Chapter 93 - You shouldn’t have come

EMMA

I tab my fingers on the kitchen counter as I watch coconut oil melt at an agonizingly slow pace. I don’t think patience is my virtue. The scent of coconut, aloe vera and lavender twirls around in the kitchen and moves to the rest of the house.

When the coconut oil melts, I take it off the fire. I combine it with aloe vera and lavender oil. I watch the ingredients slowly come together when I stir them. Dex makes sure that I get everything I need, even if there are ingredients that need to come from far away.

It doesn’t matter what I ask for. I was hesitant at first with my requests. I didn’t want to bother anyone. Dex had to repeatedly remind me that I was helping them with the ointments I made.

I pour the salve into multiple glass containers that I have stalled out on the counter. When they are full I twist every cap on the containers.

“Emma?” Dex calls from the living room. The kitchen is closed off from the living room.

I pop my head through the doorway. “In here.”

Dex is wearing a red flannel shirt. His sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, it shows the tattoos covering his underarms. He sends me a wide smile when he sees me. His messy hair dances around the happy twinkle in his hazel eyes. He’s like a rugged golden retriever. He’s the perfect combination of bad boy and good guy. Any woman would be lucky with his attention on her.

Behind him walks in Hadrian. He looks around the space of the living room. He has no smile and features are pulled into a scowl. His big, broad frame seems even more massive in the feminine interior. He doesn’t have a happy twinkle when he looks at me, but rather heavy intensity. It makes my knees weak and I nearly buckle.

The effect he has on me is something else.

The pit low in my stomach is burning with anticipation. It wakes from hibernation. It spots the able male body of Hadrian and pushes me to lure him in. Every dormant feeling of lust reinvigorates ten times.

Dex says something to Hadrian and points to the sitting area where Alex and Kelsey. I can see his fists clench and strain the muscles in his underarms.

Dex comes into the kitchen and sends me a suspicious look after he eyes the container in my hand. “Working again?”

I wait for Hadrian to follow him, but he doesn’t. I turn to the kitchen counter and stack the containers. “I didn’t have any burn cream anymore.” I look at the rows of glass containers stacked on top of each other. There are more than fifty. I might have gone a little overboard.

Dex stops my hands when I twist another cap on. He grabs my wrists and pulls me his way. “Don’t tell me you stayed up all night again.” His hazel eyes show concern.

“Not all night.” I couldn’t sleep last night. Not with Hadrian being here and covered in injuries. I couldn’t go to him again without raising suspicion. There is only so much concern one can show for a stranger.

Dex eyes all the containers and shakes his head with a chuckle. “You’re a god’s saint, Emma.” He pulls one of my hands up and leans down to place a kiss on the back of my hand. His lips linger on my skin and gratitude is evident in the display. His eyes show a warmth that I’m not prepared for.

I take my hand back and shift on my feet. “Uhm, thanks.” I feel awkward standing in the kitchen now. I take five containers of burn cream in my arms. “I should probably give this too… *Jack*.“

Voices are coming from the living room. My hands tremble when I walk to the room. The ointments in my hands shake with my tremble. My knees are weak and threaten to collapse at every step.

“There is a bonfire this weekend, you should come,” Alex says when I step into the living room.

The house where we live is directly next to the guys. From the outside, it looks the same, but the interior is the complete opposite. There are soft feminine touches everywhere. Blush pink, cream and mint green have the upper hand. Everywhere are plushy pillows that Kelsey brings in regularly. Multiple vases are filled with wildflowers wich Dex brings every now and then.

There is a cream-colored sofa that normally fits two people. Hadrian is dominating the whole sofa with his long legs and broad shoulders. He has his arms crossed and there is a deep scowl on his face.

Alex is sitting on the armrest of the sofa and leans into him. “I could show you around and introduce you to the rest of the town.” She trails a finger over his shoulder and my eyes zero in on the touch with a burst of fury.

Hadrian shakes off the touch and grumbles. He completely disregards the flirtation coming from Alex.

I can’t say that it doesn’t make my stomach flutter. I like Alex a lot. She is the tough love that I sometimes really appreciate. She’s direct and goes for what she wants. She’s strong and fights hard to prove herself every day. I admire that, but still, all the cells in my body scream *MINE.*

“I’ll get you something to drink. You seem like someone who enjoys something stronger than beer.” Alex says with a wink. She sways her hips when she walks out of the living room. She passes me with a smile and it turns into a scowl when she spots Dex in the kitchen.

Alex and Dex share the same beliefs and vision for this rebellion. That’s the only reason why they get along at all. Most of the time there is a good amount of contempt between them.

“Someone has been very anxious for your medicine,” Kelsey says with a giggle. She's sitting on the loveseat with her feet tucked beneath her.

I shrug my shoulders and look at the containers in my hands. “It’s nothing special.” I place them on the coffee table in front of Hadrian. I can feel his eyes on me with every movement.

Kelsey cups a hand around her mouth and leans forward towards Hadrian. “Don’t listen to her, she’s modest.”

The tug in my stomach increases and pulls me in the direction of the sofa. It draws my gaze up until it connects with the deep amber eyes of Hadrian. They are relentless as they pull me in.

“Kelsey!” The loud call of Carter booms from outside. It travels through the windows and through the cracks of the door. He knocks loudly on the front door. “Why the hell are all the towels pink!”

There is a schedule between the two houses. Household chores are divided and rotated weekly. Dex has me cleared from any chores because I already make the ointments and help with small injuries around town.

“Whoops,” Kelsey says with wide eyes and jumps from the loveseat. She bounces on her toes as she springs out the door. This isn’t the first time that some piece of red or pink clothes ended up staining a white load of wash.

I can hear Alex and Dex argue in the kitchen. They are kind of the leader of their own house and not every vision they have matches. For a moment I’m alone with Hadrian and the living room is quiet.

“Why are you here?” I whisper.

My eyes trail to his burns. Hadrian is wearing a fitted shirt and I wonder where he got it from. The short sleeves expose a part of the bandage covering his shoulder and expose the rest of his arms.

These are definitely silver burns. They run in lines around his arms.

A million questions run in my mind. *What happened? Who did this? Why isn’t he healing?*

His eyes are rooted at me. “Because you’re here.” His words are low and full of honesty. Every word he speaks travels over my skin and enters my veins. It flutters in my stomach and thumbs in my heart.

Every part of my body feels heals when he’s close. My lungs can take a normal breath again. But an overwhelming emotion flows through me and it's one I didn’t expect. *Fear.*

“You shouldn’t have come.”