Declan

Chapter Twenty Seven

Lexi ~

Seeing Declan's massive figure in the doorway made Lexi's lungs and muscles relax as if she had been holding her breath since he'd left. Her eyes bounced from one part of his body to the next as she inspected him. 

Understanding immediately what she was looking for, Declan gave her a smile, lifted his hands and gave her a 360 degree turn.

"No cuts, no holes," he said as he turned, displaying his body as proof.

The powerful emotions that coursed through Lexi were unlike anything she'd ever felt before and she gave into them fully. Bounding into his arms, Lexi's body slammed into his and she pressed every inch of herself into him. His arms wrapped around her tight as he gave her a squeeze and audibly inhaled the scent of her hair.

"Hey there, gorgeous."

Refusing to lift her head from his chest just yet, she listened to the rumble and vibrations of his deep voice as he spoke.

"Miss me?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," she said, lifting her head to rest her chin on his chest.

Looking down at her Declan gave her a smile that made her knees weak before turning his attention to Kincaid.

"Thanks for your help, brother," Declan said as he unwrapped himself from around Lexi.

"Anytime, man."

"Are you uh... you going to fill me in on what went down last night?" Kincaid asked cautiously, shooting his gaze to Lexi and then back again.

Declan gave him a slight nod before addressing Lexi.

"Give us a minute, gorgeous?"

He asked her if he could have a minute with his teammate. He asked - didn't command like he could have or probably should have, since whatever they needed to talk about seemed to be classified information.

"Of course. Handle business Boss. I'll be right in here when you're done." She lifted herself onto her tip toes and landed a kiss on his jaw. Using the phrase that unhinged him the night before he left was extra incentive to make his conversation brief.

"I'll make it quick."

Crawling into the bed and flipping on the TV, she anxiously waited for Declan. Mostly because she wanted to get her hands on him, but partially because something was definitely going on and she wanted to see if he'd spill the beans. After some thought, she could wrap her mind around why Declan had Kincaid come check on her. With everything that went down in Vegas, she could see why his mind would go there, but why did Declan ask him to stay? Not only that, but Kincaid's behavior was indicative of a possible threat. He swept through every room in the house including the closets. Why? Not to mention the fact that he hadn't slept a wink. He stayed in the living room on high alert, periodically pacing the house and peering through the blinds. He was clearly on the lookout, but for who? 

Kincaid's alertness was concerning, but she felt completely safe in Declan's home. Kincaid was almost as large as Declan, but not nearly as rugged. He was clean shaven and he had a high and tight military haircut, but looked just as dominant - just as lethal as Declan and the other men on his team. Her trust and faith in Declan was unwavering, but her curiosity was getting the best of her. What is going on?

The clicking of the door handle caught her attention and she lit up as Declan entered the room.

"Later, Lex!" Kincaid called out from behind him.

"Bye Kincaid!" She returned.

Declan walked around to the side of the bed and Lexi moved to meet him there. 

Scooting herself to the edge, she sat with her legs hanging over the side. Assuming he was coming in for a kiss she was ready to rise to meet his lips, but he dropped to his knees in front of her instead. The swift motion and thud of his body caught her by surprise. 

His eyes were tired as he grabbed her ass and pulled it toward him causing her to have to part her legs on either side of his torso. At first she thought he was coming on to her, which she definitely wouldn't have hated, but the look in his eyes wasn't lust. It wasn't desire. He was giving her a look that she couldn't place. 

He snaked his massive arms underneath hers and pulled her close as he pressed his head against her chest and closed his eyes. She instinctively enveloped her body around his, resting her cheek on his head and running her fingers through the back of his hair.

Lexi didn't speak. She didn't know what he had seen, or what he had done in the past forty eight hours, but she knew if he needed to talk about it, he would. He was taking what he needed, soaking her in and slowly unwinding himself. It felt like his muscles were relaxing one by one the longer she held him and his grip on her loosened with every exhale.

"I missed you," he finally said as he brought his eyes to meet hers.

"I missed you too."

She gave him a warm smile before it fell slightly at the sight of a cut on the side of his face.

"Hey! I thought you said no cuts."

"Shit, that's barely a scratch."

She covered the skin around it in light kisses before pulling away.

"Did you sleep at all or did you stay up with Kincaid?

"I tried to sleep but I ended up just laying in here watching the ceiling fan spin."

"How much sleep did you get before I sent Kincaid to wake your ass up?" He joked.

"About an hour."

She waited for a beat to see if he was going to elaborate before asking him about Kincaid.

"Are you going to tell me what all that was about?" She asked.

Running his hand through his hair roughly, Declan closed his eyes tight before he answered her.

"Yeah. It's a long story, but you need to hear it."

Exhaustion radiated off of Declan as he prepared to tell her his long story, and as much as Lexi did want to hear it, she knew Declan needed to rest. Her need to take care of him trumped her curiosity. 

Deciding to cut him off before he could speak was rude, but necessary.

"It can wait, Dec," she said as she started to run her hands up and down his back.

"What? Why?"

"Because you're exhausted. Whatever you have to tell me can wait a few more hours."

Unwrapping herself from Declan's hold, Lexi slid herself back onto the bed and crawled inside the covers, leaving his side uncovered as an unspoken invitation.

"Are you going to make me sleep alone?"

A lazy smile lifted the corner of his mouth before he stood up and removed his shirt.

"Never."

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