Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Meyer
T he dream started off just fine. There was darkness all around me, but that was okay, I wasn’t worried because I was kissing Dex, gentle kisses that went on forever, lips pressing together, tongues dancing in a sweet rhythm, then turning into something spicier as our bodies pressed against each other.
I felt as if we were trapped in the cave again, but for some reason, I wasn’t bothered because it was just him and me. I knew I was safe because I had Dex with me. Nothing bad could happen with him by my side.
Dex moaned so sweetly into my mouth and ran his hands down my back, cupping my ass and pressing his erection into my thigh. “I need you inside me,” he pleaded.
“Here?” I teased. “When we could be rescued any moment?”
“Rescued?” Now Dex sounded confused. “We’re not going to be rescued.”
“Of course we are,” I said, dropping a kiss on his mouth. “I called it in before the cave-in. They’ll be with us soon.”
“We’ve been in here for days,” Dex said. “No one is coming to get us. We’re going to die in here. Don’t you realize that?”
“No, that can’t be true.”
Frantic now to prove him wrong, I pulled away and stumbled as the ground fell away from me and then I was falling, falling. I looked up to see Dex staring at me, somehow his face clear as day in the pitch black, smiling at me as if he were happy to see me tumbling away from him, screaming into the void.
I woke with a loud snort, my heart pounding, blood racing in my ears. I was still alive and not falling. Had I landed safely? Where was Dex? Sitting up, I rubbed my eyes and opened them, relieved to find I was still at Dex’s house and nowhere near the old mineshaft. What a nightmare. Well, the kissing had been all right, but I didn’t want to repeat the falling again.
I turned to see Dex still asleep, his head back and mouth open in an almost snore. I’d been sleeping on his shoulder if the large drool patch on his shoulder was any indication.
“You’re staring at me,” he muttered.
“You’re worth staring at,” I said, “and you’re not trying to kill me.”
Dex cracked open one eye and stared at me. “Huh? Kill you? When? I think you need to catch me up, Jones.”
“I was dreaming?” It was part question, part need for reassurance. At Dex’s nod, I carried on. “We were back in the mineshaft and kissing. It was very good kissing. Then you told me you wanted to take it further, and I asked if you were sure about that. We could be rescued at any moment. You told me we’d be stuck in there for days, and were going to die. Then I was falling, and you were smiling at me like it didn’t matter.”
“I can see why you’re freaked out.” Dex sat up and put an arm around me. It was comforting, and I leaned into him. “I was just as glad to escape that place as you were.”
“What’s the time?” I asked.
Dex picked up his phone. “Ten to eight. Damn. We slept a long time.”
“We earned it. But I ought to go home,” I said reluctantly. “I’ve got an early start tomorrow, and my other uniform is at Mom’s.”
“I’ve got an early start too, but I’m so hungry.”
My belly rumbled in agreement. “Man, I forgot all about the food from Alejandra.”
Dex chuckled. “Let’s eat now, then we can fall back into bed. You can sleep in the guest room if you’d prefer. I’ll set the alarm for five and drive you home.” Dex stood and pulled me up. “Or I can drive you home now if you want.”
He seemed to be very carefully not showing me what he’d prefer to do. At the moment, I was tired and still freaked out by the nightmare. I wanted him to make a decision for me. “I’m not capable of much right now,” I admitted.
Dex grinned up at me. “It’s okay, big guy. It’s been a long day. We both need food and sleep.” He pulled two pairs of sweats out of a dresser drawer and threw one of them at me. I tugged them on. They were tight and a little short in the leg, but I didn’t care.
“Lead on.”
We collapsed on the couch, and I divided up Alejandra’s food between us as Dex put on a movie. I was so hungry, I barely paid attention to what I was eating. Then we relaxed and watched the movie, something with explosions. I fell asleep again and woke to the end credits.
Dex was rubbing his eyes. “I think it’s officially time for bed.”
“I should let my mom know in case she’s worried.”
“Good idea. Where do you want to sleep?”
“Your bed.” It had been a grueling day, but all I wanted was to sleep in Dex’s arms. As he tidied up, I pulled out my phone and tapped a quick message to my mom, saying I’d be back in the morning. I didn’t get a response, but I wasn’t surprised. Mom tended to go to bed early.
“Ready?” Dex stood in the doorway.
I put my phone away and smiled at him. “Ready.”
He held out his hand. I took it, and he led me into his bedroom again. I glanced around the large room. I hadn’t paid much attention to it before, too intent on fooling around, but I liked it. It felt comfortable and soothing. Still unnerved by the nightmare, I wanted to wrap Dex in my arms and pull the comforter over our heads to keep us safe.
We did little more than clean our teeth in the bathroom. Dex produced a new toothbrush for me. Then we stripped off the sweats and collapsed into his bed. He flicked off the light on the nightstand and tugged me into his arms. I laid my head on his chest, hearing the reassuring thump thump of his heart.
Suddenly, his chest heaved under my ear. Concerned, I raised my head. “Dex, you okay?” Then he snorted and I realized he was laughing. “Dex?”
“Sorry, I’m just thinking about the day. Talk about stressful.”
“You can say that again,” I said ruefully. “Starting my new job. A lunch date with you to finalize my new home and being trapped in a cave for the afternoon.”
“It ended well, though.”
My dick twitched at the lust in his voice. “Are you talking about the blowjob or the nightmare?”
“I didn’t share the nightmare,” he pointed out. “Just the blowjob. It was plenty fine for me. And I gave you dinner and a movie, too.”
They were plenty fine for me too. and if I had any energy I’d ask for a repeat performance. But all I wanted was to sleep. I kissed along his jaw, hearing his breath catch. “Thank you.”
“What for?”
“For being you.”
“You’re welcome.” Dex pressed a kiss to my forehead. “Today would have sucked without you being there.”
I settled, closed my eyes, listening to the soft sound of his breathing, feeling the gentle rise and fall of his chest. I had no idea today was going to end like this, but I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
I flung out an arm to turn off the dang alarm, which threatened to drill a hole through my head. It connected with something solid.
“Ow! Fuck!”
I opened my eyes at the muffled cry to see Dex with a hand over his nose. “What happened to you?” Even in the low light of the bedside lamp, I saw him glare at me over his fingers.
“What happened to me? Are you kidding?”
I sat up, confused. “Your nose is bleeding.” I looked around and grabbed tissues from a box on the nightstand. “Here.”
His scowl deepened as he plucked them from my hand and pressed them to his nose. “No shit, Sherlock. Do you bench press tree trunks?”
“I hit you?” I was still half asleep, and my brain was taking its time catching up. “I turned off the alarm.”
“ I switched off the alarm. You just assaulted me.”
I reached for him. “I’m sorry. Let me see.”
But Dex pulled away from me. “Don’t touch it!”
“Don’t be a baby, tilt your head.” I tugged his hand away so I could inspect his nose, turning his head so I could see in the dim light. I hummed as I pressed a tissue to catch a trickle of blood.
“What’s the verdict?” he asked.
“You could audition for Rudolph at the moment.”
Dex groaned. “Red?”
“Glowing,” I assured him. “But nothing’s broken, and I don’t think you’ll get a black eye. The bleeding has almost stopped.”
“That’s a good thing, or the town will think you’ve been beating me up.”
Now it was my turn to groan. The last thing I needed was a reputation for beating up my boyfriend. I climbed out of bed. “Have you got an icepack?”
“In the freezer at the top.”
I tugged on my briefs, not bothering to dress before I left the bedroom. I jogged into the kitchen, flicked on the light, and headed for the freezer. I found the ice packs easy enough. From the number of them in one drawer, Dex probably had to use them often. I grabbed two, just in case, turned, and nearly shed my skin as Cal walked in the door. He brought with him a blast of cold morning air and a quizzical expression as he regarded me.
“Morning.” His lips twitched. “I thought you were moving into the cottage.”
“I am,” I almost squeaked. “We, uh, fell asleep on…the couch.”
Geez, Jones, get it together. It’s not the first time you’ve been caught in a boyfriend’s house. Admittedly, the last time was in school and you were caught by his father, but this feels almost the same.
Cal eyed the icepacks. “What are those for?”
Great. Now I was going to have to admit I’d smacked his employer in the face.
“Can’t you find them?” Dex said as he entered the kitchen, thankfully breaking the stare-off between us. At least he’d taken the time to pull on his sweats and T-shirt. It was only me standing in my underwear. “Oh, you found them. Morning, Cal.”
“Mornin’,” Cal drawled. “Busy night?”
“Yeah, we were shattered after yesterday.” Dex seemed oblivious to the tension in the kitchen. “I said I’d drive Meyer home this morning. Wanna give me the icepack before they melt?”
I hastily offered him both. He took one, pressed it against his nose, and sighed. “That feels better.”
I put the other pack in the freezer, hoping Cal wouldn’t ask…
“What happened to you?” Cal’s eyebrows knitted together as he studied Dex’s red nose.
“Meyer decided my face was the alarm and hit me in the nose,” Dex said cheerfully. He flapped a hand as Cal’s expression darkened. “Don’t look like that. He was asleep and had no idea.”
“Are you sure?” Cal didn’t seem convinced.
“I don’t make a habit of beating up my boyfriends,” I snapped, knowing Cal had every right to be suspicious, but it had been an accident, and the last I needed was this getting back to my mom and the chief.
They both turned to regard me. Cal’s suspicious expression I could read, but what was Dex’s wide-eyed stare for? I processed what I’d just said. I couldn’t see anything wrong with it. I didn’t beat up my boyfriends…oh. I said the ‘b’ word. I gulped.
Dex swallowed, too. “We need to get you to Lindy’s if you’re going to get to work on time.”
Cal sighed as he looked between us. “Get out of here so I can drink my coffee in peace. And put some clothes on, son. No one needs to see your naked body this early in the morning.”
“I don’t know,” Dex murmured. “I like the view.”
At Cal’s sound of disgust, I fled out of the kitchen before my body betrayed me, Dex’s laughter following me. Just the sound of his voice made my dick twitch in anticipation. I dressed quickly, gathered my uniform from yesterday, and headed back into the kitchen to hear Dex speaking. I paused outside the door, waiting to hear what he said.
“Cal, climb off the damn ledge. It was an accident.” Now he sounded exasperated.
“So you say,” Cal growled.
“Did I threaten you with the cops when you ran me over with the ATV? I got more than a bloody nose then.”
“That wasn’t my fault.”
“Whose fault was it?”
I grinned at Dex’s blunt comment. I walked into the kitchen and stared at Cal. “Yeah, Cal, whose fault was it?”
Cal glowered at us both and threw his hands up in the air. “Fine. Fine. Whatever! Don’t hurt him again!”
“Right back atcha,” I said pointedly.
“It’s like being a juicy bone between two dogs,” Dex muttered.
“Get out of here,” Cal snarled.
Ten minutes later we were bouncing down the road back to town.
I turned to study him. His nose looked only slightly pink now. “How does it feel?”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about Cal. He’s not a gossip.”
“I’m not worried,” I said, although I knew Cal could do me real damage if he dropped the word in the right ear.
Dex shot me a look which said he knew I was talking out of my ass. “Okay, but he’s just looking out for me.”
“I get that, and I’m glad you’ve had someone on your side. We all need a friend like Cal.”
“He’s like that cranky old uncle who’s always bitching at you but would help you out in a heartbeat.” He gave a wry smile. “Cal will always tell me what I’ve done wrong, though, to make it clear he’s always right. He’s a bit like my sister.”
I was kind of jealous. I never had a sibling relationship and while my uncle was always cranky with me, I’d never be convinced he would have my back. We were like apples and oranges. How my easy-going happy mom had ended up with a brother like Mark, I’ve no idea.
It didn’t take long to pull into Mom’s cul-de-sac. As Dex stopped outside her home, he said, “When are you going to move in?”
“Over the weekend,” I said. “I’d like to spend a few more days with Mom. I’m on call both days, but I should have time to move everything over and buy what I need.”
Was that disappointment in his expression? I wasn’t sure. I didn’t want to force myself on him, but I also wanted him to know I was still interested—no scrap that—I wanted to drizzle chocolate sauce over Dex and eat him up with a spoon.
“Call me if you need me to provide anything,” Dex said lightly, but I heard an edge to his voice. Did he think I was brushing him off?
“I’m working late tonight, but if you want to catch up tomorrow, I finish at six.”
Dex smiled at me, and his expression eased. “I’ll call you.”
“You do that.” I leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks for last night.”
He turned his head and gave me a kiss on the mouth, which sent tingles straight to my groin. “You’re welcome.”
I didn’t want to leave, but we both had work to do, and I didn’t want to be late. One more kiss, and I forced myself out of his truck. “Later.”
“Tomorrow,” he corrected.
“Tomorrow,” I agreed.
I watched Dex drive away. Boyfriend. Yeah, I liked that idea a lot.
Mom was in the kitchen eating cereal when I let myself in. “Hey there, I didn’t know if I’d see you this morning.” She leaned to one side to glance behind me. “No Dex?”
“I said I’d be back,” I pointed out. “I need a clean uniform. This one is covered in dirt and dust. Dex has to work, too. Is there any coffee left?” I looked hopefully at the pot.
“I’ll make a fresh one. You get ready. Have you had breakfast?”
“No. But cereal will be fine.”
Ten minutes later, I leaned against the kitchen counter, eating a bowl of Lucky Charms. “You don’t usually have this,” I said.
Mom pinked a little. “It used to be your favorite.”
“It still is,” I admitted. “I said to Dex I’d move in over the weekend. I need to get the car from the shop and arrange for my stuff to be shipped from Chicago.”
“Make a list of what you need to do, and I’ll help,” Mom said, practical as always.
I smiled at her. She was the best. I might not have a cranky old foreman, but I had my mom and she always had my back. That didn’t mean to say I was going to tell her about smacking Dex in the face. I wasn’t that stupid.