Read Online Above Protection (Imperfect Heroes Book 1) by C. J. Pinard - Free Book Online Page B

mouth. I
swallowed my bite without chewing it all the way at the look she
was giving me. Grabbing the soda, I popped the top and guzzled down
the sickeningly sweet fizzy liquid. Once my food went down, I
fought the urge to gag. Soda… no. Cancer in a can.
    I got up, rummaged through the
cupboard, and found a cup. Filling it with tap water, I drank long
and deep to be sure the food went down – and to get that disgusting
sugary taste out of my mouth. Tap water wasn’t the best, but it was
better than soda.
    Returning to the table, I sat down and
continued to eat. Rayanne, who was done with her lunch, watched me,
her eyes dancing in curiosity.
    “Not a fan of pop?”
    I shook my head. “No, it’s bad for
you.”
    She chuckled, leaning back in her
chair. “And that dip you shove into your lip isn’t?”
    My sandwich paused at my mouth, I
quickly countered, “Dip doesn’t make you soft and fat.”
    “That’s what the gym is for,” she
replied, seeming to be proud of her quick retort. I decided not to
reply to that, but she kept talking. “That’s diet soda, by the way,
no calories or sugar.”
    “But full of chemicals,” I
rebutted.
    She laughed again. “Ah, the truth
comes out. Chemical nazi, are you?”
    I wasn’t going to respond to that,
because she was right and I wasn’t going to give her the
satisfaction. I finished my sandwich, then tossed the crumbly paper
plate into the trash. I dumped the Diet Pepsi down the drain in the
sink. With a look of pride, I made eye contact with her as I tossed
the now-empty can into the trash.
    I heard her laughing again as I left
the kitchen.
     

     
    As much as she annoyed me, I knew she
was right. There was nothing on the damn TV and I’d already read
all the magazines I’d bought, cover to cover. I was so bored, I was
tempted to ask to borrow one of the paperback books she’d bought
earlier. I was never a huge fan of reading, and seeing as she’d
mostly picked up chick romance books and some vampire shit, I was
reluctant to ask. I then briefly wondered if I should look around
the house for something to fix. I suppose I could replace her
doorknob. If I could find some tools.
    I looked at my watch and saw it was
about 10 p.m. Doorknob could wait, I guess. I went in search of
her, and I found her on her bed, her door wide open, reading a
book. She’d changed out of her jeans and was now in some sort of
white dress thing, her bare legs and feet so smooth looking. She
was lying on her stomach, her ankles crossed and in the air,
swinging back and forth as she read. She must have heard me
approach, because she turned her head toward the doorway and placed
the book, still open, face down on the bed.
    Smiling, she said, “What’s up,
Cowboy?”
    Trying not to smile at her, and
feeling my dick twitch behind my zipper at how sexy she looked, I
kept my face impassive. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay.
I’m heading to bed. Get me if you hear or see anything
suspicious.”
    She swiveled her body around, placing
her bare feet on the floor. She saluted me with her left hand,
which made me bite back a smile, and said, “Yes, sir.”
    Coming to stand just inches from me in
the doorway, she whispered, “Goodnight.” Then the door was closed
in my face.
    Once it was closed, I couldn’t help
but smile. Why did she have to be so damn cute?
     
    Thankfully, I had slept soundly. But
upon waking, I checked my phone to see the time, and seeing it was
6 a.m., I pushed myself to get up and check on the vic.
    Just like the day before, she was
lying in bed, the blankets piled on top of her. I smiled a little
at the paperback still clutched in her hand. I checked the front
door and all the windows once again to be sure they were secure.
Then I set my phone’s alarm for 8 a.m. and crawled back in bed. I
didn’t see any reason to be up this early.
    As I was about to pull the covers back
over me, my phone lit up and vibrated. I looked at the screen to
see a text from