Protecting Her: A Romance Bundle

“I didn’t bring you here to sleep with you, but I am attracted to you. Molly, I am so drawn to you but it isn’t all about sex.” He frowned and cupped my face with his hands as he looked at me.

“Is that a first for you?” I asked as he looked past me and licked his lips.

“God, I don’t know how to answer you. Yes, it is but I feel like you’re different,” Robert pressed his forehead to mine as I let out the breath that I was holding. I lifted my face to touch his mouth with mine, softly. I had not kissed anyone since Lance, and this was more than that had ever been. I felt foolish for wanting him at all now and I wrapped my arms around Robert’s waist, feeling his muscles tense. Robert tilted his head and kissed me harder as one hand slid into my hair to hold on.

God, I wanted this man. I opened my lips at the feeling of his tongue tracing the lower one and was rewarded with the feeling of him inside of my mouth. I felt him move me and then my back pressed against something as I just held on. He pressed against me gently and I felt my thighs heat up before they turned to jell along with my legs. I moaned as he kept kissing me, sucking all my willpower away as I held tightly to him.

Robert finally pulled away and I looked into his eyes to see how much darker they were. “I know that this is a small town and we don’t have a lot of options, Molly. Do you want me to take you home or is there another place that you want to go?”

Flames licked at my thighs as I ran a hand up his back, aroused by the muscles. “Can we go to your house?”

He looked pained as he stared at me and a shudder ran through him. “Are you sure?” I nodded and he sucked in a ragged breath.

“If you’re comfortable with that. Everything closes early around here and I don’t want to sit in a movie theater with you. I want to talk to you, get to know you. I want to kiss you like that a lot more.” I almost told him that I wanted him to touch me but I held it in.

“Okay but I’ll get you home early so you can get some sleep tonight,” he told in a husky tone as he stepped away and looked up at the clear sky. Robert took a few breaths and eased me away from his car to unlock the door. I slipped inside and leaned back as he closed the door, feeling the adrenaline rush through my bones.

9

Robert

I drove her to my house and parked in the garage. I had a private lot and I looked over to see her looking around. I got out and went to open her door to the sound of the crickets and frogs, leading her to my door. “I like this house,” Molly told me as I glanced at her with a smile. “I think I can see why you don’t want to live on the base. It’s so private here.”

“I like that,” I told her as we approached the door that led into the house and I unlocked it. My house was always clean, having grown up with a family that had a slight case of OCD. My house was always tidy as a kid and the military had nailed that shut for me, so I wasn’t worried about how it would look inside.

Molly walked inside as I turned on the light in the kitchen, taking in the spotless counters. “Can I get you anything to drink?” I asked her as I watched her slide her jacket off, revealing her curves. Jesus, I wanted to touch her.

“Do you have hot chocolate? Mom used to make that for me on cold nights as a kid.” I nodded and moved over to the stove to heat up some milk as she placed her jacket over the end of a chair.

“I love hot chocolate at night too. Coffee is great to wake up but when it’s dark and cold, I like something sweeter.” I smiled as I confessed this, feeling like a kid or something. I stirred the milk as I reached for the box in the cupboard and set it beside me. Once it was at a slow boil, I turned it down and added three packets to the pot.

“Where are the mugs?” Molly asked as she walked behind me and I pointed across the small kitchen to another cupboard. She opened the heavy door and pulled out two mugs, reading them both. One was an Air Force mug that I received at some point in time and the other was a chipped green one that I’d brought from my parents that talked about living your dreams. It was my grandma’s and I held on to it these years after she died. She set them near me and leaned against the counter, staring at me as I mixed everything together. I used a large ladle to fill the cups and invited her to the living room to sit on the couch. We sat on the big couch in the living room as I turned on a light and smiled at her.

“The place came furnished with all of this. I try to make moving easy unless I think I’ll be staying somewhere for a while.” I indicated the worn furniture with my hand.

“It’s cozy in here, though. They did a great job with the cabin on the edge of the woods,” Molly told me as I handed her the bag of small marshmallows. She added a few to her cup and stirred it as I watched her. “Do you have a dream house in mind at all?”

“I have lived a lot of places all over the world, Molly. I have seen a lot of things that all suited me well at the time. Now though, I like this. I like the quiet and the peace that I am offered here.” I shrugged. “Maybe I’ll buy something like this when the time comes. Don’t most men think about all of that outdoors stuff when they stop working?”

“I don’t think Keith will ever retire and my dad runs a business from home. I only know some of the customers that come in and kill time. They seem happy with that. What do you like to do away from work?” Molly asked as I sat in silence. I didn’t want to tell her that I relaxed with women. I lost myself in them in ways she might not ever be able to handle.

“I hang out with some friends from work here and there. You saw me at the movie that night and we went for a drink afterward.” I looked at her as she smiled and nodded.

“I don’t drink too much. Noel, too,” I sensed a tone in her voice that much more than just disinterest in the subject. It was dislike.

“Why not?” I pressed as she took a long sip of her drink.

“I had some bad experiences with it in college.” Molly’s answer was vague and her tone casual, but her eyes showed all the emotion that she was trying to hide. I set my drink down and slid my hand over her shoulders, stroking her neck as she stared at me. “I haven’t wanted to be touched in so long.”

“You have been, then?” I queried as she blushed.

“A little bit, but mostly by myself.” The idea of her stroking her pussy made me instantly hard as I slid my hand into her hair.

“Do you do that a lot?” I asked, my voice slow and controlled.

“More now,” Her eyes were locked on mine as she answered and I cupped her head before I put my cup on the table. I leaned in to kiss her, unable to resist any longer. She felt so fucking good as her warm lips parted in response to my tongue, allowing me into her warmth. I tilted my head, tasting the sweetness of the chocolate and the marshmallows as I slid my tongue against hers. Molly moaned and I gripped her hair as my free hand slid over her hips. Molly’s innocence was so damn sexy even as I reminded myself that there was some darkness there as well. I couldn’t push her too far but the way she kissed be back without inhibition made me hold tighter onto her body.

We kissed for what could have been hours. Our teeth crashed together and tongues danced as I kept my hands in place, despite wanting to feel her full breasts in my hand; her hard nipple. I wanted to slide my hand under her skirt and tear through the tights to touch her.