Chapter 9
Gillian woke feeling more rested than she had in what seemed like ages. She hadn’t had any bad dreams, that she could remember, and actually felt pretty good.
Shifting, she realized immediately that she wasn’t alone. Her eyes popped open and she saw she was still on Walker’s couch. Was, in fact, sleeping in his arms. Her back was to the cushions and her front was plastered against Walker’s side.
When she lifted her head, she found herself staring into Walker’s gray eyes. He had a five o’clock shadow, which reminded her of how he’d looked in Venezuela. Except now his guard was down and he seemed somewhat vulnerable.
“Morning,” he said softly.
“I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you,” she said.
“And I didn’t mean to fall asleep at all,” he returned. “I meant to only close my eyes for a second, then wake you up and take you home.”
Gillian gave him a small smile. “I’m glad you didn’t. I slept better last night than I have for the last month.”
He frowned. “You’re not sleeping well?”
Realizing her mistake, Gillian tried to brush off the comment. “I just meant in general.”
“No, don’t do that. You’re not sleeping well?” he repeated.
Gillian pressed her lips together and shook her head slightly.
“Nightmares?”
“Sometimes.”
“Flashbacks?”
She nodded.
“You need the lights on?”
Gillian nodded again. “How’d you know?”
“I’ve been there, Gilly. PTSD isn’t fun.”
“Oh, this isn’t that,” she protested. “I’m just having a hard time acclimating back to life from before.”
“Which is PTSD,” Walker said firmly.
Then he moved so quickly, Gillian didn’t have a chance to protest or to do anything except squeak.
He was sitting upright and had her straddling his lap before she could think.
His hands pushed into her hair on either side of her head and he held her firmly.
She should’ve been concerned over how easily he maneuvered her.
How he was holding her and not letting her go… but she wasn’t.
“It’s nothing to be ashamed of. What you went through was awful, Di.
You’re strong as hell, but even though I’ve nicknamed you after Wonder Woman, you aren’t her.
You need to talk to someone, I’ll get you some names.
It’s fine if you need the light on; some of the strongest men I know have nightlights all over their houses.
You do what you need to do to cope. Period. ”
“I didn’t dream last night,” she told him.
“What?”
“I didn’t dream. And didn’t even notice the lights weren’t on. With you holding me, I think I knew I was safe.”
“Fuck,” Walker said softly, closing his eyes for a second before opening them again and staring at her with a fire she didn’t want to pull away from. “I’m going to kiss you, Gillian,” he warned.
“Okay,” she whispered.
“But that’s all. Just a kiss.”
Gillian nodded and licked her lips in anticipation.
One of his hands moved up and over her hair, smoothing it down. Then his fingers went under her chin and tipped her head up gently.
Gillian felt her heart beating out of her chest. She gripped his arms and dug her fingernails into his skin. She wanted him to both hurry up and slow down at the same time. She wanted this moment to last forever, but she also wanted him to kiss her already.
She watched as he licked his own lips, then his head dropped ever so slowly.
Whimpering a little, she leaned forward and met him halfway.
At first the kiss was a bit tentative. Their lips touched once. Twice. Then he growled and the hand at her chin moved to grip the back of her neck. His fingers flexed and his mouth covered hers. He didn’t tease, didn’t lick her lips to ask for permission to enter.
He plundered.
And Gillian let him. Gladly.
She opened her mouth wider and felt his tongue swipe over hers.
How long they sat there kissing, she had no idea.
All she knew was that she’d never felt as excited and treasured as she did in Walker’s arms. He held her to him tightly.
Pulling a bit on her hair when he wanted to move her head, but it didn’t hurt.
No, Walker Nelson’s kisses didn’t hurt in the least.
Gillian sucked on his tongue and felt more than heard the growl he let out.
Not too long after that, he pulled back abruptly and forced her forehead to rest on his shoulder.
Gillian could feel his chest rising and falling under her and felt some satisfaction that he was breathing as fast as she was.
“Holy hell,” he muttered, and Gillian couldn’t help it. She giggled.
With his hand still on the back of her neck, Walker pulled her upright. “You laughing at me, woman?”
She tried to stop, but couldn’t. By the time she had herself under control and could look Walker in the eyes again, she was surprised to see the gentle way he was staring at her.
Self-conscious, she brought one of her hands to her mouth and wiped at it. “What? Is there something on my face?”
He pushed her hand out of the way tenderly and ran his thumb over her bottom lip. “Your lips are pink and swollen,” he told her. “I like knowing that I made them that way.”
Gillian licked Walker’s thumb, and she saw his pupils dilate.
“No more of that. Or I’ll think you’re trying to seduce me. I’m not that kind of guy,” he teased.
Aware of her position in his lap, how she was straddling him and could feel his erect cock against her, she wiggled and arched a brow. “You’re not?”
Without warning, Walker stood, and Gillian was once more made aware of how strong he was and how easily he could move her body around. He put her on her feet, but pulled her into him. They were plastered together from hips to chest and they stood there for a long moment, staring at each other.
“Thank you for the best kiss I’ve ever had,” he told her.
“Thank you,” she returned.
“And thank you for not freaking when you woke up on my couch this morning. I swear I had good intentions. I was going to take you home and give you that kiss on your doorstep, then leave like a gentleman.”
“I liked sleeping in your arms better,” she said honestly.
“You have plans for today?” he asked.
Gillian shook her head. “Not really. I need to do some work for a sweet sixteen birthday party I’m planning, but otherwise, Sundays are my lazy day.”
“How about I make you some coffee? You can drink it while I shower. Then I’ll take you home, you can change, and I’ll take you out for breakfast. Then I’ll leave you in peace to have your lazy day.”
“That sounds good,” Gillian told him. And it did.
She wouldn’t mind spending the day with him, but she also kinda felt as if she needed some space.
She was falling head over heels for this man, fast, and it scared the hell out of her.
Yes, she’d thought he was the one for her from the first time she’d heard his voice, but now that she was in the midst of getting to know him, she was freaking out a bit at how perfect he seemed.
Walker leaned forward and kissed her forehead gently. And somehow that kiss felt as intimate as the one they’d just shared.
“There’s a half bath down the hall. There’s a bunch of extra toiletries under the sink in there…my mom stocked me up the last time she was here. Apparently it doesn’t matter that I’m almost forty, she still feels the need to take care of her son.”
Gillian grinned. “And you love it.”
“Of course I do. I don’t think I’ve ever bought a toothbrush in my life. I use them until they fall apart then I’m damn glad my mommy had the foresight to make sure I had a replacement on hand.”
Laughing, Gillian knew at that moment, she was a goner. One date, and one night sleeping in his arms, and hearing him make fun of himself and how he liked his mom fussing over him…and she was in love. Instead of being scary, it simply felt right.
As if he could tell something had changed, Walker ran the backs of his fingers down her cheek. “Go, Di. Before I do something stupid like throw you over my shoulder and drag you into my lair.”
Knowing he was only half kidding, Gillian slowly backed away from him. His shirt was wrinkled and he needed to shave, but he was so beautiful, it almost made her heart hurt.
Finally, she turned and headed for the bathroom…making sure to roll her hips just a little more than usual, knowing he was watching her ass as she left.
“I’ll call you later if that’s okay?” Trigger said as he held Gillian in his arms outside her door.
He couldn’t remember a better morning. He’d showered while she’d gotten some caffeine in her system, then they’d laughed and joked all the way back to Georgetown.
It had taken all he had not to burst into her bathroom when he’d heard her shower turn on.
All he could think about was how she’d look naked as water sluiced over her curvy body. Luckily, it had taken her about twenty minutes to get ready, and that had given him a chance to get his libido under control.
She’d directed him to a small diner near her apartment complex and he’d had the best omelet he’d eaten in ages. Now they were back at her apartment, and he was saying goodbye. He wasn’t sure when they’d be able to get together again, but he hoped he could make that happen sooner rather than later.
“It’s more than okay,” she reassured him.
He looked down at her purse when he heard the sound of another text coming through. She’d been getting texts all morning, and other than a quick reply to her friends to tell them she was alive and well, she’d been ignoring them.
“You’re a popular person,” he noted.
“I’m friendly,” she said with a shrug. “And I know a lot of people. Both professionally and personally.”
“Be careful,” Trigger told her. “I don’t want to lose you now that I’ve found you.”
Her face gentled. “I will.”
“I had a good time,” he told her, prolonging their goodbye.
“Me too.”
“Okay, before I get too sappy, I’m gonna go.” Then he leaned forward, thrilled with how quickly Gillian went up on her tiptoes to meet his mouth. He kissed her, not as hard or as long as he wanted, but long enough for his toes to curl and his cock to harden.
“I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Okay. See you later.”
“Bye, Di.”
Trigger backed away, then turned and strode for the stairwell with a purpose. He needed to go before he forgot about his “going slow” edict.