Chapter Eleven #3
Hex propped one shoulder against the wall as he considered the scene for a moment, trying to decide what to do first, kiss his woman or put the prospect in his place.
Elle won and he pushed away from the wall and stepped around the island.
He moved in next to Elle until she realized he was there.
When she did, she looked up and smiled at him.
“Good morning. Been up long?” she asked as if this was something they did every morning.
“A couple of hours.” He leaned down and kissed her thoroughly. “Find everything you need?” He nodded to the bacon in the skillet.
“Yes. I’m making enough for you too, if you want some.”
“I’d love it.” He didn’t move away from Elle, at least not far, he took a couple of steps away so he wouldn’t be in her way, propped his hip against the countertop as he turned his attention to Nathan. “I thought I told you to sit on the porch and keep an eye out.”
“You did. That’s where I was when she invited me in.” Nathan tilted his head toward Elle. “You said to not to wake her and I didn’t, but I didn’t want to creep her out or scare her when she invited me in by refusing but hanging around like some weirdo.”
“It’s not like a weirdo, it’s like a guard. Like I told you to.” Hex shook his head, not willing to argue over this. Not in front of Elle and not with a prospect. “We’ll talk about this later. For now, go relieve Bobby Lee on the gate.”
“Yes, sir.” Nathan slid off the bar stool, then paused, and looked at Elle. “It was nice meeting you, ma’am. Thank you for the coffee.”
“No problem. It was nice meeting you too,” she said with a genuine smile.
Hex waited until he heard the front door close behind the prospect then turned back to Elle.
“Did you sleep well?”
“I did. Thank you for putting me in bed, but I could have slept on the couch.”
Hex shook his head. “I’ve slept on that couch. You don’t want to spend all night there. Besides, I wanted you next to me.”
“So you did sleep, at least a little last night?”
“I got a good six hours. With you beside me they felt like eight.” He watched as she went to the fridge, pulled out a carton of eggs, and carried it back to the stove.
“You want scrambled or fried?”
“Fried if you don’t mind.”
“Not a problem. Over medium right?”
“You got it, sugar. Need anything?”
“Just a skillet.”
Hex pulled his egg skillet from the cabinet and set it on the counter. “Anything else?”
Elle shook her head.
“What do you want to do today?” he asked as he moved around the island to sit where Nathan had been. He could watch her, talk to her, without crowding her or making her feel like she wasn’t welcome. That was the last thing he wanted to do.
“I hadn’t gotten that far. I’m sure Mama is going out of her mind trying to reach me.
And I’m worried about what Michael might have done to my apartment.
” She used a pair of tongs to pull the last of the bacon from the skillet, then slid it off the flame before covering her face with both hands. “I’ve screwed this up so bad.”
Hex couldn’t stand seeing her like this. He slid off the stool and went around to pull her into his arms.
“I won’t say it’s not a mess. But we’ll figure it out. It likely won’t be easy and I’m sure it will get harder before it gets better, but we’ll make it work, sugar.” He held her for a moment, she let her head rest against his chest for a moment then she took a deep breath and straightened.
“I better get breakfast done. Go sit back down and let’s see if we can figure out where to start with my mess.”
Hex released her and stepped back. He watched her for a moment, making sure she was alright, then went back to his seat. By the time he sat down, she put the egg skillet on the flame and added some of the bacon grease. He watched as she cracked an egg.
“How many do you want?”
“Three please.”
She nodded and reached for another egg, not saying anything.
Hex needed to ask about the money, about her ex and so much more, but he hated to bring it up and make the nice domestic moment they were having end. But he needed to know so he could make sure she stayed safe.
“Spit it out, Kevin,” she said without glancing up at him.
“What?” He frowned.
“Whatever you’re brooding about. You’ve got something you need to say and for some reason you don’t want to say it.
” She opened a drawer and pulled out a spatula, then bumped the drawer with her hip to close it.
“Spit it out or I’ll have to use this on you.
” She waved the spatula like it was a weapon, he saw the glint in her eye that told him she meant what she said and might even be looking forward to smacking him a couple of times.
Hex sighed. “I was trying to wait until after we ate.” He paused, then decided he might as well jump in. “I’ve got someone checking out Anderson.”
“Why would you do that? Michael’s not a bad guy, I just couldn’t marry him.”
Hex didn’t answer, nor tell her what they’d found so far, not yet.
“Every man, no matter how good they may be, has a breaking point and you never know where that is. I like to be prepared for anything. What happened yesterday could drive a lot of men to violence and I don’t want anything to happen to you, Elle. ” He watched her.
When she glanced up, their gazes met and he hoped she could see how he felt, how much he cared for her.