Page 22 of Three Meows

“That’s one thing that keeps bothering me… how are you a second year at the university I’m attending if it’s all a setup?” I asked, my brows furrowing in confusion. “Did you fake studying there?”

“I don’t know if I should be hurt or tickled pink that you think I could pull something like that off,” Chester said. “And you got it backward; it was a crime of opportunity. Rowan had heard about a bodyguard job in our city and me already studying at the university you would be going to was one of the reasons our team was chosen over all the others. I told you education pays off.” Chester shot finger guns at the two men, who shook their heads at his antics.

“But now we have to find a new flat and pack up… on very short notice,” Elijah sighed. “I imagined the day I finally got my first kiss would go a bit different.”

“It was your first kiss?!” I gasped out. “Here’s a second one, and a third, and—”

“Mngh!” I didn’t let Elijah speak as I showered him in kisses. He melted into me after the initial surprise and when we parted he looked dazed.

A job well done!

“Now, I hope this will sustain you through the packing… I have to go. I have an idea,” I said and with three swift kisses to my boyfriends’ cheeks I was out of the door.

Chapter Twelve

The screen flashed with the caller ID. Dad. I scoffed at my phone and rejected the call. Instead, I dialed a different number.

“Hey Lindsey, I know I already owe you… but could I ask you for one more favor?” I asked as soon as the call connected.

“Hi, how’s life going Lindsey? Kids good, Lindsey?” my friend responded in a mocking voice and I winced.

That was fair.

“Sorry…” I started, but she cut me off.

“Nah, just pulling your chain. You sound stressed, girl. Tell me what’s up. Is your father giving you trouble again?”

“Like you wouldn’t believe.”

Lindsay was my landlord and boy, did I pat myself on the back for refusing my father’s offers of much better flats or even houses, as the independence I gained by renting from someone who wasn’t in his pocket was going to pay off now.

I told her about the situation and couldn’t help but grin when she gave me her answer.

Not wasting any time, I knocked at my neighbors’ door and Rowan silently let me inside. The flat was a mess as the men tried to pack all their possessions. Chester was running around like a headless chicken while Elijah was speaking to someone on the phone. The pained draw of his eyebrows and the hand pressed to his forehead pointed towards the conversation not going well. Only Rowan seemed to be his usual calm self.

As he prepared tea and coffee for everyone and sipped his hot beverage contentedly, I couldn’t stop my curiosity.

“Aren’t you going to pack?”

Rowan gestured toward a corner where a stack of sturdy, big plastic containers waited.

“Are those your things? Wait… don’t tell me… you didn’t unpack yet?! After nearly three months here?” My eyes boggled at him.

“Don’t need much,” Rowan waved my concerns off.

If I didn’t already have an idea that he was likely in the military based on the way he held himself and always scanned every room, I would definitely reach that conclusion after seeing how he was ready to just pick up his things and run with barely any notice. I was pretty sure he had an emergency bag like one in those spy movies as well.

Considering he defeated a mugger as a cat, I wondered what he could do as a human. Maybe I could convince him to let me watch his gym time… or arrange a spar between him and one of the other guys. Though I feared both Chester and Elijah would rather be punching bags and not challenging opponents.

My mind started to wander a little as I sipped my tea and watched Rowan from under my lashes, but I was called down to Earth when Elijah finally finished his conversation.

“I got us a place,” Elijah said. Chester cheered, but Rowan just raised a skeptical eyebrow as if he could sense thebutcoming.“Unfortunately, it’s on the edge of the city. Commuting to your classes won’t be pleasant. Sorry, Chester.”

The redhead deflated.

“It’s alright. We would need a miracle to get as good a location as this on short notice,” Chester said forlornly.

I couldn’t let the opportunity pass me by.

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