She giggled as she felt his finger trace down her spine. "Ronan," she whispered, smiling again as she wriggled under his touch. "Ronan," she repeated, a little louder this time, as she forced some space between them.

He leaned back a little, her eyes staring at him. "Whaaaattt?" he groaned. "I'm in the middle of something here."

"Oh, I know very well what you're in the middle of, but um…we seriously have to get out of this bed at some point because um…I don't have any of my things. No shoes, no clothes…"

"You don't need clothes," Ronan whispered, gently moving her hair away from her neck again.

Her eyes closed as she felt his lips meet her skin. Jesus he was hard to resist. "I just think at some point I might need clothes, so why don't I just go back to the club and get a few things."

Kelly felt his arm tighten around her. "No," he said quietly. "You can't go back there. It's not safe."

"Ronan," she sighed. "We can't stay trapped in here forever. We're going to have to go out at some point."

The look in his eyes wasn't about control and quite honestly, it frightened her. He was serious, perhaps more serious than she'd seen him. The feeling of his hand as it gently cupped her cheek was normally such a comfort, but this time she detected a slight tremor. If he was this shaken, was there more to it?

She brought her hand to touch his. "You can't protect me every second, Ronan. No one can do that."

He sighed. "Just trust me on this, please. If you need things, I'll go get them, ok?"

"Why is it any safer for you than it is for me? I still don't understand why they want to hurt me?"

Ronan shook his head. "It's not about you. It's about me, but I can't explain all that to. The less you know…the safer you are."

"Can I at least go with you?" She trusted him, though she wasn't exactly sure why. "I mean, if you're so certain they're out to get me, doesn't that mean you're in danger too? You're so worried about protecting me, but whose protecting you?"

It had been so long since he had someone worrying about him. Sure his mother worried, but this was different—this was someone that didn't have to worry—someone that had no reason to be connected to him—someone that was choosing him, choosing to take on his burdens. He hadn't had anything like that since…..

And he saw how that ended.

He reached out, putting both hands on her face, his eyes staring into hers. "Please don't fight me on this," he whispered. "I know you want to help me and I appreciate it. I really do, but the best thing you can do for me is to stay here. I'll be fine. I'm trained and I know what I'm doing. As long as I know you're here and you're safe, I can focus and do what I need to do. I'll be back before you know it. Just promise me, you'll stay here and you won't let anyone in this room. You understand?"

The look in his eyes was so incredibly serious that for a moment she was almost frightened. It was almost as if he sensed it.

"Hey," his voice was softer now. "I'm not trying to scare you. That's the last thing I want to do. I just need you to understand. This isn't a game. This guy isn't a joke. He's not playing. Hurting people isn't something that bothers him. He's done it before…he'll do it again."

"Ronan…I…" Her voice shook as she tried to speak.

Damn it. He'd said too much. He'd frightened her. "Look at me," he commanded softly.

Her eyes shifted up to look into his. Reaching out slowly, he took her hands in his. "I swear to you, I will keep you safe. Nothing will happen to you as long as I'm alive." He could feel the slight tremble in her touch, but she nodded and forced a small smile.

"Ok," she whispered. "I trust you. I'll stay here until you get back. I swear."

He nodded, his eyes closing in grateful thanks as he pulled her in close to his chest. His lips pressed against her temple before he released her. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Ronan," Kelly said quietly. "I need clothes," she smiled, "Not just lingerie."

"Damn it," he hissed, "How did you know that was my plan?" He shook his head as he smiled at her. The handle of the door felt heavy in his hand as he stared at her sitting on the bed. She'd be fine, he silently assured himself. "Keep this locked," he said quietly, watching her nod in the affirmative before he closed the door.


Kelly leaned back on the bed, slowly pressing the buttons on the television remote. It had been ages since she watched television. Somehow back in Llanview life was always too busy and now her life was too dangerous to be busy. Maybe it was her, she thought to herself. Maybe the drama just followed her wherever she went.

The soft knock on the door brought a smile to her face. She stood, softly padding over to the door. "Ronan," she called. "Is this a test?"

"Delivery." A man's voice called out.

Kelly stilled, her heart suddenly beating faster. "I haven't ordered anything," she said quietly.

"It was ordered about twenty minutes ago," the voice said. "Grocery delivery for a Ronan Malloy."

Kelly felt a sigh escape her lungs. Ronan probably called in an order for groceries thinking he'd beat them back. He certainly hadn't planned for company and his cabinets weren't stocked for cooking.

"Okay," she said cheerfully, pulling open the door. The man smiled politely, handing her the bags and providing the clipboard for her to sign. He handed her a copy of the slip, nodded, and walked away.

Kelly stepped back into the room, placing the three paper bags on the table. She unloaded them, placing the items in their appropriate places. After everything was unpacked, she grabbed a bottle of water and an apple and returned to the bed. It was such a simple gesture to order groceries and yet it was far more than she would have ever expected him to do. More than that, his choices had clearly been geared to her tastes. Fruit, turkey, vegetables, hummus, bottled water—certainly not the foods a man enjoying bachelor life would normally consume.

She breathed in deeply as she took a bite of the apple. This certainly wasn't the ideal circumstance, but she was grateful to be spending it with a man like Ronan. Maybe in all this mess, he was her silver lining.