Page 81 of Her Faithful Protector

She sat up, pulling the sheet up over her breasts. When she looked around the room, she saw one of her sleep shirts lying across the bottom of the bed. Could the man be any more thoughtful?

After she put on the shirt, she opened the door and smelled bacon.

“You interested in breakfast?” Nic called out.

Her stomach rumbled with interest.

“Yep. Let me pull on some clothes.” She’d shower after breakfast.

She went to the bathroom down the hall and took care of her morning business including brushing her teeth. She tried to tame her hair, but no matter what she did, it still looked like sex hair. A shower and shampoo after breakfast would take care of that. She threw on shorts and a t-shirt and found Nic in the dining room already, with two plates set up.

“You’re not expecting me to eat all of this, are you?” Camilla grabbed the big glass of orange juice and started drinking before she even sat down.

“We’ll just see. My guess is that you’re going to be pretty hungry. I already had a blenderful of smoothie. This is my second breakfast.”

“No wonder you go work out every day.”

“Yep, this body doesn’t happen by accident.”

Camilla plopped some of her cheesy scrambled eggs on her toast and took a bite. “This is wonderful. I’m going to have to start working out at this rate.”

“You’re perfect just the way you are.”

He sure as hell made her feel that way last night.

“So, besides my doctor’s appointment, what’s on today’s agenda?”

Nic raised his eyebrow and gave her a slow smile.

How could she go from eating breakfast to hot for his body in less than a second?

“My doctor’s appointment is in two and a half hours. I think we have some time to kill, don’t you?”

“Finish your breakfast, miss; you’re going to need your strength.”

Camilla laughed and put another forkful of cheesy eggs onto her toast. When the doorbell rang, Nic went to go answer it and she kept eating. Lately, there had been a lot of salespeople coming through the apartment complex. Nic always answered and politely told them no. He really was a nice guy.

“I want to talk to her,” she heard her mother say.

Oh, bloody hell.

Camilla hastily put down her fork and took a swig of her orange juice, then wiped her mouth with the paper towel. By the time she got up and turned around, her mother was in the middle of the living room. She was all decked out in one of her power pantsuits. She was even wearing her clunky gold choker made of real gold. Yep, she meant business, and Camilla saw red. This was the woman who had sent back Nic’s letters.

She gave Camilla a long once over and pursed her lips. “Really, this is how you’re dressing now? You look like a freshman at a community college.”

“God forbid,” Camilla said. Nic winked at her over her mother’s shoulder. It helped. Maybe she could do this without screaming like a banshee.

“You haven’t answered my calls or texts. You’ve forced me to come.”

“Actually, I didn’t Mother. I would have thought you would get the message that I didn’t want to talk to you right now. And I don’t. I’m pissed off at you, and it’s going to take a long time before I can talk to you in a reasonable tone.”

Her mother pulled up her purse strap and stood straighter. “Really, Camilla, I don’t condone language like that. Clearly, this man has been a bad influence. Get your things, we’re leaving now.”

“Like hell we are. The only person who’s leaving is you.”

“Camilla Anne, don’t take that tone with me, it’s uncouth. I don’t want you dragged through the mud. You need to—”

“I’ve had it—” Nic started.