Love(10)

My heart was pounding. Unless Cami was pissed at me and had gone a little crazy, someone had been in my house—our house—with her.

Carefully, I slid the plastic off my hand and over the knife, placing it in the bag of pillow remnants. Hurrying to my car, I put the items in the trunk and removed my gun from the shelf, reinserting the clip once again. I placed it into the waistband at the back of my pants and pulled my shirt out to loosely cover it.

“Hey, Dylan. I didn’t hear you come home.”

I had to force myself not to jump a mile. She caught me completely off guard. Oreo ran up and wiggled, squirming at my feet. For only living here a couple of days, he certainly seemed attached.

“Sorry I don’t have dinner ready. I over slept.”

“Don’t apologize. You need your rest. Besides, I already ordered your favorite, Walnut Shrimp. It should be here soon. I hope that’s all right with you.”

She smiled and placed a hand on her rounded belly. “It sounds great. I’m starving. What are you doing out here?” she asked, looking around the garage.

Bending down to pet Oreo, who refused to be ignored any longer, I glanced at her with a smile. “Just putting some stuff in my trunk. I need to stop by the police station and drop some things off for Chief Robson. I have another surprise for you,” I added before she could question me about anything else.

“Really? What’s that?”

“Well, my parents invited us to stay at their house while they’re gone on their cruise. It’s time for the pest control service to come by again and spray for bugs, and I don’t want you exposed to the chemicals. I thought maybe we could take them up on their offer, and then you’d have some of the help there with you while I’m at work. You can take Oreo with you, too. What do you think?”

“Dylan. You know I hate to make anyone wait on me. I’m capable of doing things myself. It just makes me feel awkward.”

I needed to convince her. I had to get her out of our house until I knew it was safe for her to be alone here. “I know that, Goody, but come on. It’s a great chance for both of us to chill and rest for a few days. I really need to get the exterminator over here. Plus, I’ve been thinking about getting a better security system installed, just for extra safety. You don’t need to be around all the dust and whatnot while they install it. It’s perfect timing.”

“We already have a security system,” she complained, giving me a confused stare. “Why do we need more?”

“The one we have only secures the doors, not the windows, too. Plus, you always forget to arm it. I want to get one that can help you in an emergency, so you could talk to someone, like if the baby came early or something. A live person could coach you through things.”

“Isn’t that what 911 is for? And what about you? It’s not like I live with a paramedic or anything. You’re completely capable of delivering a baby.” She arched an eyebrow and I knew she had me there.

“Trust me, Cami. I just want to know you’re protected. Okay? It’ll help me rest easier.” At least that was the truth.

She smiled as she approached and I straightened, grasping both her hands in mine so she wouldn’t put her arms around me and feel the weapon at my back. “Fine. I’ll do it for you; but if you ask me, I think all of this is overkill.”

“Really? After what the two of us have been through together in the past, you feel I’m overreacting?”

“Okay, okay. Point taken. But those people who tried to hurt us are either dead or have been sent to prison. I don’t want to live my life in constant fear, Dylan. It almost consumed me, before.”

“Then that’s the perfect reason for you to let me do this, so you don’t have to live in fear and we can both have peace of mind.” I squeezed her hands and bent to kiss her lips. I loved that the spark between us never seemed to dim, but only grew greater with time. I loved her more with each and every breath I took, and I’d be damned before I’d let even the most minor threat against her go unattended.

“I love you,” she whispered, her lips brushing against mine. “Thanks for always being so concerned about my wellbeing.”

“Always. Now, why don’t you run and start packing us what we need to stay at my parents’ house and I’ll wait for the delivery guy while I load the dog food and the collapsible kennel. By the way, what happened to my pillow?”

She gave me a perplexed look. “What do you mean?”

“I found it shredded on the floor by the bedroom door.”

“You did? That’s odd.”