Mystery Man (Dream Man #1)(63)

They also brought my purse and, scarily, my two big suitcases. Yes, two of them. Upon inspection I found the suitcases packed carefully and full. Clothes, underwear, nightgowns, shoes, face products, my sweet pea lotion and bath gel and a good selection of makeup. This would have stunned me, the ability of commandos to pack, but I was told by Hawk that Elvira had been activated to do my packing. I wasn’t certain how I felt about an unknown woman going through my stuff but it couldn’t be denied the results were excellent.

Lawson showed and I ate my food while I gave my statement. Lawson didn’t look happy and this had to do with the fact that I’d endured a drive-by, the fact that Tack essentially abducted and detained me afterwards and the fact that he was taking my statement while I was sitting cross-legged in one of Hawk’s recliners in his seating area while spooning up hot and sour soup. How I knew this, I didn’t know, I just knew it.

When Lawson was done, he came to me and bent over me, getting close right in front of a stony faced Hawk.

“Head up, sweetheart, eyes open, stay safe,” he whispered.

“Okay,” I whispered back because I figured that was good advice and because he called me “sweetheart”.

He tucked my hair behind my ear and gave me a smile then he straightened and gave Hawk an unhappy look. Then he left.

I spent the rest of the night sorting out my cell and suitcases while Hawk talked on his phone. I didn’t unpack clothes but I did unpack toiletries and I populated Hawk’s shower, shelves and medicine cabinet with girlie shit.

I didn’t ask if I could do this. He wanted me there, I was going to be there.

Though he also didn’t complain, comment or even give me a look and he knew I’d done it because I had a lot of girlie shit, it was everywhere, and he’d visited the bathroom.

I didn’t know what to make of that so I decided to ignore it and then let it freak me out at random which was when stuff I buried that I should deal with usually freaked me out.

I had twenty-seven missed calls and fourteen texts, all from a freaked out Dad, Meredith, Cam, Tracy, Leo and even Troy. Word had got round about the drive-by. I returned Cam and Tracy’s calls but I shied away from Troy. I hadn’t had any cookie dough and Imperial was good but it didn’t set me up to deal with Troy.

I crashed while Hawk was still on the phone. He was either busy or giving me space and since he had so much of it, that was easy to do.

I woke momentarily when he joined me in bed and curled into me. The instant his arm went tight around my belly and he settled, I fell back to sleep.

Now was now and I didn’t know what to do now. There were too many things to contemplate and just the thought of them exhausted me and I’d just woken up.

I sighed and as I did, my cell rang.

Saved by the cell.

It was on the nightstand, I reached out, grabbed it and I turned the display to see I had a call from Tracy.

I flipped it open and put it to my ear. “Hey babe.”

“Hi, how are you doing, honey?”

She was tweaked and my conversation with her last night didn’t assuage her tweakedness. Then again, most people lived their whole lives not having a friend who got caught in a drive-by then disappeared for hours because she was imprisoned in a motorcycle club’s compound.

“I’m okay, I just woke up,” I told her, shifted and lifted, leaning against the headboard and I saw movement so I looked down the bed to see Hawk at the top of the stairs. Bare chest again. Bare feet again. Track pants again. Eyes on me.

Mm.

“Are you sleeping all right?” she asked.

“Yes,” I answered as Hawk approached the bed.

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“Yeah, honey, I’m sure. Really, like I said last night, I’m okay,” I replied as Hawk made it to the bed then, whoosh, the bedclothes were pulled down.

My body locked in surprise.

Oh boy.

“Are things okay with Hawk?” she asked.

“Um…” I answered as I watched Hawk bend then his fingers curled around my ankles, he yanked me down the bed until my back was to it again then he spread my legs.

Oh boy!

“Gwennie?” Tracy called.

Before I could move a muscle, Hawk put a knee to the bed then he shifted his big frame between my legs.

Oh boy!

“Trace, I think…” I trailed off when Hawk’s hands went to my hips, pushing up my nightshirt and then his head bent and he kissed the skin just above my panties.

My belly lurched in a good way.

“You think what?” Tracy asked then went on quickly without waiting for me to answer. “Okay, I’m going to say it and I know you don’t want to hear it but I’m glad you’re there. I know you’re confused about things but I think this speaks volumes that he…”

She kept speaking but I wasn’t listening because Hawk’s hands kept pushing up my nightshirt and his body was going with it, raining kisses on the skin of my belly and midriff as he went.

“You know?” Tracy asked.

“Um… Trace, I gotta go.” And I did because my nightshirt was under my br**sts, Hawk’s hands had spanned the undersides and my ni**les had gone hard and tingly.

“Is everything all right?”

Oh yeah, everything was all right. Everything was just fine.