William walked out of the shop holding Jessica as he carried her back into the main house. "Ok, little fox, where do you want to nap? In the living room, library, or my bed?" He asked her.
Jessica muttered, "Ni, ni." As she snuggled into William. She was not providing an answer, just that she was tired.
William determined having her in the living room was probably the best location because she would know where she was. Also, the couch in the living room was more comfortable than the one in the library. As much as he would want her in his bed if she woke up not knowing where she was, she would be afraid, which is the last thing he would like for her.
Walking into the house, he brought her to the couch. He was careful lowering her to the couch. Jessica gripped his shirt as she snuggled closer to him. William kissed her hands and gently pulled them away. Seeing her facial expression change, William removed his flannel shirt that she was gripping and put it back into her hands.
Jessica grabs the fabric and brings it up to her face and breathes in deeply the smell of lemon and wood, and sighs.
William grabs a couple of pillows and moves one for her head to rest on, then puts two next to each other between her legs so her leg is slightly elevated. Finally, he pulls the blanket from the back of the couch and covers her.
Once Jessica is covered in the blanket, she snuggles her back against the couch's backrest and pulls the blanket in close, all while still holding on to William's shirt.
William kisses the top of her head, saying. "Rest now, little fox, and I will wake you when it's time for lunch." Then he rises, looking around to ensure the fire is still going, and lowers the lights.
William grabs some water bottles from the frig. Then walks back into the shop shortly after to go over the rest of the tasks for the guys. He called over the guys and handed them each a water bottle. "RJ and JR, for meal prep lunch, just make cold-cut sandwiches because Jessica is sleeping in the living room."
"You got it, Wolf." Taking the bottles of water, they both replied and began to finish what they were doing to start to clean up to prepare for lunch.
"Tank?" William called out.
"Over here, Wolf," Tank shouted from Paul's station.
William walked over, passed them each a water bottle, and looked to see what they were doing. "What are you guys working on?" William asked.
Paul replied, taking the water bottle, "I wanted Tank's opinion on a detail I wanted to add, but not sure how to add it or if it would be worth it."
Tank said as he opened his water bottle from William, "The detail is quite cool, and we were brainstorming how to include it in this piece, but also how to add it to offer a complete set." Patting Paul on the shoulder.
William looked at the two and smiled. "Sounds like your two are focused on work, but could you help me with something in a bit?"
Tank stood up, and Paul turned to look at William. "How can we help, Wolf?" They both said and chuckled.
William responded, "Ok, for the shopping trip, I want to ensure we have enough space for everything Jessica needs. Can you both do a once-over on my truck and the SUV? Also, don't make it too clean, if you know what I mean."
Paul nods, "I understand, Wolf." Tank nods. Then the two of them also began to finish their work. Paul grabs his bag and heads out the door toward the garage. Tank grabs his bag from the chair at his desk and fist-bumps William before he leaves.
William heads over to his desk and sits in the chair Jessica was in, and it is still damp from her. He smiles as he can smell her scent all over the chair. He makes a mental note to ensure he is the only one using this chair. After finalizing some details, he closes his computer.
"See you later, Wolf." The twins shout as they exit the shop and head toward the house.
The guys have cleared out of the shop, so it is his job to lock it up. William verifies all the bay doors are closed and locked. How do I already miss touching her? I want her next to me, touching me now. William thought as he walked to the shop's main entrance to lock the door. His attachment to Jessica was growing more substantial, and he was learning that he did want to care for her.
With the click of the lock, William jogs back to the house and walks directly to Jessica, who is still asleep on the couch. William hears her slight snore, which he finds endearing. He lifts her head, removes the pillow, and rests her head on his lap as he sits down. Gently pulling her short hair free, he twists strands in his hand. Jessica makes a sudden sound that causes William to freeze, as he intended not to wake her but to be touching her.
Not fully coherent, Jessica says, "Mmmm... Wolfie... Yum." Moving her free hand to rest on his thigh and paws at the fabric. She says as she drifts back to sleep, "Mine."
William's face beams with a smile at the small dreamy statement his little fox made. Yours, my little fox. William thought as he played with her hair and turned on the tv very low. Flipping through the channels, he found an animated movie and enjoyed the subtitles as he listened to her breathe. He noticed that her breathing sounded a little wheezy as she exhaled and could hear the slight high pitch whine as she breathed in toward the end. These were signs that her airway was starting to restrict, and eventually, she would need her inhaler. William fished the inhaler carefully out of his pocket and placed it on the table in front of them so she could see it when she wakes up. If her breathing gets louder, I will need to wake her up. William thought as he noticed her breathing start to steady and stay consistent but still wheezy.
Meanwhile, as Jessica slept, she dreamt of William and his scent enveloping her. The smell faded but was still around as she walked in her dream. Seeing the purple fox and large wolf again, she smiled. "Hi, friends," she said to the animals. The fox perked its head up, excited to see her. The gray wolf's ears flicked to hear her speak, and his tongue hung from his face. The look on the wolf's face made her giggle. "I'm happy to see you too," she said with a smile. The sun was setting in her dream, and she excused herself from the animals who woofed and yipped at her in reply.
Her dream carried her to the cabin bedroom, and she was lying down and felt movement and then a strong scent of wood and lemon, which had to be William. "Mmmm, My Wolfie. Smells yum." Jessica said as she cuddled closer to the scent and released a "Mine" as she settled back to sleep. The warmth of what her head was resting on lulled her into rem sleep, along with someone playing with her hair. William would likely be the person doing it, as no one else had her permission to touch her. She felt cared for and cherished at this moment.
JR and RJ were in the kitchen prepping the sandwiches and being as quiet as possible. William was amazed at how calm they were. He looked over to see that the twins had distributed the tasks so that neither would get in the other's way. I guess they do want to go shopping with us. William thought with a chuckle.
Tank and Paul came in from the side door connected to the garage. They looked around and signaled to William, asking if Jessica was still asleep. All the years in the military together, they had made communicating like this efficient. William nodded, and then Tank and Paul went to the kitchen to set the table.
Paul opted for sturdy paper plates and put water bottles on the table. Nothing they were going to be eating required utensils, but in case, he put out a picnic container that had everything they would need.
Tank assessed the work the Twins were doing and gave them each a pat on the back. RJ was making three different sandwiches, and JR was prepping sides that were finger foods.
JR and RJ finished prep and gestured to William that the food was ready, and they awaited orders on when to serve.
William looked down at Jessica, still asleep, and said 30 min with hand gestures.
The Guys all nodded and went to clean up the kitchen quietly. They were moving all the items into the dishwasher and wiping down the counters. Making sure everything was cleaned up quickly and allowing them to join William in the living room to watch the movie with him.
JR and RJ went to their regular places, and each grabbed a blanket and sat on the ground at both ends of the couch. They grabbed pillows and, in sync, put them behind their backs and rested their head on the couch arms.
They are so much alike that it is almost scary at times. William thought.
Tank sat at Jessica's feet, making sure not to disturb her. He tucked the blanket, ready to fall off back in place, and William nodded.
Paul gestured to sit on the ground in front of Jessica, and William nodded. Paul grabbed a blanket and pillow and pushed the coffee table away from the couch so he had space to lie down and still see the tv.
With everyone in place, they sat almost guarding Jessica as she rested, watching the movie.
The movie was nearing the end as Jessica began to stir to wake up. Starting by stretching her legs, but they ran into something. Her brow creased as she pulled her legs back. Her eyes shot open, and she looked down where her feet were to see Tank.
"It's just me, Miss Jessica," Tank said with his arms in the air.
She turned her head to see William looking at her with concern. "Are you alright, little fox?" William asked.
She looked around the room to see that all the guys were around her. She wasn't expecting to wake up and see all of them staring at her. Pulling the blanket closer, she looked back up at William, and he could sense her fear.
"Hey, guys, can you give us a minute and put the food on the table?" William asked.
"Sure thing," they all said as they got up from where they were. The twins stood first as they put the pillows and blankets they each had back onto the other furniture. Paul's location gave her some comfort that he was in front of her. Tank's location was, ok. It was just unexpected.
Paul pulled the coffee table back in place as he left the room.
Lifting Jessica to sit on his lap, although he would much rather have her straddle it, William asked again, "Are you alright, Little Fox?" He reached for her inhaler and handed it to her.
After administering her two puffs, she looked up, saying, "Thank You, I'm ok, I think," Jessica whispered.
"What was wrong so I can prevent you from waking up scared?" William asked as he adjusted her so she was straddling his lap.
"Um... do they normally sit like that, on the couch?" Jessica asked.
"Well, normally, we spread out a bit more, but like myself, I think the guys wanted to be near you. The only other time I have seen them all act that way was when we were watching precious cargo." William said, then continued, "And I think you are exceptional."
Jessica blushed and rested her head on his shoulder. "Oh, but I'm no precious cargo. I'm just me."
"And that is why you are precious cargo in their eyes. You are special to me, and I think because they see that. They want to help protect you as well. If it's too much, I can have them stand down." William said.
"Oh no, it's ok, but maybe not all so close next time," Jessica said as she traced a circle on his shirt.
"That I can do." tilting her head to look at him, he asked, "Anything else you want to say, little fox?
