9. Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Ricki
Since Tyler is still on shift for a few hours, he texted me his address and building code while I packed a few days worth of necessities. Then, he walked me back to my car and gave me his key. I followed the directions on the GPS as they took me away from campus, down Main Street, past the places I’ve yet to visit because of the fear of running into my brother or his friends, and straight into the parking lot of the apartment building that houses my biggest hope and my biggest fear at the same time.
I must be out of my mind, I think as I slide the key into the lock and step into Tyler’s apartment. I can just imagine how he’s going to use the next four days to get into my head more than he already has. I feel like I’m willingly walking straight into the lion’s den. Although, it doesn’t look nearly as ominous as I feel it should. While the furnishings scream bachelor pad, the open floor plan lets me see that the apartment is neat and clean. Knowing I have the place to myself for a while, I decide to give myself a tour.
I tell myself I don’t care about seeing where he spends his time as I walk around the living room. I don’t care about where he eats as I walk into the kitchen and see the cabinets stocked with surprisingly nutritious snacks next to the not-so-healthy options. I don’t care about where he showers as I peek into the open bathroom door and take in the huge bathtub and shower combo. I don’t care about where he sleeps as I walk down the hallway and open the only other door. I especially don’t care about what else he does in the king-size bed taking up most of the space in the only bedroom.
One bedroom, one bed, two enemies with explosive chemistry. Just my luck, I think before jumping like I’ve been electrocuted when my phone buzzes in my back pocket. I pull it out to see a text from the man I definitely wasn’t just daydreaming about.
Tyler: Snooping already?
Before I can type out a reply to lie to him the way I’ve been lying to myself for the past twenty minutes, another text appears.
Tyler: Go on in. Take a nap in that big ole bed you’ve been staring at for the past five minutes. Just make sure you dream about me. wink emoji
My head snaps up and scans the hallway until I find the camera in the corner above me. I look straight into the lens—hoping his picture is black and white so he can’t see the heat I feel in my cheeks—as I raise my middle finger before turning to stalk back to the living room.
I take another trip around the apartment, noticing the other cameras in the kitchen and living room, and hoping he’s too busy at work to be watching me like a creeper. But in his job, being busy means being in danger. And the thought of him in danger is so much worse than the thought of him watching me watch TV in his apartment. So, I do my best to just ignore the cameras as I get entirely too comfortable on his plush couch.
Tyler
As much I wanted to do nothing but watch Ricki on my security feed for the rest of the day, I had a job to do. So, after sending her a text, letting her know that I could see her in my apartment, I put my phone away. I didn’t want her to find out about the cameras later and feel violated. I would have told her about them before she got there, but I didn’t think about it until my phone buzzed with the notification that someone had entered my apartment.
Now that I’m off shift and walking into my building, I can’t resist the urge to pull up the feed to see what she’s doing. I feel my chest tighten when I see her sleeping soundly on my couch. Knowing that she feels safe enough in my place to sleep stirs feelings in me I’m not at all ready to face since I know she’s not ready to admit the truth. There’s more to us than the battle of wills we’ve been fighting.
I’m torn about how to enter my own apartment. I want to tip-toe in and wake her gently so I can get a dose of those green eyes hooded with sleep as she realizes where she is. But I also know that she’ll just fight me harder if she thinks I’ve caught her in a vulnerable state. So, I watch her for a couple of minutes before putting my phone away—along with the feelings I’m having—and opening the door with enough force to have it bouncing off the doorstop as I shout, “Honey, I’m hoooommmme!”
As expected, Ricki jumps off the couch, looking like she’s ready for a fight after being startled awake. My chuckle does nothing to erase the murderous expression on her gorgeous face.
“You’re an ass,” she huffs as she rounds the back of my couch to meet me just inside the door.
If I didn’t know better, I’d think she was concerned with the way her eyes trail along my body like she’s looking for signs of injury. Unable to keep my hope from rising, I lift my hand to tip her chin up until her gaze meets mine.
“Careful, Ricki,” I whisper. “You almost look like you care about me.”
She holds my stare for about two more seconds before shaking herself out of it with a snarky comment about appreciating a man in uniform. But those two seconds were all it took to remind me that she wants this as much as I do.
“It’s unethical for me to be having the thoughts I’m having right now while I’m in this uniform,” I tell her. When she raises a brow in question, I explain, “It’s an abuse of power since most people subconsciously submit to a person of authority.”
“Ha!” she barks out a laugh as she pushes me against the door behind me. “Uniform or not, you don’t have any authority over me.”
As the tension builds between us, I see the battle she’s fighting with herself. Rather than making myself another opponent, I decide to give in to the impulse I’ve had since I met her.
“You’re right,” I admit. “ You have all the power over me . You have since day one. So, take it.”
I watch her face as my words sink in. She’s already won the battle. It never really was a battle to begin with. I’m hers…and now she knows it. Her eyes flash with domination as she closes the distance between us and presses her lips to mine.