Page 32 of G8
When? Tomorrow? Or, if not tomorrow, when?
“Soon.”
How soon?his conscience prodded.
He understood that the only reason she was here with them was because of those infants. Once it was settled where the babies would go to live and who’d they stay with, she’d leave, too…right?
He sat up in the bed. “But if I told you I was falling in love with you, would you stay? If I asked you to, would you remain here with me? The way Cydney promised N8 to stay with him?”
But what if she has to go with the babies? What if she doesn’t have any choice in the matter?
He buried his face in his hands. His body still tingled from the aftermath of what they’d done, and yet he continued to crave her. Not just for more sex, but to have her nearby. To see her face, see her watching and listening to him. To be able to reach out and take her hand. Or, better yet, draw her into his embrace and simply hold her so he could feel her warmth. Her breath on his skin. Her hands stroking his back.
She gave him what he didn’t know he craved. It was more than companionship. Hell, he had a lot of companionship already with his brothers and sisters. Even though they truly weren’t related, they all thought of each other that way. They were family. But Ingrid had somehow touched something deep inside him. Her humor, her common sense, and most of all, her bravery—all wrapped up in a beautiful package he didn’t dare open for fear of losing her altogether.
An odor caught his attention. He sniffed his fingers again. Her cream covered them, reminding him of the past few minutes. Too few minutes. But he knew that if he could still smell her, so would the others. As much as he’d love to lie here and draw her scent into his lungs for the rest of the night, he couldn’t embarrass her that way by showing up for breakfast wearing her residue like cologne.
He debated whether to remain here and wait until the morning to wash her off, when he realized he could accidentally bump into someone on his way to the showers. With a soft groan, he rolled off the bed, drew on his jeans, grabbed his towel from the hook behind his door, and padded barefoot to the outdoor bathroom.
16INDIC8
G8 strodeinto the main lodge for breakfast, even though his stomach was all knotted up. How would Ingrid greet him this morning after what they’d done last night? How wouldhereact when he saw her? What would they say to each other? Most of all, would the others notice something was different? Something had happened?
He heard the usual laughter and voices as he walked up the steps to the side door leading into the main lodge. Opening the door, he stepped inside and caught the smell of bacon.
“Morning, G8!” K8 called out to him, then turned back to P8, who appeared to be in the middle of a story. T8 also called out a greeting.
He waved a greeting in reply as he sought out Ingrid. He found her and F8 over by the microwave. There was a slamming sound, and Ingrid withdrew a bottle. She gave it a little shake, then screwed on the top and nipple. At the sight of the transparent teat, the vision of Ingrid’s pale pink version flashed into his mind’s eye, and he felt his pants tightening again. To preserve his dignity, he kept the front of his jeans facing the cabinets.
When Ingrid finally turned around and spotted him, she cast him a warm smile. “Help yourself to some coffee,” she invited.
“Do I smell bacon?” he asked her.
T8 stepped away from where he’d been standing in front of the stove. “You get two pieces,” the man advised as he went over to the table.
No one gave him a knowing look or smile. Everything seemed normal, with nothing out of place. It was almost a relief.
He proceeded to pop two slices of bread into the toaster. As he waited for them to be done, he grabbed a mug from the upper cabinet and poured himself some coffee.
Ingrid and F8 took a seat at the table where everyone was gathered to feed the babies. Dropping his toast onto a plate, he grabbed two slices of crisp bacon, noticing there were four slices left. It didn’t take two guesses to figure out which two people hadn’t eaten yet.
He’d just taken a seat when the phone in the office rang.
“I’ll get it,” P8 said, getting to his feet. He hustled into the next room to answer it. G8, along with the others, all ceased their conversation to overhear what was said.
“Trautman Place. Oh, hi, Sheriff. Yes, he is. Okay. Hold on. G8! It’s for you!”
Wiping his mouth with a paper towel, G8 went to get the phone. “Yes, sir?”
“I have a big favor to ask of you and the others,” Biggs said.
“What is it?” He turned around to see everyone intently listening.
“Remember when I told you I was going over to those labs this morning, and me and Sheriff Korris and the fire chief were going to investigate? Let me cut to the chase. We couldn’t get in. We even got hold of one of the security officers who worked there, woke him up at home, and had him come in and swipe his key card. When that didn’t work, he tried using his keys. The place is locked down tighter than a drum. So Chief Adams had his men use axes to break in.” The man’s voice dropped. “The place is like a tomb. No lights. Dead silent. You can smell some smoke, so there definitely was a fire. Only problem is, we don’t know our way around. We need someone who knows it like the back of their hand to be our guide.”
“What about the security guard? Can’t he show you around?”
“Only until we reach the elevators. Everything beyond that level is unknown to him. G8, you’re now on the clock, Deputy. I need you to come here and be our escort.”
