The Lair

by Lisina Coney

Think about how precious the life you’re building for yourself is, and don’t let anybody ruin it. Not even yourself.”

“I would never yell at you.”

“I’ll be there.” I’ll be there in case you need me is how my brain has decided to finish his perfectly complete sentence. I’m so delusional.

“No one’s gonna mess with you.” “You don’t know that.” “I’ll break his goddamn legs if he so much as thinks about it.”

“Careful, boss man. I might start thinking you tolerate me after all.” “I more than tolerate you, Allie.”

He’s right, a muffin won’t kill me—but his sudden concern for me might.

I notice the white-and-green beads around his wrist, matching the pink-and-white ones I’m also wearing today. He’s wearing my bracelet. He doesn’t hate it or think it’s silly.

“Careful how you speak to my girl.” The air whooshes out of my lungs. My girl. Me… Travis’s girl?

“Nobody talks to you like that and gets away with it, you hear me?”

“There’s nothing silly about doing what you love.”

I’m trying. I’m really trying. But it’s like my boss—this older, grumpy, ex-military man with an intimidating exterior but a heart of gold—wants me to fall in love with him. And I’m not convinced that I won’t.

“You’re okay,” that gruff voice says in a gentle tone I’d never heard from him before. “You were so fucking brave, Allie. I’m proud of you.”

“You’re safe now, sweetheart. I’m not gonna let anything happen to you.”

“Because I want you to be safe at all times, goddammit. If anything happened to you…”

Maybe it’s his size, his intimidating presence, or his military past—or all of it—but if I had to trust someone, just one person in the entire world to keep me safe, it would be him. Without a doubt, it would be Travis.

“Your organs are safe with me. You promise your stubbornness won’t kill me?”

The words on all fours shouldn’t leave Travis’s mouth ever again.

Travis oozes authority and confidence on a normal day, but seeing him in his element, on his property, interacting with his dogs, is something else entirely. When did it get so hot in here?

“Never say never, Allie. I also have a feeling life will surprise you in very unexpected ways.” “All good ways, I hope?” Her smile was soft. “In the end, they’ll all be.”

His sitting position is relaxed, both of his legs open. One of his hands is holding his head that is tilted to the side, and the other hangs loosely over his thigh. A thigh I bet would be more comfortable than this couch. I don’t want to climb into his lap. Get a grip.

It’s not often that I feel proud of my obsession with my boss. Although obsession might be a dramatic way to describe it. What I feel for Travis is… more like a crush that has gone off the rails.

“You know you’re handsome, but—no offense—you look terrible right now. Seconds away from passing out due to exhaustion, if you need specifics.” Travis’s eyebrows go up a millimeter. “You think I’m handsome?”

“You’re something else, sweetheart.”

“You can tell me anything. I’ll never judge you. You got that?”

He closes the distance between us slowly. The next thing I feel are his warm lips on my forehead, pressing a lingering kiss to my skin. “Good night, sweetheart. Thanks for taking care of my grumpy ass.”

“All right, all right. You want some alone time with Allie-girl, I get it.” My cheeks heat up. “Oh, that’s⁠—” “Damn right I do.”

“Do I need to take care of anybody?” My throat is dry. “What do you mean?” “Is someone putting you in danger? Are you running away from people who want to hurt you?”

“You can tell me anything, Allie. I’ll always be on your side, no matter what.”

“You are. Thank you for opening up to me,” I tell him. “You’re my favorite person, Travis.” “And you are my weakness, Allie.”

“I’ll bend the rules for you.” Okay. No big deal. We’re talking about pool here. There are no other rules to bend.

He sends me a smirk over his bulky shoulder. “You’re a fast learner.”

“You have no idea, do you?” One of his hands hikes its way up, up, up, until the weight of his fingers settles on the nape of my neck. Fingers that start kneading my skin softly, as if he’s scared to break me. My lips part at the possessive gesture. “You have no idea what you do to me. Do you, sweetheart?”

I’m done lying to myself. I’m done pretending that what I feel for him is infatuation or a mere crush. Because the truth is, I’ve fallen in love with Travis. All in.

“You don’t want me to go on a date?” “Only if it’s with me.”

AHAHAHEUGWJDHFBD

I need him closer. I need him.

“You have no fucking idea,” he whispers between kisses, his voice as hungry as his touch. “How badly I need you. Like the fucking sun.”

“Tell me what you need,” he growls against the curve of my neck as I throw my head back to grant him better access. “Whatever you need, sweetheart, it’s yours. I’ve waited long enough to kiss you.”

I realize I’ve missed all the signs. His heightened protectiveness, the unexpected way he opened up about his past and his fears. How have I not seen it before? Travis cares about me. Just as deeply as I care about him. In his own quiet way, but he does.

“You like him, don’t you?” “I… may or may not have a tiny crush on him.” “A tiny crush?” “All right, maybe a medium-sized one.” “A medium-sized…” He shakes his head. “You know what? As long as he doesn’t have a medium-sized di⁠—” “Charlie.” “Not that there’s anything wrong with medium-sized dicks, but looking at how big he is, I would assume⁠—”

Because if intimacy is tough for him, being brave is also hard for me.

“What do you need?” “You, Allie.”

It’s not that I don’t think I’m strong. I am, for the most part, and nobody can take that away from me. But what’s strength without integrity? I lied for six years, and it cost me everything. My happiness, my peace, my new life. It cost me Travis.

He looks the same, but his face… his face looks gentle. And no matter how hard I’ve willed my brain to forget how it feels to have him close, my heart hasn’t. Not for one second.

“I’m here for you,” he repeats. “Because we don’t belong apart.”

“I’m here because I can’t fucking stand being in my own house knowing you’re not there.”

“I’m not mad at you,” he declares, his voice the firmest I’ve ever heard it. “I understand why you had to lie or omit things. I don’t hold it against you. I could never.”

“You’re gonna look at me with those beautiful eyes and tell me I don’t know that you’re the strongest fucking person I’ve ever met, and that I admire you more than I’ve ever admired anyone? You’re gonna tell me I don’t know that you love carrot cake beyond reason, that you change into your pajamas as soon as you get home because you can’t stand sitting on the couch with your outside clothes on, that you love cooking because it brings you peace, that math gives you a purpose, and that your lips aren’t the sweetest fucking thing I’ve ever tasted? That’s what you’re gonna do, Allie?”

“So allow me to get to know you. And let me show you who I am too. If you’ve been closed off, so have I.”

“I’m not good with words or feelings,” he says in a low voice. Quietly, just for the two of us. “You… you’ve made me feel things I’d never felt before. It was uncomfortable at first. Until I learned to put a name on it.”

“I feel the same,” I breathe out. “I feel everything. Every single thing, Travis. I have for months.”