Chapter Twenty-Two - Fletcher

I felt as if I was floating on cloud nine. The trip to Vegas, the banter and kiss, it’d completely turned us around. Maybe it was our honesty or the fact that we’d finally touched one another and let out our emotions, but either way, things felt different. Even when I went by the restaurant to check on things and the cook was thirty minutes late for his afternoon shift, it didn't matter. The feeling of warmth inside of me was deeper than lust. It was rooted in a place in my stomach that I didn’t think existed any longer. A place of trust and… need. The feeling of her in my hands made me protective. I’d never been protective of anyone other than my family. Technically, she was my family but I hadn’t known her but a few short days. After the chef arrived and I scolded him for his tardiness without threatening his job because the guy was an amazing cook, I drove back home. The lingering feeling of someone trailing me buzzed at the back of my neck. I checked my review mirrors but didn