Tall, Silent & Lethal (Pyte/Sentinel 4)

“Everyone leaves you, don’t they?” he whispered softly in a tone that should have softened the blow of his question, but nothing could have stopped her from flinching from his words.

“No, they don’t,” she bit out, releasing her hold on him so that she could put some much needed space between them.

His hold on her tightened as he kept her from fleeing as his gaze bore into hers, searching for an answer that he had no right to demand.

“No, they don’t,” he murmured softly after a painfully long moment as he pulled her closer and pressed a kiss against her forehead. “You leave them before they get a chance,” he said against her forehead as she struggled to breathe.

“That’s not true,” she lamely argued, unaware that she was once again holding onto him, refusing to let him go.

“You’ll never have to worry, mein Schatz. I’m not going anywhere,” he promised her.

“Don’t make promises that you can’t keep,” she whispered helplessly as she closed her eyes and savored his touch, the warmth from his body and the feeling of being enveloped in a protective pocket where nothing and no one could harm her.

“Why do I feel so safe with you?” she found herself asking him, hating how much she needed him even as she prayed that she never had to endure another day without him.

“I don’t know,” he whispered as his hold on her gentled and he was once again caressing her nape.

She gave a humorless chuckle at that. “Well, that makes two of us then, because I honestly don’t know why I’m not doing everything in my power to get away from you.”

He pressed another kiss against her forehead as he confessed, “I’m still waiting for you to kick my ass for everything that I’ve put you through.”

She heaved out a sigh as she admitted, “I should have kicked your ass a hundred times over by now.”

“Yes,” he said, pressing another kiss against her brow, “you should have.”

“Especially for that sandwich,” she said, cringing at the memory of all that mayonnaise pouring out of the sandwich like a-

“There was nothing wrong with that sandwich!” Christofer argued, softening his words with another kiss.

“I’ll probably have nightmares for years to come thanks to that sandwich,” she teased with a laugh when he released a sexy little growl that had her toes curling in pleasure.

“That sandwich was perfect!”

“That sandwich was terrifying,” she said solemnly, loving the sexy glare that he was giving her, surprised that somehow through all of this they’d managed to slip back into taunting and teasing each other, something that she’d truly enjoyed before her world had been destroyed.

It gave her hope that one day everything would be okay.

Chapter 31

“Are you awake?”

“Mmmhmm,” Cloe murmured as she lay there, staring out the large window at the beautiful city sky as she continued to absently trace her fingers over Christofer’s arm where it rested around her waist.

“Are you hungry?” he murmured, pressing a soft kiss to the back of her head, something that he’d been doing a lot tonight. Not that she was going to complain, because she wasn’t.

It felt too good in his arms to complain or find fault with the way that he held and touched her. They’d talked for a little while about absolutely nothing at all, neither of them wanting to broach on a subject that would jeopardize this overwhelming sense of peace that they’d somehow managed to stumble across. For about two hours now, they’d been lying there, staring out at the night sky, the tranquility broken only by murmured questions and a gentle touch.

A few times she’d found herself wanting to ask how he was holding up, but at the last second she’d decided against it. She didn’t want to bring up Marta until he was ready and she knew that he wasn’t ready. So instead, she’d laid there in his arms offering him what little comfort she could.

“No, I’m fine,” she finally answered, closing her eyes and savoring the touch of his lips as he once again pressed a kiss against her hair.

“Do you need anything?” he asked, his voice slightly muffled against her hair.

Answers.

Reassurance that everything was going to be okay.

Promises that she didn’t think that he’d be able to keep.

A time machine so that she could go back and fix everything before her world was destroyed and her family was taken from her.

The ability to enjoy a double cheeseburger with the works.

But, she didn’t say any of that, because it would force her to face a future that she wasn’t sure that she could handle. Instead she continued to trace her fingers over his arm, enjoying the feel of his body pressed up against hers. She’d been with several men in her life, probably more than she should have, but she’d never allowed any of them to hold her the way that Christofer was holding her.

Not that any of them had ever tried.

The ones that hadn’t been put off by her scars had treated her like a f**k buddy. There had never been warm smiles, flowers, romantic dinners or flattering words. She’d enjoyed herself for the most part, enjoyed the momentary escape that they’d offered her, but it had never been more than just sex to her. Sometimes she’d wished that it had been more, that she’d been with the type of man that could make her feel wanted and loved, but it had never happened.

Until now.

It was crazy, beyond crazy. She’d only known Christofer for a few weeks and in that time he’d fired her, irritated her, taunted her, ditched her, attacked her and aided with her kidnapping, but somehow during all that he’d become everything to her. He made her smile, made her feel safe even as she fought to ignore what was happening between them, made her feel wanted and could make her smile. She could happily spend the rest of her life in his arms, she thought as she snuggled back against him, determined to soak up every last ounce of comfort that he had to offer before she was forced to face an uncertain future.

“No,” she said, shifting back against him as she laid her hand over his where it moved lazily against her stomach, “I’m fine.”

For several minutes they just laid there, staring out the large windows as Christofer lightly caressed her stomach with lazy movements of his thumb. She closed her eyes and inhaled slowly, allowing the peaceful moment to wash over her. She savored his comforting scent, his touch and the warmth that his large body enveloped her in and couldn’t help but wonder just how long this reprieve would last.