Chapter Thirty Nine

Chapter Thirty Nine
Elizabeth’s POV
I woke up to the smell of coffee filling my nostrils. As great as it was, I was disappointed when I reached out for Zen, only to come up empty handed. Where was he? We always made it a point to wake up beside each other, even when one of us woke up long before the other. I glanced over at the clock that read 6:27am. Jeez, why so early?
I heard the faint sound of voices from the other room, suddenly reminding me of Tom’s visit. I leapt from bed at the realization, quickly stripping off my pajamas and throwing on my morning training uniform. I was beyond excited to see my mammoth of a guard again. He was basically my only family for the past four years, and I wanted to show him how much I’d changed! So with my all black leggings and all black sports bra, I moved stealthily down the hall towards the voices.
“Fuck, Warren. How did this even happen?” How did what happen? I stopped just out of view furrowing my brow.
“If I knew that, don’t you think I would’ve already taken care of it, asshole? Now shut the fuck up, Elizabeth might hear you.” What the hell? I would definitely be asking Zen about that later, but for now, I had to greet my second favorite person in this world for the first time in months. I waited a few more seconds before rounding the corner with the grace of a cat.
Thankfully, his back was to me and he was taking a long sip of coffee. Zen noticed me immediately, flashing his dimples and raising a brow in amusement. I held my finger to my lips to keep him quiet, so he made the symbol of zipping and locking his in return. Tom exhaled deeply, placing his mug on the table. As soon as he released it, I pounced, wrapping my arms and legs tightly around his neck and waist.
“What the-“
“Tooommmmm!” I squealed, giving him a big kiss on the cheek and rotating myself so that we were face to face. His hands found my waist to support me, flinching once he noticed the bare skin.
“Liz?” He asked in disbelief, raking his eyes down my body in surprise. His eyes met mine again, with a look I had never seen on him before. Pride? Adoration? Whatever it was, he had the biggest smile when he pulled me against his giant frame in a warm hug. Zen’s loud cough interrupted our reunion, and I couldn’t help but giggle into Tom’s shoulder before climbing down.
“Good morning, baby.” I smirked, sauntering over to him and giving him a long and tender kiss on his sweet tasting lips. My actions seemed to tame his jealousy, and he grabbed my face, rubbing the pads of his thumbs over my cheeks like he loved to do while staring deeply into my eyes.
“Damn, Liz. You look… different.” Tom said, still seemingly shocked by my change in appearance. A deep growl resonated in Zen’s chest, and this time, Tom laughed. “Down, dog. I’m not eyeing your precious Princess. I’m just surprised to see her so fit.”
“Well, it’s not just for show. I can show you if you’re willing to get your ass kicked.” I winked at him, making him blush. Then he glowered at me.
“Kick my ass? Yea, that’s unlikely Liz. No offence, but you’re like half my size.” Zen snorted, covering his mouth to stifle his laugh.
“Yea, okay. She kicked my ass last night, so I wouldn’t count on your size saving you, Tommy.” Tom glared at Zen’s nickname. Zen just shrugged, pulling out a cigarette with his lips and lighting it. He took one drag before handing it to me. I accepted with a smile, taking a long drag myself and basking in the lovely menthol taste.
“You smoke now?” Tom asked, his brows furrowed in anger and disbelief.
“Only with a partner.” I replied with a mischievous smirk on my lips. It was true. I only ever smoked when Zen handed it to me. I didn’t need it like Zen did, but I liked the taste and the intimate nature of sharing it with him. “So, what about that sparring match, big guy?” He seemed thrown by my taunting, but smirked back at me anyway.
“You’re on, Liz.”
It took all of about twenty seconds for me to get Tom on the ground. A lot longer than Zen’s previous display, but I wasn’t willing to dislocate his hand, so it was a little tougher.
“Fuck, Liz!” Tom complained, rubbing his lower back. “You don’t even need Zen anymore at this point.” He joked. Zen’s icy glare showed his displeasure with Tom’s words. “Joking.” Tom laughed, climbing up from the mat.
“Yea, well. The party starts at seven, so be ready.” Just then, the chiming of the doorbell filled the house. “Not again.” Zen groaned, turning to walk up the stairs.
“Again? Who is it?” Tom followed close behind him, the tension in his shoulders evident.
“Probably Elizabeth’s new boyfriend from down the road.” He replied, venom dripping off his every word. Tom looked to me for clarification.
“The neighbor’s son. He thinks he has a crush on me.” I shrugged.
“No, I think he wants to fuck you.” He clarified. Zen peered through the window beside the door. “Yup, just as I thought.”
“He doesn’t want me.” I groaned, pretending to be annoyed by his fit.
“No? Then why don’t we let you answer the door again and see what Tommy here has to say.” He barked back. I glared back at him before reluctantly reaching for the door handle. Collin’s eyes immediately widened, once again taking in my appearance with barely more shame than his mom on Zen.
“Hi again, Abigail. Mom wanted me to come by so that I could drop off your masks for tonight.” He handed me a small black gift bag, his hand brushing against mine while he did so. I inwardly rolled my eyes. Outwardly, however, I smiled politely back at him.
“Thank you so much for delivering them, Collin. Oh, and please tell your mom that the brownies were delicious.” He laughed at an untold joke, showing off his charming smile.
“I’ll let her know. Don’t tell her I told you this, but…” He looked both ways as if checking if the coast was clear, then gestured for me to move closer to him, before whispering in my ear, “She can’t bake worth a shit. She bought those.” I busted out laughing at his betrayal of his mom. He may dress as stuck up as she does, but he certainly doesn’t act it. His eyes lit up at my laughter, and he bit his bottom lip to stifle his own.
Suddenly, I felt familiar large hands wrapping around my bare torso. This time, I rolled my eyes openly.
“Hey baby, I have the bath drawn for you.” He cooed in my ear. His eyes shot up to Collin, who looked immediately intimidated by Zen’s presence. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know we had a visitor. Who are you?” You know damn well, Zen.
“Oh, uh, hi. My name is Collin. I’m Janice’s son. I’m sorry, and you are…?” He asked, extending his hand for a shake. Zen reluctantly pulled a hand off of me to shake, making him flinch with how hard he gripped.
“I’m Abby’s husband, Jason.” He replied coldly. Collin looked genuinely surprised.
“Oh, I didn’t know Abigail was married.” He responded with his eyes furrowed. “Oh, um, anyway, I had better get back. There’s a lot of set up ahead of us today. It was nice to meet you, Jason. And, um, good to see you again, Abigail.” He smiled sadly before retreating down the driveway. Once the door was closed I turned to Zen, waving my arms in the air in exasperation.
“You are impossible, Zen!” I complained. He only chuckled, giving me a quick peck on the lips before I could pull away. “Tom, please tell him how ridiculous he’s being!” I turned to Tom for help, but he shook his head.
“Sorry, Liz, but Warren’s right. That guy was coming on hard. Though, I do agree that he acted like an asshole.” I tried to hide my smile at Tom’s description of Zen’s behavior, but Zen saw it. I turned to him, crossing my arms and smirking when I saw Zen’s eyes flutter down to my chest.
“Yea, well, I believe you owe me a bath.” He smirked sensually back at me, making my thighs clench.
“As you wish, Princess. Tommy, we’ll be back out in an hour.” With one quick movement, Zen tossed me over her shoulder, carrying me into the bathroom.