I tried to keep things light by taking a bite. “This is good.”
“So they took all your clothes too?”
I guess the conversation wasn’t over. “Yeah…they took it all.”
He shook his head and poked at his food with the fork. “Fucking disgusting.”
“Yeah…”
“It’s someone in your complex. Someone watching when you come and go.”
I’d come to the same conclusion.
“You aren’t going back there.” He lifted his head this time and looked me in the eye.
“Well, it’s where I live. So I have to go back there.”
“You’re staying with me until we get this figured out. I’m not letting you sleep on the floor like some kind of homeless person, vulnerable to the jackasses watching you from across the way. They crossed you, which means they crossed me. I’m not letting them bother you again.”
I didn’t want his charity, but I couldn’t deny that staying with him was a dream come true. It was the safest place in the world, on the top story of his building with a strong man beside me in that enormous bed. I wouldn’t have to sleep with one eye open.
“There’s nothing in the apartment anyway. No reason to stay there.”
“I feel bad infringing on your space.”
“Don’t. As long as you’re fucking me, I don’t care. If you’re sick of me, there’re 7,000 square feet where you can disappear.”
Even at his worst, I couldn’t get sick of him.
“I have to be honest. It’s probably going to be a while before I get a new place.”
“We decided on a week.”
“And that’s unrealistic.”
“Why?” He finally took a bite of his food, now that it was cold.
“Because I need to save up to buy new furniture. I don’t have anything. And I’ll have to replace the fridge that was stolen.”
“But that wasn’t your fridge.”
“But it was included in my lease, and I don’t have renters insurance.”
He abandoned his food once more and set down his fork. “Then you get an apartment with no furniture—for the time being.”
“How is that any different than my current situation?”
“It’ll be a safer apartment.”
“Shouldn’t I wait until I can afford a bed first? A couch, maybe? Some silverware?”
“I think your safety is more important than inanimate objects.”
“But those objects cost money.”
“Then you can make do without them. Or put everything on a credit card.”
Now that I didn’t have any debt, it was possible I could extend my line of credit and get the things I needed. But getting a nice apartment would be a challenge to begin with. Unless I put all of my income toward rent, I would never be able to afford it. And I needed to start thinking about retirement and the future. There were other things more important than having a nice place to live. For instance, I really needed to get some health insurance. Life was good until something terrible happened to you, and without that special card, it could be life-and-death. “I understand you care about me, but it’s gonna be a while for me to figure this out. I need to find a good place to live, but I need to put money aside for savings, emergencies, health insurance—”
“Renters insurance.”
“Among other things…” I took another bite of my food. “I’m just letting you know this isn’t so simple. I only have a certain budget, and I can’t spend it all to live in the nicest place possible. That’s just impractical. You’re a logical man, and you must realize that.”
He stared at his food and took a bite. “Don’t expect me to be rational right now. Some fuckers are watching your every move. All I want is for you to be safe. Until I know you’re safe, I can’t see me being rational whatsoever. So you’re staying here until we get this figured out. Don’t argue with me about it.”
I wore his clothes to bed that night and wasn’t sure what I would wear tomorrow. All I had was that single outfit I’d been wearing for the last two days in a row. If I walked into the office like that, people would definitely notice. I could say I was trying to be environmentally friendly by not washing my clothes, but people probably wouldn’t believe me.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to do.
It’s not like I could hit up a clothing store on the way to work.
I would just have to face the humiliation—and tell the truth.
Slate got into bed beside me, but he kept his boxers on like sex wasn’t on the menu. He moved into my back and spooned me from behind, his dick soft against my backside. He would normally be hard touching me like this, but his arousal was nonexistent for the evening.
Even if he didn’t want to be physical with me, just having him there was nice. His powerful arms wrapped around me and protected me from the terrors outside his walls. His fortress was impenetrable, unconquerable. He would never let anything happen to me, not now and not ever.