His To Protect (Four Seasons Security Book 1)

by Bianca Wynters

  I had snuck out of the house go to senior football players party. Most parties I was allowed to go to because Jake and Blake were going but because Blake had recently lost his mom and was getting ready to move the next week, so they decided to not go to this one. Jake told me not to go since they were not going; but of course, I didn't listen. I was having a good time dancing and hanging out with some friends when one of the football players that had just graduated, it was Paul, came up to me and started dancing with me. While we were dancing Paul asked how I managed to make it to the party without JJ and Blake. I just smiled at him and said I'm not always with them and contrary to popular belief I am allowed out of the house without them. He smiled back at me, took my hand and said come on take a walk with me. I said ok and looked over my shoulder at my friends, who were all grinning at me. We walked outside out by the pool house just talking about nothing in particular. Once we were next to the pool house, he positioned us with my back against the wall and him in front of me. He caged me in with his hands on the wall right next to my head then he leaned his body into mine saying that he had been waiting to get me away from JJ. Just as he leans all the way into me where I can't move, he bends like he is going to kiss me, but before his lips reached mine, he was forcefully pulled off of me. When I look up to see what happened Blake is standing over him telling him to keep his hands off of his girl and to get back inside before he loses his temper. Before I can move Blake turns and cages me in. "I thought you were told not to come here tonight. Yet when I went to your room you were gone and where do I find you? You are the one place you were told not to be, and on top of that you are outside alone with Paul." As he is talking, he starts leaning his body into mine. "How can I protect you if you are sneaking and out going places you are not supposed to be?”

  "Who said you have to protect me? You? You can't be with me 24/7. I'm a big girl Blake; I can take care of myself."

  "I have always protected you, and I don't plan to stop now. On top of that, what do you think you are doing out here alone with that idiot. No one should be pressed into this body like he was and no one should be kissing these perfect lips. If anyone is going to be pressed body to body and kissing you it will be me and only me, do you understand?"

  When I nod but don't say anything he says “answer me, Ali, do you understand?”

  "I understand” As soon as the words are out of my mouth Blake leans all the way into me and teasingly brushes his lips across mine. Then he does it again but deepens the kiss and slides one hand down my side wrapping his arm around my waist pulling me into him. He breaks the kiss and leans his forehead against mine. "As long as I am here Ali you are mine; no matter where we are or how old we are a part of you will always be mine. Now come on before JJ comes out and sees me kissing you; I'm sure he wouldn't be happy about that. We don't need to give him any more reason to lose his temper he is already pissed off because you snuck out. He would have lost it if he had caught you out here with Paul. Oh, and don't think we won't be talking about this little stunt of yours mon trésor."

  I will never forget that night. I was so excited that Paul had indeed noticed me and wanted to be alone with me and had just never made a move because he never thought he would be able to get me away from my brother. Then when he did finally get me alone, we were interrupted by Blake of all people. That was when I knew my heart really did belong only to him because when he pulled Paul off of me, Blake called me his girl. I had always dreamed of hearing him say that, but the fact was Blake was leaving town, and I would have to learn to live without him. That was the plan that night; I was determined to go out without him and Jake so I could start learning how to live without Blake and become my own person not just JJ's little sister. At first, I thought that night would change everything for me, but all it did was make me fall more in love with Blake; when he moved away, it shattered me. Blake spent his whole last week in Louisiana with Jake and me. He kissed me anytime that Jake wasn't in the room with us and even when Jake was in the room Blake seemed to always be touching me or pulling me down to sit in his lap, but Jake never said anything about it to either of us. On his last night, he came to my room and locked the door so that we wouldn't be interrupted. My parents were out of town on a business trip, so it was just Jake and me at home. Blake and I sat in my room and talked for hours. He told me that he wanted me to do my best in school and to follow my dreams that I could do anything I put my mind to. He told me again that a piece of me will always be his and that he will never forget me. As I started to cry, he hugged me tight again and with a couple of tears making their way down his cheeks he says "Je te aime, je vais vous voir bientôt, mon trésor." Which means I love you, I will see you soon my treasure. Before I could say anything in return, Blake turned, opened my door and walked out. I spent the rest of the night in the bed silently crying for the loss of my first love. Somehow I knew that once he walked out that door, I wouldn't see him again.

  ***

  I feel the tears swelling in my eyes, so I try to focus on the present, there is enough going on right now that my head cannot be stuck in the past. Even with my brain fuzzy with those thoughts, I can tell there is something is bothering Ash. His hand is so tight on the wheel that his knuckles are white. I need to pull myself together so I can find out what is bothering him, maybe I can help with whatever it is.

  I reach over and place my hand on top of the one Ash has on the gear shift. As soon as skin touches skin, it is like a bolt of lightning striking through my body, and I can’t help the gasp that leaves me. My first instinct is to let go of his hand, but instead, I keep holding on and give his hand a little squeeze. Ash looks over to me and gives me a forced smile. I smile back and try to move my hand, but he isn’t having it, so I just sit in silence holding his hand as we make our way back home. I know that once we get back to the house, I need to figure out what is bothering him.

  It doesn’t take long to get back to the house, especially since he drives like I do. We get the car parked back in the shed and head inside. When we walk in, I head straight into the kitchen and grab Ash a beer. He quickly pops the top and takes a big gulp. He says thank you and leaves the kitchen before I can say anything. All I can do is follow him into the living room.

  I pause in the entry way to glance around the room; I still have a ton of stuff to pack. Ash sits down on the couch still lost in thought; I am not sure what I did to piss him off, but whatever it was he won’t even look at me. If we are not going to talk, then I might as well pack. I walk to the far corner of the room and start taking things down off of the shelving. By the time I make it over to the bookshelves my tension level has skyrocketed as I think about everything that is going on. However, what I am finding pisses me off or confuses me really is how I am so comfortable with Ash. The timing for him to come into my life couldn’t be worse. I do not want to get attached to him only to have to tell him goodbye and never see him again, yet I don’t think I will be able to keep all of my emotions out of this for two weeks until I move. This is just another good reason to leave early and start my life in Atlanta.

  When I am finished with the first two bookshelves, I feel Ash slide his arms around my waist. He pulls me tight against his body; as he does this he leans his head down next to my ear “Hey, what’s going on inside that pretty little head of yours? The more books you pack, the harder you slam them down into the boxes. Relax, tell me what’s wrong.” When he finishes talking, he leans a little further and kisses down the side of my neck.

  I do the only thing I can. I sigh and lean back into him tilting my head to give him better access to my neck. I love the way I feel when I am in his arms. He gives me a light squeeze around the waist and nuzzles into me further. It is scary how quickly Ash is becoming my comfort zone. He kisses me again lightly then says “well baby girl, you going to tell me what has you all tied up in knots?”

  I turn around in his arms and look up at him. “I don’t know, are you going to tell me what upset you when we were leaving the hosp
ital?” He simply smiles down at me and just as he starts to say something his phone rings. Ash brushed a quick kiss across my lips and says “to be continued.” He walks back to the other room and answers his phone.

  It only takes a few seconds for Ash to start talking. He tells whoever is on the other end of the call to calm down, slow down and repeat what they said. I can see an immediate change in his posture. Something is wrong, really wrong. I watch as the color drains from him. He starts “Ok, Clara calm down. Just listen to the doctors and nurses, and I’ll be there as soon as I can. Everything is going to be ok. Just relax, take a deep breath, if something happens, or anything changes call me. I will be on my way as soon as I get my things packed.” As he ends the call, he falls onto the couch and drops his head into his hands. I walk over to him dropping to my knees in front of him; I place my hands on his knees for support and comfort. I am not sure what has happened yet, but I want Ash to know that he is not alone.

  Chapter 12

  Ash

  This cannot be happening now. My dad was in an accident, and they are not sure he is going to make it. Clara is freaking out; I need to be there with her. My dad and I have just recently started making up for lost time; I can’t lose him now, not when we are just getting close again. At the same time, thoughts of losing dad creep in, thoughts of losing Lana come along with them. I can’t leave her unprotected.

  As I sit here and lose my shit internally trying to figure out what I can do, Lana sits on the floor in front of me in a show of support and comfort. I pull her up off the floor and onto my lap, so she is straddling me. When I look up to meet her gaze, I see her face awash with concern. I pull her down to my chest and shoulder. When she is settled, I place a soft kiss on her forehead and tell her what happened. When I finish telling her everything Clara said Lana sits straight up telling me that I have to go so I can take care of dad and Clara. Her fear and concern for my family are genuine.

  This should not be a hard decision. There should be no second thoughts between leaving a girl I just met and going to care for Clara and dad; especially with the uncertainty of dad’s condition. Yet there are doubts about leaving.

  I run my hand around her neck and pull her to me; as soon as her lips touch mine I know that I am not ready to leave her. Even though it has only been a very short time, I know that even if I could just walk away from her, I would never forget her. When she pulls away, she stands and holds her hands out to pull me up off the couch. As she does this, she is telling me that she will help me pack. Most of my stuff is still packed so I know it won’t take long to get everything together.

  As soon as we make it to the bedroom, I pull Lana close “Come with me. Please, I don’t want you here alone. I know before you ever say it, yes you are a big girl and can take care of yourself; but that doesn’t change the fact that I want to protect you. Hell, forget about for protection, I just want you with me.” Lana takes a step back, but I don’t let her get completely out of my grasp. “Ash, I can’t go with you. I only have a couple of weeks before I move and I still have a lot to get done before my move.”

  “Lana, I can’t just leave you, especially knowing you are not safe. I will hire movers to come pack all of your stuff and move it; anything I need to do to get you to come with me. Just tell me what I need to do.” As soon as my words are out Lana steps closer and pulls me in for a quick kiss. The problem is that kiss damn sure feels a lot like goodbye. She steps away from me and in a tone that speaks for itself says “Ash, as much as I would love to go with you, we both know I can’t do that, just like you can’t stay. You have to go be with your family; your love and devotion to them are what makes you the man you are. It makes you the man that is so easy to fall for.” Before I can say anything, she turns and walks out the door.

  Fuck! Now what? She is right; I have to be with dad and Clara. As I start packing the few things that have been taken out of my bag I decide to call Chase. I know Lana won’t call Morgan to let them know I am leaving. Once I have Chase on the line I fill him in on everything. Chase puts the phone on speaker so Morgan can hear too. She is livid. I find myself apologizing to her for having to leave. Right away Morgan puts me in my place telling me to quit apologizing for leaving. I can see how Chase fell so hard for her like he did. In all of her, ranting Morgan makes it clear that she thinks of Lana as family and not just a friend.

  Between the three of us, we decide that Chase will leave tomorrow morning to come stay with Lana and Morgan will leave Wednesday morning after her dad is settled in the rehab hospital for his physical therapy. Morgan wants to leave now, but we remind her that if she leaves now, Lana would just make her go back. Chase and Morgan both know I have to leave out tonight; it’s about an eight and half hour drive depending on traffic. If my dad were stable, I would wait and leave when Chase gets here tomorrow, but that is not the case, so I have to leave now. I still hate leaving her.

  I double-check that I have everything and then load it all into my rental car. I step back into the kitchen where I find Lana standing at the counter. Neither of us says a word, we just simply walk to each other and hug each other as tight as we can. I don’t understand why this is so hard. We just met, yet I feel like I am losing my best friend all over again. I am really learning to hate Louisiana; it seems like every time I am here I have to leave someone behind that I care about.

  I kiss Lana on the head then tilt her face up to look at me. “You know in all of the talking we have done; I don’t remember you ever saying where you are moving to.” She smiles at me and makes my heart stop when she says “I am going to Atlanta; I got into the program I wanted at Emory University” I started to laugh and pulled her into another hug. At my laughter, she takes a step back to ask what is so funny about her going to Atlanta. All I can do is kiss her; it feels like a ton of bricks have been lifted off my shoulders, just knowing that she will be in an area that I can see her again; not only again but soon.

  Lana breaks the kiss and asks again what is so funny about her moving to Atlanta. This time I straighten to my full height, so she has to tilt her head to look me in the eyes. “Baby, at this moment it has become almost alarmingly clear that we never covered the basics in any of our conversations. We know almost nothing about each other. If we would have talked a little bit about it, then I would have known that you are going to Atlanta and you would already know that when I leave here to see my dad that I am also going to Atlanta because that is where he lives.”

  Lana looks at me like she is confused, then when her thoughts settle she smiles up at me. Then she says “I thought you were from Nashville, at least that is what Morgan told me.” I tell her that I live in Nashville now because I stayed there after I graduated from Vanderbilt. As much as I would love to talk about all of this, I also know that it is time for me to go. Before I leave we make sure we have each other’s phone number and agree to make plans to get together when she gets to Atlanta. I hug and kiss Lana one more time and say "Je vais vous voir bientôt, mon trésor" then I turn and walk out the door.

  Chapter 13

  Lana

  Even knowing that I will see Ash again soon, a few tears still manage to escape my eyes when he walks out the door. He unknowingly, yet very efficiently, just broke my heart with his parting words. “I’ll see you soon my treasure.” It is almost the exact same phrase that Blake said to me the night he left, yet I never saw him again.

  There are so many similarities in the boy who left so long ago and the man who just walked out my door. The way my body lights up at Ash’s touch, how I was instantly so comfortable with him; to the way he talks and phrases that he uses. Hell, even Paul thought Ash was Blake. I can’t even begin to count the number of nights I lay in bed and cried after Blake left. Losing Jake, made it worse; brought Blake back to my thoughts because I know he would have wanted to know about Jake passing. I have often wondered how things worked out for Blake after he moved away. I really do hope he is happy.

  I know that it only took twenty-four
hours for me to start falling for Ash. It is crazy really; I started falling for the man yet I never asked his last name. I never saw him coming, though, and in the span of a little over a day I didn’t want him to go. Oh, well no sense in dwelling on shit you can’t change. I need to get my ass in gear and finish packing. Now that Ash is gone and Josh is still lurking close I know the sooner I finish my move, the better off I will be and the safer my friends will be.

  I forgo making dinner and choose to drink a bottle of wine while I pack instead. By the time midnight rolled around, I had finished packing the living room, kitchen, and office. Although I have also made it through two bottles of wine on a nearly empty stomach, so there is no telling how many boxes are miss-labeled. Well, at least it will make unpacking interesting. Now that I have stopped the wine is starting to kick in, and fatigue is taking over.