Page 92 of Protecting Josie
“Good. I’m glad. None of us ever want to see you fall back into that depression you were in before joining the team. You need to text her, do it. Need to hear her voice? Call her. I guarantee she won’t get mad. She needs it as much as you, even if she won’t admit it because she’s trying to prove how strong she is. How unaffected she is by what happened to her. She’s definitely affected. How could she not be?”
Blink had been feeling guilty about needing to be around Josie so much, about needing to make sure she was safe. And while Josie insisted she was fine, she hadn’t protested his hovering. Which made him think that Kevlar was onto something. “Thanks, Kevlar.”
“Any time,” his team leader said. “We have another hour or so of this briefing left, then I’m thinking you can head home early.”
Blink wanted to take him up on the offer, but he felt bad because he definitely hadn’t been holding his own on the team lately. He shook his head. “It’s okay. I need to do my fair share of the work.”
“You don’t get it, Blink—this is what a team does. Whatfriendsdo. They hold up the weak members until they can stand on their feet again. And I’m not saying you’re weak, simply that you need a little more support right now. We’ve got this. We’ll bring you up to speed tomorrow about the mission. It’s not as if we can plan everything in a couple of hours. Take the time you need to come to terms with what happened. Go see Josie.”
“Thanks. If it’s really all right, I’ll take you up on that and head out after we’re done here.”
“It’s really all right. Remi’s going over to your place tomorrow. She told me last night that Josie started taking some captioning jobs again, right?”
Blink nodded. They’d argued about it. He thought Josie should take more time off, and she’d insisted that working kept her mind occupied…that she actually enjoyed it, and her shoulder was feeling good enough to type. So they’d compromised, and she was working part time for now. Blink had a feeling that wouldn’t last long. His Josie was stubborn; it was one of the many reasons why he loved her so much.
“Cool. Remi enjoys working at your place. Apparently, she likes not feeling alone while she works, but she’s still able to get lots of drawing done because Josie doesn’t talk her ear off while they’re both working.”
“Josie loves having Remi there. And Wren too.”
“Right. So let’s do this, then you can head home,” Kevlar said.
Blink couldn’t keep himself from sending one more text before he headed back to work.
Blink: I’m getting off work in about an hour or so. You want me to come by Aces and pick you up? Or will you get a ride home?
Three dots immediately appeared as Josie typed a response. He loved that she never made him wait for her to text back. Those dots made the tightness in his gut relax, knowing she was there, responding to him, was something he needed these days to keep from freaking out.
Josie: Benny said he’d take me home. And…yay! You’ll be home early!
Blink couldn’t keep the smile off his face. He loved that Josie didn’t feel awkward about letting him know she was excited to see him. Kevlar’s words sank in. She was probably feeling a little unsettled herself after everything that happened, and keeping an open and constant line of communication was as important to her as it was to him.
The worst part about coming home every day was the moment Blink approached his apartment door. He and Preacher had reinforced it, making it impossible to kick in, even with only the chain on, but the feeling of dread remained every time he walked up to the door.
He was relieved to see it shut and locked as normal as he stuck his key in the lock. “Josie?” he called out as soon as he entered, as he did every time he came home.
This time, there was no reply.
Immediately, Blink tensed. Memories flooded him of the last time that had happened and he’d found Josie missing
“Josie?” he called again, louder and a little more frantic.
“In here!” Blink heard her say from the back of the apartment, and he immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He had no idea how long it would take for his anxiety to ease in regard to Josie’s whereabouts, but it was obvious today wasn’t that day.
It was too early for her to have started dinner, but it was equally unusual for her to be back in their room in the middle of the day. If she wasn’t working at the kitchen table, usually she was on the couch, watching TV or texting someone on her phone or simply reading a book.
He walked faster than normal as he headed for their bedroom. He pushed the door a little harder than necessary and it bounced against the wall when he stepped inside.
It took a moment for his brain to understand what he was seeing. He kind of thought Josie would be on the bed with a headache, or maybe her shoulder was hurting again.
Instead, she was propped up on some pillows, smiling at him, wearing a tiny piece of white lingerie.
“Hi,” she said a little shyly. “I never did get to model what I ordered for you…before. I thought today was a good day to do that.”
Blood rushed to his cock. The vision of the woman he loved on their bed, one knee bent with her foot flat on the mattress, the other angled outward, basically putting herself on display for him, made him dizzy with lust.
Blink began to rip at his clothes as he slowly walked toward her, memorizing the moment. He would bring this image of Josie out when he was knee deep in mud in some fucking jungle, or when he was sweating his balls off in a desert. She was his reason for living. For pushing through the hell that were so many of his missions. His reward.
Her small tits were bared as the white bodice framed her chest. It tapered down to a V toward her pussy, making his eyes go between her legs. The smallest scrap of white material covered her opening. All it would take was a flick of his fingers to move it aside so he could get inside her.
