Page 19 of Talon
“How was your day?”he asked while she buckled her seatbelt.
“Good.”She lifted one shoulder and let it fall.Other than seeming to pass more slowly than a snail, it had been an unremarkable day.“Did you learn anything?”She wondered if he’d been able to do the research he’d mentioned when he’d dropped her off, and what he might have found if anything.
“I was.We’ll talk about that later though.I have several things written down that I want to talk to you about and I don’t want to mix anything up.”
Madison nodded.She could see the point in that.She waited for him to bring up what she’d said before she’d gone into work, the comment he’d said they would unpack later but he didn’t.Was he waiting for something in particular?Why was she worrying about this so much?Did he think she would have a hard time explaining what she’d meant?
“What are you thinking so hard about over there?”
Talon’s voice brought her back to the present.She looked around realizing they were almost back to her apartment building.
“Just thinking.”She didn’t want to say, not now.She’d rather wait until they were inside, and she felt less… exposed.
“I forgot to ask.Did you have anywhere else you wanted to stop?I just assumed you’d want to go home after working all day.I’m sorry.”
“No need to be sorry.You were right.I don’t have anywhere I need to go or even want to go.”She pushed the thoughts about what she wasn’t ready to talk about out of her head.They’d get there eventually, she had no doubt and there was no point in worrying about it until they got there.Whenever there was.
He pulled into the parking lot and parked the pickup in one of the two open visitor spaces near her building.But once he killed the engine, Talon didn’t open his door or get out.Instead, he turned to face her.She took a deep breath and braced herself for him to ask.How would she respond?How would he take it if she asked to wait until they were inside?
“Are you sure you’re okay?You seem a little off.Nothing happened at work today that you want to talk about?”
“No, nothing happened at work.I guess I’m just anxious about what you found out today.And I’m tired.I’ve spent all day on my feet, and I can’t wait to kick my shoes off and put my feet up.”
“Then let’s go inside.I was planning on waiting until after we eat to talk about what I learned today, but if you’re really worried about it we can talk over dinner.”He covered her hand with one of his and squeezed.“There’s nothing I found too concerning, but you can tell me how you feel when you hear it.”
She thought he was trying to reassure her, but she wasn’t sure.Knowing he would give her some time to unwind before jumping into all that made her feel better.She took another deep breath and forced herself to smile.
“All right.Let’s just get inside to start with.”She opened her door and climbed down without waiting for him to do the same.She still had three floors of stairs to climb, and she just wanted to get it over with.
Without waiting for him, she headed for the stairs.There was no way around it.If she wanted to relax, she had to get up there.So she put her head down and started up the stairs.For once she didn’t worry about having her kuboton ready or making sure there was no one around waiting for her.She trusted Talon to do that for her, at least this time.She’d save her energy for what still lie ahead.She wasn’t sure she was ready for it, but it seemed to be coming either way, so she might as well be prepared.
It wasn’t until she reached the landing in front of her door that she realized she didn’t even have a key to the door.She’d given it to Talon earlier.Turning around, she wondered how long she’d have to wait for him, but to her surprise he was only a couple of steps behind her.She’d been so focused on getting up the stairs and inside she hadn’t even noticed him right behind her.
“Here.”He stepped forward, key in hand.“You look tired.Let’s get inside, you can take your shoes of and put your feet up while I finish dinner.”He unlocked the door and pushed it open, letting her go inside first.
Inside, she hung up her purse and kicked off her shoes before padding into the living room.She looked at the sofa and wanted to fall down, put her feet up and stay there for the rest of the night.
“How long until dinner’s ready?”Madison asked, turning to look at Talon.
“I need to boil water and cook the noodles, so fifteen or twenty minutes, depending on how long it takes the water to boil.Are you wanting to do something first?”
“I was considering changing clothes.Maybe soaking my feet for a few minutes, if there’s time.”
“Go for it.There’s plenty of time.Do you want some thing to drink while you’re in there?I bought some beer while I was at the store earlier.”
“That sounds great.Thanks.”
“Go, get changed.I’ll get the water started for the noodles then bring you a bottle.”
“Thanks.That sounds amazing.”She headed for the bedroom, trying to decide what she would change into, but detoured into the bathroom to turn on the water and let it start warming up while she grabbed her clothes.
15
Talonfrownedtohimselfas he ran the water and put it on the stove to heat.There was something up with Madison.Something she wasn’t telling him.Had something happened at work?Was she worried about talking to him?If that was it, what was she worried about?The thing she’d said this morning about never having known a guy who would do things for someone else that he didn’t have to or was she worried about what he’d found out about one Mr.William ‘Billy’ Morgan?There was only one way to find out, but he was determined that they eat dinner, and she was able to relax, at least a little, before they dug into either issue.He wasn’t going to push it.Not yet.
Once he had the water on to heat, he pulled a couple of beers from the fridge, twisted the tops off and went in search of her.He could hear water running in the bathroom, so he headed that way.When he reached the bathroom, he found her standing next to the tub, bent over, doing something, but he couldn’t tell what.The cut off sweats she wore made him want to move up behind her and cup her ass.But that would likely lead to something different than what they needed to talk about tonight.No, maybe he’d tell her what those shorts did to him after they were done.Maybe.After a moment she straightened, then stepped into the steaming tub.
The water must have been hotter than she’d anticipated, because she sucked air between her teeth and swished her feet through the water a few times before sitting on the edge, water still running into the tub.
