Page 57 of Found Through Fire

“Hi,” is the only word that I can get out of my mouth at the moment, so I go with that.

“I’m going to need you to calm down, baby. It’s only me. I promise I’ll back off if me being here is too much,” he says, and I know he’s telling the truth. So far, every interaction I have had with Knox, he goes out of his way to make sure I’m comfortable. I let out a breath, settling my nerves.

“I don’t want you to go. I’m just not used to this,” I say, trying to explain before he thinks I’m always this high strung.

“Not used to what?” he asks as he pulls back a little so our faces aren’t so close together, making it easier for me to think.

“Having a guy that isn’t a part of my family here and in my space. I’m kinda lost here and freaking out,” I say, trying to be honest with him. I’m not telling him exactly how out of my depth I am. I’ll tell him that sad, pathetic story if it comes up.

“You don’t have to freak out, baby. I want to be here, and you let me be here for some reason. It will come naturally, you just have to relax,” he says in a soft voice, still looking in my eyes. He then kisses me on the forehead and takes a step back, holding out his hand to help me down. I take it, jump off the counter, and go back to the fridge. He walks over to the island and takes a seat at one of the bar stools, facing me at the fridge.

“So, did you actually want something to drink?” I ask him now that I feel better about having him here. Not sure how he knew that I needed that, but I feel a little more comfortable around him.

“I’ll take a beer,” he says, smiling at me. I grab one off the bottom shelf and turn around to hand it to him. He is still staring at me, but now, the smile is gone.

He clears his throat and asks, “Are you going to have one, too? Or are you a wine kinda girl?”

“I don’t drink that much. I usually don’t have a lot to choose from drink-wise, but I figured with you guys here, I should have some options,” I say as I turn around to get a glass down from the cabinet. I keep things like glasses and plates on the bottom shelves so I don’t have to climb on the counter all the time, but I still have to stand on my toes in order to reach them. I refuse to admit defeat and get a step stool.

When I grab the glass, I think I hear Knox say something, but when I turn around, he is just staring at the label on his beer. I get some ice, pour myself some tea from the pitcher, and walk over to where Knox is sitting, taking the seat next to him.

“So, how was your day?” I say as I turn my body on the chair to face him, crossing my legs and resting my elbow on thecounter. It got awkward again while I was getting the drinks, and I have no idea why. Small talk has never been my thing, so if I’m the only hope at lightening things up, we are screwed. He looks over at me and lets out a chuckle, and I take that as a good sign.

“It was good. I just painted at the shop and watched the clock until I could go to this beautiful woman’s house for dinner,” he says with a smirk, and I laugh at how corny he is.

“Oh, if I would have known that you already ate, I would have made a smaller lasagna,” I reply as I calm down from laughing at him. He grabs his chest and acts offended as he says, “I can’t believe you think I would just go and eat another woman’s cooking. I’m not a food slut.”

“So, not a food slut. You aren’t denying just being a regular slut,” I say, still laughing. I’m not going to pretend that he hasn’t been with a lot of women. I’ve been around Uncle Mark’s club way too long to have blinders up.

He gets serious all of a sudden and says, “Not since I saw a video of a girl taking out a bunch of MC members and hang-arounds, risking herself to save someone that she loves.”

I stare at him, shocked for a moment. He couldn’t mean that. He seriously said no to the gorgeous, always-available women that I am sure are all over the clubhouse, just because he saw me tear apart some guys to get Sophia back? I feel like most men wouldn’t find that attractive, but then again, how the fuck should I know?

While my brain is trying to compute what he just told me, the notification for my gate goes off again, and I lean over to grab it from where I left it on the counter when I let Knox in. I pull up the feed, and notice that it’s Grey’s truck and open the gate. “Grey’s here,” I say as I look up from my phone and notice Knox looking over my shoulder to see who it is on my phone. He looks just as thrilled as I am about Grey staying here, too.

I hear knocking at the door and put my phone back down on the counter. These shorts are comfy, and I love them, but they don’t have pockets. I go to let Grey in, a little surprised that he is knocking at all and not just barging in, since that has been my experience with his “delightful personality.” When I get to the door and begin to open it, I feel Knox behind me pressing against my back with one of his hands resting on my hip. I’m shocked that I didn’t notice him coming up behind me. Usually, I am a lot more on my game, but I think Knox messes with my senses.

I open the door and see Grey with the same pissed-off expression on his handsome face. His hazel eyes are blazing, and it only gets more intense as he notices how close Knox is to me and that his hand is on my hip. He is wearing a tight, black T-shirt that has the Vital logo on the chest. I wonder if I should talk to my dad about providing larger shirts so I can stop fighting the urge to check him out, but I will never have that conversation with Dad, so I let it go. He also has on the normal cargo pants that all the soldiers wear; I honestly don’t think he has any other clothes. After living with him on the job, it’s all I ever saw him in.

His beautiful, huge, tattooed arms are on display, and I can’t help but try to see what they are. They are so close together and detailed, it’s hard to see where one ends and the other begins. I would have to take my time and study them up close. I realize I am checking him out while another man is at my back and holding on to me, so I pull myself out of my “Grey daze.”

He opens his mouth to make an asshole comment, I’m sure, so I cut him off before he can. “Dinner is in fifteen. Let me show you to your room,” I say as I turn and start to walk towards the rooms again. I know they are both following me. I didn’t think that this was going to be a group activity, but whatever.

When I get to the door of the room that Grey will stay in, I open it, not even looking back to wait for them. Grey enters the room, followed by Knox, and looks around. “I’ll let you getsettled. The closet is through the other door, and the bathroom is at the end of the hall. You and Knox will have to share,” I say, turning to leave after he doesn’t say anything, and Knox follows me back to the kitchen.

We sit at the island for a few minutes before the timer goes off and I take the lasagna out. While I let it cool a little, I start making the salad to go with it while talking to Knox about our days. He is telling me about the shop and the new piece that he is working on, and I ask him if he has always done this or other types of art, like tattoos.

“I’ve always wanted a tattoo, but it was never a priority with everything that was going on. I also never found something that I loved so much that I wanted to get it on my body for the rest of my life,” I tell him as I put the serving dishes on the island. If there is only the three of us, we can just eat in the kitchen, which is what I usually do, anyways.

“If you want to get one done, I’ll ask one of the Brothers, and he can show me so I can do yours. It will also give me time to figure out a piece for you,” he replies like it is as easy as filling in a coloring book.

“I feel like you have to train for a while to do that. I can just go to the person that does yours. They look good.” I try to give him an out so he doesn’t have to learn how to do an entirely different kind of art for me. I mean, he already has a business and is part of an MC—he can’t have that much spare time.

At that moment, Grey walks into the kitchen.

“Dinner is done. Grab a plate and help yourselves. I was already expecting leftovers, but I don’t want this much,” I say as I gesture to the giant pan of lasagna that I made.

We make our plates and sit down. An uncomfortable silence falls over us, but we are able to distract ourselves with the food. The quiet is starting to drive me crazy, so I decide to suck it up and break it when I look up to see Knox and Grey giving eachother death glares. “What are your plans for your few weeks off besides babysitting?” I say, looking in Grey’s direction. I know we don’t get along, but I would like to try to make it less awkward between us for the next two weeks.