Page 27 of Protecting Salvation

Val stood and hugged her and Bás gave her a nod which made her smile. He might be a married family man now, but he was still the leader of Shadow, and the only people who really got the softer side of him were Val and Marni.

“We’re gonna head off too. I want to see if I can start going through some of the CCTV from last night. I might catch something we missed earlier.”

Peyton knew that Lotus needed to keep busy and maybe this was perfect for her but she still appreciated it. “Thank you.”

“No sweat. Gotta look after my new wing-woman.”

Peyton laughed and Warren growled as Lotus shot him a wink. She didn’t know what that was about and wasn’t sure she wanted to.

Closing the door she saw Warren loading glasses into her dishwasher. “You don’t need to do that, I’ve got it.”

He put the glass down and turned as she walked into her kitchen. She liked seeing him here. Even though he took up all the space, it felt nice.

“Come here, sugar.”

She walked up to him, tipping her head back when she got close enough to smell his heavenly scent. His big hands cupped her upper arms and rubbed, the callouses on his hands feeling nice, grounding her, and making goosebumps shoot across her flesh.

“I need you to know that I’m not going anywhere until we catch this asshole or confirm they aren’t a threat to you. I can sleep in my car if you don’t want me here, but I’m not leaving you. So get that thought out of your pretty head right now, okay?”

“But….”

He covered her lips with the tips of his fingers. “No buts. It’s done. I’m staying.”

Warmth and affection filled her heart for this kind, handsome man, who was going through so much and still made her his priority. “I have a spare room you can use.”

“What, no fighting me?”

His lips twitched a little and she shook her head. “Nope. I feel safe with you, like I know no matter what, you won’t let anyone hurt me.”

Her voice wobbled and he cursed, pulling her into his arms and holding her against his chest, his lips on her hair. “I won’t let anyone hurt you, ever.”

Oh, how she wished that was true, but even without his diagnosis, he hadn’t said he’d change his mind about them being together.

Pulling away she pasted a smile on her face that didn’t reach her eyes. “We should get some sleep. I have a full day tomorrow and I need to arrange zoom meetings from my home office.”

Nobody knew that she hadn’t been able to work in her home office at the bottom of her garden since her attack. That the idea of setting foot in there made her want to heave, but she had to somehow figure it out because come tomorrow, that’s exactly what she’d be doing.

“Let me go grab my go bag out of the car.”

“I’ll make up the spare bed.”

Peyton rushed up the stairs, checking the bed was made and that he had clean towels. She added a bottle of pain killers in case he didn’t have any and left them by the side of his bed. Her belly flipped at the thought of him sleeping under her roof. She turned to leave and he was in the doorway watching her, so she moved towards him as if her legs had a mind of their own.

“I locked up and took Bertie out. Was that okay?”

“Oh, yeah, perfect. Thanks.”

They stood in the doorway, his bag in one hand and the other on the top of the door frame crowding her as her heart rate skyrocketed. What was so sexy about that pose? Was it the way it made his muscle bunch or the slight slither of toned abdomen she could glimpse or was it the power she felt in him? She had no clue but it was hot and addictive.

“You okay, sugar? You look a little flushed.”

“Um, yeah, I…I’m just gonna go and read for a bit in bed.”

His smirk was sexy and she had a feeling he knew exactly what he was doing to her. “Okay, well if you need anything you know where to find me.”

Peyton scurried to her room closing the door as a deep chuckle filled her ears. Asshole. He knew exactly what he was doing. God, she’d been so close to throwing herself at him, but he was here to protect her not fuck her brains out, although the idea sounded delicious.

She had no doubt Warren would be an absolute animal in bed and any man with that much quiet confidence would have the skill to back up his game. Undressing, she changed into an oversized tee and moved to her en-suite to brush her teeth. Climbing into bed she tried to read for a bit but even the gorgeous and sexy billionaire in her book couldn’t hold her attention.

Turning the light off she thought about Warren in the room opposite her and wondered if he slept naked or if he wore pyjamas. She frowned. No, he was a sleep-in-his-boxers kind of man, and then her mind went there. What would it feel like to be dominated by him, to have him command her body in every way, to make her feel protected in his big arms? Her body ached, her pussy throbbing with the need for an orgasm to take the edge off but she wouldn’t, not with the risk of him hearing and thinking she was some sex-starved maniac who was desperate.

Sleep eventually claimed her but her dreams did not give her peace.