted to the sound. I would never get enough of Lucas’s laugh; it was carnal and wicked and devilish and horny. It also made me regret not being naked in bed with him at that very moment in time.
“We needed milk,” I said, my voice a little husky. When it came to Lucas Pratt, I was a nymphomaniac. “And Groot needed an adventure.”
“Fluffy tells me you left without him and Francis.”
The censure in the statement made me twist my lips. “I’m okay, Lucas. I’m not defenseless, remember. And you’ve taken care of everyone out to hurt us.”
A beat of silence filled the line, and then Lucas sighed. “Oh babe, I wish that was the case.”
My stomach clenched. A little. And then I said pfft. “We’re okay. Honest. I’m about to come home anyway. Just finishing this coffee.”
From the corner of my eye, I noticed a little boy inching towards me.
“So what you need to do,” I said to Lucas, “is stop freaking out.”