Laying my head on his chest as he holds me, I feel so safe with him. It’s so weird to feel this safe and trust someone I barely know this much. But every fiber of my being says I can trust him and know he’ll keep me safe.
Without even realizing how much time has passed as we stand there cuddled up in each other’s arms, we hear Brent's voice, shouting, “Whoa, hey, man. What are you doing in my sister's place? How’d you even get in here.”
Jude pulls away slightly but without releasing me, saying, “Showtime, baby.”
We watch as Oscar seems confused. “Your sister? Sharayah never mentioned having a brother. I’m her boyfriend, she didn’t show up for work today, so I came to check on her. Do you know where she is?”
Brent calls out, “Jax? Raven? Come on guys.” Jax struts in with Raven hot on his heels, Brent kneels down to pet them as if they’re old pals. “Yeah, she was attacked last night. She’s in ICU, in a coma down at County General. I’m coming to pick up her babies and grab her a bag for when she wakes up. The nurse said I could bring her some of sis’s comfy clothes and things that would remind her of home in the hopes of helping her wake up. So I’m taking her babies up for a visit. Her boyfriend, huh? She didn’t mention she was seeing anyone.”
Oscar stutters, “Uh, yeah, we just got serious a few weeks ago. Guess she was waiting to tell anyone. Attacked? What? Where? How? I was here last night, and she was fine when I left.”
I scream, “That lying, no good, stalking, piece of shit.”
Jude kisses my forehead. “It’s okay, he’s digging his own grave.”
Brent continues, “Yeah, stabbed nine times, thankfully the perp missed any major organs but she lost a lot of blood. I found her this morning when I got home. I’m sorry, what’d you say your name was again?”
“Oscar, Oscar Reyes. I’m sorry I didn’t catch your name either.”
“Oh, I’m Jimmie, Jimmie Jensen. But you can call me JJ.”
“Nice to meet you, JJ, so you live here too? I didn’t know she had anyone staying here. Do you think I could see her?”
“No, sorry, man. Family only right now while she’s in ICU. But once she wakes up, I’ll give you a call and let you know, if you wanna leave your number with me.”
Oscar looks spooked. “Oh no, no that's okay. I know she’ll call when she can. Hey, man, I’m gonna get out of your way and head out. Thanks for letting me know what happened.” And with that Oscar gets up and heads for the door.
Brent turns, reaching out a hand, “Hey, nice meeting ya. I’ll be sure to let sis know you stopped by when she wakes up.”
Then we see it, as Brent shakes Oscar's hand with his right, he pats him on the back with his left. Pulling his hand away I watch as he drops something into his jacket.
“What was that? Did you see that? What did Brent just do?” I inquire.
Jude laughs. “He planted a tracker. Now I’ll know where this son of a bitch is at all times.”
“What if he tries to go to the hospital to find me?”
“Don’t worry, watch. Brent’s got this.”
I watch as Brent pulls his phone from his pocket and makes a call. “Hey, listen, if anyone comes looking for a Sharayah Jensen in ICU, she’s been transferred okay? No need to worry about the details, slip a note into her file with Jude’s address on it and leave it at that.”
“My file? What does he mean?”
“See, Brent knows some people in the medical field that he put a call into and they set up a dummy medical file. Now Oscar knows that if you’re in a coma, that when you wake up, you’ll rat him out as your attacker.”
“And that's a good thing?”
“Absolutely, because when he goes looking for you, he's gonna find me instead.”
Without even thinking about it I kiss him. And not some little peck on the cheek, no, it’s a full on lips kiss that starts as a peck but quickly escalates into the most passionate kiss I’ve ever had. Going with the flow of the moment, I lick his bottom lip, requesting access.
Without fail he abides and parts his lips for me, letting me slip my tongue in for what starts as a slow, sweet, passionate kiss. Soon though, it becomes too much and I feel a need start in my core. A yearning I’ve never felt before. And before I know it, I’m crawling up into his arms.
Jude slides his hands down my back and to my ass where he takes my lead and lifts me up into his arms. Before I know it, he's spun us around and rested my ass on the counter without breaking the kiss.
“Ray, slow down,” he says as he breathes heavily while staring into my eyes.
“What? What’s wrong?” I jump from the counter and move to the other side of the kitchen.
“No, nothing’s wrong. I just mean I want to do this right.”
“Right?”
“When we make love, I want to do it right. Because when it happens, I won't be able to stop myself from marking you with the mated mark. My panther is dying to mark you. I’m dying to officially make you mine.”
Stepping back into his arms, slowly trailing my fingers up his abs towards his chest. “You want to make me yours? You want to mark me? What happened to ‘when I’m ready’?” I tease.
“Yes, more than anything. And yes, when you’re ready, absolutely ready. And, I want us to have the whole Oscar situation behind us.”
“I like that. I’m okay to wait, this way I’m a hundred percent sure, like you said.” I smirk,
