Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19

Willow

Staying at Durango's place when he's not here feels strange. I directed Samantha to Piper's old room, which fortunately still has her bed in it. And now I'm lying in Durango's bed, which smells like him. The first time I'm in his bed, and he isn't even here.

Lying in his bed feels a bit naughty. And thoughts of what we will do here someday turn me on. But then I remember why I'm here and the fear takes over.

Durango would be fine with me staying here if he knew what was going on. Piper never would have agreed if there was any doubt. Yet a small part of me worries he'll find this an infringement of his privacy.

I sit up and turn on the lamp. As much as I should sleep, my mind is racing too much. Instead, I take in the room.

It's sparse. Aside from the bed and two nightstands that are bare on top, there is one dresser. The floor is carpeted, and the room has one window. I peer out into a small courtyard. There's a light illuminating part of it. It must be attached to this home. I'm not as familiar with row houses, but the house next door also has a small patch of grass outside the back door.

It's so different from where I grew up. In Montana, everyone I knew had at least an acre or two of land. Well, except for the new people that moved to town once the big development was built. But even they had more space, and their houses didn't share a wall.

Durango grew up with a lot of space around him, too, at his home back in Montana. I wonder if he misses that or if he prefers living in closer quarters here in Brooklyn.

The front door opens and closes, and I freeze. Could Tyler have found us?

Footsteps move to the kitchen, and there is a thud. A man coughs.

Slowly, I open the bedroom door and peek out. Samantha is already in the hallway holding a bat. She spots me, and I move behind her.

As we get closer to the kitchen, there is a sound of paper crinkling. Samantha jumps out and yells, "Don't move!"

I step out next to her. Durango is sitting at the kitchen table with a burger halfway to his mouth, staring at us. "Durango?"

Samantha lowers the bat. "Wait, that's not Tyler?"

Durango sets his burger down. "Tyler? You're expecting your ex?"

His eyes move from Samantha to me. We're both fully clothed, despite trying to sleep. We decided it would be best in case we had to jump up in the middle of the night.

"I can explain," I say as I step forward. "First, I'm so happy you're home."

He doesn't say a word, waiting for me to further explain.

I take a deep breath and dive in. "Tyler somehow found my number. He texted that he knows I'm living in Queens, so I'm pretty sure he has my address. We had to leave, and Piper told us we could stay here. I hope it's okay."

Durango stands and stalks toward me. I can't read his expression. Then he wraps his arms around me and holds me tight.

"Yes, it's okay. I'm glad you're here. I didn't realize your ex was trying to find you."

Well, he wasn't until I pissed him off, but I don't need to unload everything on Durango at once.

"I just got back and am exhausted and hungry. My plan is to eat and then go to sleep."

"That's fine. Well, I was sleeping in your bed. I'll just share a bed with Samantha."

He steps back. "No, stay in my room. I want you close. I'll be in as soon as I'm done here." He returns to the table and his burger.

Samantha turns to me, smiling. "Okay, I think I'll go back to bed. Have fun." She pats my shoulder as she returns to Piper's room, still carrying the bat.

Durango takes another bite of his burger. His shoulders are slumped, and his lids are heavy. He must be exhausted. I should give him space.

"I'm going to go back to bed. I'll see you in a few."

He nods.

I spin around and return to the bedroom. After climbing into bed, I realize I have no idea what side he prefers, so I simply settle in where I was before.

A moment later, he walks into the room and goes to the adjoining bathroom. A couple of minutes later, he comes out, strips down to his underwear, and climbs in next to me. He reaches over and pulls me up against him.

"I missed you," he whispers against my shoulder.

In his arms, it's the first time I truly feel safe since I received Tyler's threat.

"I missed you, too."

"We'll talk about everything in the morning. Okay?"

"Okay."

His breathing evens out, and he's asleep in less than a minute. I, on the other hand, lie there, my mind racing for what feels like an hour. But I must have fallen asleep because when I open my eyes, sunlight is coming through the windows.

Something hard is pressed up against my butt. Durango is spooning me, but his breathing is even. I'm certain he's still sleeping. The idea of him hard against me is such a turn-on that I can't help myself, and I shift a little.

"Mmm," Durango moans.

Part of me wants to move against him, but another part feels like it's too soon. Before I can decide what to do, his hand tightens around my waist. I'm aching with need, and it's been so long since I've had any sort of sexual release. But we can't. Not yet.

I turn to face him.

"Don't worry. We will take things slow," he says, as if reading my mind.

"Thank you."

"But that doesn't mean I don't want you," he says as he slaps my ass.

"Oh!" That turned me on probably more than it should have.

"Hey, if you two are done, we should talk," Samantha says from the other side of the door.

I cover my mouth as a laugh escapes. "She thinks we're…"

Durango laughs. "I guess the slap and yell did it."

"Be out in a few," I yell to my friend.

I bury my head in Durango's chest. "How embarrassing."

He rubs my back. "Nah, just tell her nothing happened."

"She won't believe it."

"I can tell her if you want," he says.

I sit up and stretch my arms over my head. "No need. I'll talk to her."

He gets up and goes to the bathroom. I force myself out of bed and into the kitchen to find Samantha. Hopefully, she can get all her jokes out before Durango is there to hear them.

She's sitting at the kitchen table, drinking a cup of coffee.

"Wow, you already made coffee?"

She knocked on the door only a few minutes ago. "I made the coffee before knocking. I wasn't certain but it sounded like you were done. Sorry if I interrupted anything."

I pour myself a cup and sit down. "We didn't have sex, so I'm not sure what you heard."

She arches a brow. "I'm not sure I buy that. But whatever you did, it has to be better than the sex I saw your ex giving," Samantha says.

Durango clears his throat. "What? You saw Willow and her ex have sex?" His eyes widen as he turns to Willow. "Oh, are you into threesomes?"

I choke on my coffee, trying to say no.

But Samantha talks over me. "No, she and I have never had sex."

He stares back and forth at each of us. "Then how would you know about her ex?"

Samantha glances at me. "I guess you haven't had a chance to tell him."

I shake my head. "He was too exhausted to talk last night. I was going to tell him today."

Durango leans against the counter. "Tell me what?"

Samantha sets her coffee cup down. "Well, to answer your original question, Durango, I've seen her ex have sex. But not with her. No, sadly, it was with about a hundred other women. And trust me, I can tell just by looking at you that you'll be better at it. Or at least I hope so, for Willow's sake."

Durango blinks a few times. "I don't want to ask because I don't think I'm going to like whatever story you're about to tell me."

"No, you won't," Samantha says.

"Is this related to why you two stayed here last night?" he asks.

"It is," Samantha says. "You might want to grab some coffee before we dive in."