Chapter 21 – Kenzie
Chapter Twenty-One
Kenzie
I woke up gasping for air, the sound of the snake’s rattle blending with Alan’s voice inside my head. I sat straight up, hands stretched out in front of me…
To what? Ward off a blow? Stop the snake from striking? I had no idea. I just knew that fear sealed my throat and I couldn’t get in enough oxygen.
“Hey, City, you’re okay. Little breaths, all right? In through your nose, out through your mouth.”
Jensen . Jensen was here with me. I was safe. I launched myself into his arms.
He held me for a long time. Just like he had each time all night when I’d had a nightmare.
“Water?” he asked.
“Please.” He handed me a glass, and I guzzled it. I looked around as I tried to get my bearings. I had no idea what time it was. “How long have I been out total?”
“All night and most of the morning.” He glanced at his watch and muffled a yawn behind his free hand. “It’s almost lunchtime.”
“Have you been up this whole time?” Worry filled me. He had to be worn out.
“I napped some. Did some carving.” He pointed at the small box that sat on the chair.
“You’ve been there all night?”
“I was on the couch, but you were crying out.” His face softened into an expression of concern.
“I’m sorry.” I tried to pull away from him, but he pulled me back.
“No need to be embarrassed. Anyone would’ve had nightmares after a day like you had yesterday.”
“I hate that I kept you up most of the night.”
He stroked a hand down my cheek. “I’m sorry you went through what you did. I should’ve never let you go into that apartment alone.”
Now that some of the general shock over the snake incident was wearing off—not that I wasn’t going to be terrified of snakes for the rest of my life—the reality of the situation was setting in.
“You couldn’t have known.”
He shook his head. “When I think about the fact that the stalker could’ve been there just waiting for you…”
A shudder ran through us both. That was what was even scarier. That the stalker had to have been inside my apartment to sabotage the bathroom door lock and put the snake in my bathtub.
“You can trust that won’t happen again,” he said. “I’m not going to let you out of my sight.”
At one point, that might have made me feel smothered. But not with this man. I snuggled farther into him, drawing from his strength. “Thank you.”
“Lucas and Charlie are looking into Alan’s release.”
I nodded. “I sure wish he could just stay in my past.”
“And Liam and Jude are looking into who he could be in contact with at the hotel. Alan says he’s looking for a job, but that’s too much of a coincidence for me,” he added .
“Him or not, I just want all of the snakes out of my life.” I shuddered again.
“That’s going to happen. We’ll figure out a plan with the guys, lie low here, and make sure you’re safe again.”
I had no doubt they would. But I also knew what that meant—it would be time to leave Garnet Bend. Time to leave Jensen.
I couldn’t think about that now, not while I was so close to him, breathing in that unique Jensen scent that both comforted me and turned me on.
I tilted my head up and kissed the side of his neck, the only part of him I could reach. “Thank you. For everything. Just being close to you makes me feel safer.”
He turned so we were facing each other more fully and cupped my cheek. “I can’t stand the thought of something happening to you. I hate that you’ve been through so much.”
I shrugged. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right? You, more than anyone, know that.”
“Your strength amazes me, City. I just want you to know that.”
I kissed him. Not to stop his words, but because I didn’t want to go any longer without feeling his lips pressed up against mine. Maybe it was the near-death experience, or maybe it was the fact that everyone was working so hard to get me out of danger.
Because when the danger was over, so would be my time with Jensen.
He returned my kiss with every bit as much enthusiasm as I was offering, leaning his weight on me and pushing me back onto the bed. I twined my arms around his neck, biting back a little groan at the feel of him hard and muscular against me.
I was reaching to unbutton his shirt when my stomach growled so loudly it almost startled me.
He broke the kiss to throw back his head and laugh. I was never not going to love the sound of that. “I think we need to feed you before we do anything else. ”
He was right; I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast yesterday. “Okay.”
He trailed a finger down my cheek. “You go take a shower, and I’ll see if I can make better pancakes than yesterday.”
The shower felt wonderful. Maybe it didn’t rinse away all my fear—it was going to be a minute before the sight of a bathtub wouldn’t cause my heart to start hammering—but it at least helped me feel more human again.
I got dressed in jeans and an old sweatshirt and walked back into the kitchen. My stomach decided to herald my arrival by growling obnoxiously again.
He’d made bacon and eggs and slightly more traditional-looking pancakes than yesterday. “Everything smells amazing. Thank you.”
I leaned up to kiss his cheek as thanks. “Kate and Noah dropped off food while you were sleeping. All the women put together some stuff for us.”
“That’s sweet.”
“Otherwise, we’d be eating canned beans right now.”
“I think I’m hungry enough that I probably wouldn’t even have complained.”
He slid bacon onto my plate, along with eggs and two pancakes, then made a plate for himself. We padded over to the small table. I immediately dug into my food, but he looked around.
“I’m sorry this place is so sparse. It’s still in construction phase. I’m doing the work myself.”
I looked around. Yes, it was definitely bare, but it had great potential. “This cabin has great bones. And the custom woodwork you’re doing will just add to the value.”
He shrugged, but I saw his small smile. “I don’t know that I ever plan to sell it, but thank you. Good to know I’m not going in the wrong direction.”
“Definitely not.”
We ate in silence for a few more minutes. With most people, the quiet would’ve felt uncomfortable, and I would’ve tried to fill it. But with Jensen, I knew this was just who he was. It made me appreciate more the words he did choose to say.
Once we were done, he picked up both our plates and carried them to the sink. “I know I said this already, but I want you to know it’s the truth. I’m sorry that I didn’t get to your apartment sooner yesterday. I should’ve gone to check on you when I first realized you hadn’t come to the garage yet. But…”
I waited for him to continue, but it seemed like he didn’t plan to do so. “But what?” I finally asked.
“I thought maybe you’d had second thoughts about…hooking up with me the night before.”
I almost choked on the coffee I was sipping. “ Hooking up ?” A wave of heat spread over my face. “Is that…all? Is that all it was for you? A hookup?”
Had I been thinking we had a real connection while he was ready to move on?
But he shook his head. “No, it wasn’t. I thought that might be what you felt.”
“Not at all, Jensen.” I walked over to where he was rinsing the plates in the sink, standing behind him. “Why would you think that?”
He scraped the plate with much more force than was necessary. “We’re just so different. I mean, look at this place. I’m a mechanic who can’t figure out my own social media, and you’re a highly successful Realtor. My parents were addicts. If you step back and look at it all, I just don’t measure up.”
“Measure up to whom?” I scoffed. “My last boyfriend is in prison for assaulting me. I think you’re way ahead of the game there.”
I put my hands on his waist. He still didn’t stop messing with the dishes, but at least he was doing it with normal force now. “ And you had no control over who your parents were or what they did when you were a child. But you found your place as you got older. And now, you’ve got your own made family. A wonderful group of friends who will bend over backward to help in any way they can. I’m case in point with that. Your friends are helping me because you asked them to.”
He shut off the water.
“That’s family, Jensen. Your family. I see it all around here. It’s making me wonder how I’m ever going to leave Garnet Bend.”
He dried his hands on the towel hanging by the sink and turned slowly around. “Could you see yourself…staying?”
I sighed. “Even after all this craziness is over—if and when it ever is—Denver is my home. I miss my friends, my community.”
This time, he took my hand and squeezed it, perhaps understanding the dilemma I felt myself struggling with. I squeezed his fingers back. “And then there’s you. I’m scared of how strong my feelings are. How quickly they’ve become this strong.”
“Me too, City. Me too. Watching you sleep last night, I realized how much you’ve gotten under my skin. But I get it. Your life isn’t here.”
But you are.
I furrowed my brow, wondering how I could tell him that without moving too fast.
“But, hey. We don’t have to figure everything out now.” He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his body. I wanted nothing more than to snuggle in close, so that’s exactly what I did.
“Let’s get rid of all snakes, stalkers, and violent exes, and then we’ll figure out the rest.” He ran a hand up and down my back. “In the meantime, let me take care of you.”
I leaned back and grinned at him, amazed I could smile with the overall state of my life. “You already are. ”
He tipped his head toward the window, indicating out back. “But we could enjoy ourselves even more.”
I leaned up to peer out the window, seeing nothing from my vantage point. Sometimes, it sucked to be short. “What’s out there?”
“I have a hot tub installed just out back on the deck.”
I blinked, surprised. “Interesting priorities. Install a hot tub before seeing to the completion of the interior.”
He chuckled. “Want to take a dip with me?”
I smiled shyly. “I, uh, didn’t exactly bring a bathing suit with me.”
Stepping closer, he tempted me with that sexy scent that was all man, all Jensen.
“We’re all alone way out here.” He stepped into my space until he hugged me with one arm around my back. Leaning toward my ear, he whispered, “You don’t need a suit.”