Page 51 of Sheltered

Needing to backtrack, I stammered, “I’m… I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me or why I would say that to you. I was… I just thought?—”

“Don’t apologize,” Blaze ordered about half a second before his lips landed on mine.

I was momentarily stunned, but considering Blaze was as good at kissing as he was, it didn’t take long for me to snap out of it and melt into him and his kiss.

Truthfully, it wasn’t that hard to do, considering this kiss was unlike any other kiss Blaze had given me. If one thing was becoming abundantly clear, it was that Blaze wasn’t a man who did the bare minimum in anything. He always went above and beyond, and if he felt compelled to give me something he’d never given me before with his kiss, he was going to do it.

His tongue teased and explored the warm, wet recesses of my mouth, the taste of him minty and fresh. My heart skipped a beat with the possessive hold he had on my body and in my hair. Blaze’s lips were soft yet firm, and the way he was clutching me tight to his chest was unraveling me.

God, he was kissing me like I’d never been kissed. My belly dipped and tingles ran across my body, an ache pulsing between my legs. That ache being one so unfamiliar until I’d met Blaze.

When I whimper crawled up my throat and escaped, Blaze tore his mouth from mine and continued to hold me close. His hand that had been in my hair shifted, and he traced his fingers over my jaw while his eyes roamed over my face in a way that indicated he was trying to memorize every part of it, every feature.

“You’re not upset then?” I whispered.

His eyes locked on mine. “Not a chance. Did you really mean what you said?”

I swallowed hard, nodding slowly. “Yes. I would never joke about something like that.”

Blaze’s arm tightened around my waist. “Baby, what did I do to deserve you?”

There was an edge of disbelief in his tone, an indication he believed he wasn’t a man worthy of my heart, even if he knew he wanted it. “Everything.”

Air rushed from his lungs, and Blaze wrapped both arms tightly around me, hugging me close to him. He kept us like that for a bit before he loosened his hold, opened my door, and declared, “Come on. I’m taking my girl out for some lunch.”

Even though it had already been made clear to me that Blaze and I were officially together, something about hearing him call me his girl did something to me. A shiver ran down my spine, and a smile formed on my face. I allowed that feeling to sink in, but then I got myself in his truck, so he could take me out for lunch.

I spent the better part of the drive to lunch replaying the kiss Blaze and I had just shared. It felt like a turning point for us. Maybe for Blaze, it was hearing the words I’d said about him already having my heart that felt like the turning point for him, but either way, it was at that moment when everything changed.

I felt good about where we were and the direction things were heading between us. In a million years, I didn’t think it would have been possible to dream up a man like Blaze, and now I just had him here. He made every encounter we had better than the last, and he did it all so effortlessly.

Every minute Blaze and I spent together was so wonderful, it never dawned on me that there was a chance anything could happen to ruin it. Sure, I’d had a moment of uneasiness when he came to my place two nights ago to tell me about his work predicament, but once I took a second to think about it and consider the reality, I didn’t feel any fear. I trusted Blaze, believed he’d do precisely what he said, and leaned heavily into the fact that the people targeting Harper Security Ops not only wouldn’t likely be aware I existed, but also didn’t seem to be causing physical harm to anyone.

But beyond that instance of uncertainty that night, I’d never had a single doubt when it came to Blaze and the way he made me feel. The idea that anything could make my confidence about him or us waver was ludicrous.

And that was precisely when I got smacked in the face with it.

Blaze and I were out for lunch and having a wonderful time reminiscing over our morning of paintballing fun when it happened.

“Blaze?” a feminine voice interrupted.

When the two of us glanced to the side of our table, we found two women standing there, their eyes shifting between Blaze and me and ultimately settling on him. I was frozen to my seat, unable to touch my food.

“Izzy? Zoe? What are you two doing here?” he returned.

I couldn’t tell if he was shocked, concerned, happy, or a mix of all three. And those names sounded familiar, but I couldn’t recall where I’d heard them.

One of the women gestured between herself and the one beside her before she replied, “Oh, well, Zoe dragged me out for lunch today. I hadn’t wanted to come, but now I’m glad I did.”

“So am I,” the woman I now knew had to be Zoe added. “We definitely weren’t expecting to see you this afternoon.”

Smiling as she shook her head slowly, the woman I guessed was Izzy slid her eyes to me briefly before returning them to Blaze and said, “And yet, here you are, Blaze. What are you doing here?”

There was no missing the unasked question in her tone. Though the words indicated one thing, it was the sound of her voice that told a different story. She was curious about me and how I fit into Blaze’s life.

Since it seemed neither woman was paying me any attention, I dropped my gaze to the man seated across from me. He’d shifted his attention to me, and there was something lingering in his stare I couldn’t read. Hesitancy, maybe? Immediately, I assumed he didn’t want to tell these women who I was.

Maybe I should have helped everyone out of the awkward situation and spoken up, introducing myself as a friend of Blaze’s, but something forced me to remain quiet. If what happened beside his truck in the parking lot this morning had been a pivotal moment in our relationship, this felt like one, too. I guess I was curious to see how he’d react in this situation.