“Oh,” she said, her delicate hand going to her mouth, her fingers brushing her lips where mine had been a moment ago.
“You hungry?” I asked, offering her my hand.
“I could eat,” she said, the edges of a smile dancing on her full lips. “There is just one problem. I don’t really know how to cook.”
“You don’t think I’d invite you for a meal and then make you slave over a hot stove, do you? What kind of Neanderthal do you take me for? I’m pretty good at scraping a meal together.”
“Sarah told me,” she said as we walked up the stairs to the front door.
“Did she now? What did my pest of a sister tell you exactly?” I groaned internally at the thought of the stories that Sarah would have told her. My sister was known for her loose lips. She fit in nicely with the small-town cliché. “You know you can’t believe a fraction of what she tells you.”
“So I shouldn’t believe that you’re a good guy and an awesome big brother?”
“Oh no, that you should believe. If Sarah was telling you those tales, then believe away,” I said, laughing as I held the door for her and she walked in, brushing against my chest and making all the blood leave my head and travel south to my throbbing cock.
“Who knew you were such a gentleman,” she teased, her pretty lips turning up to a sly smile.
“You haven’t seen nothin’ yet,” I said, closing the door behind us.
“Your home is so lovely,” she said, her eyes roaming the main room.
“It’s nothing fancy, but it’s home.”
“It may not be something you’d find in Manhattan, but it’s incredibly charming. You grew up here, right?”
“Yes, I was actually born in the bathroom,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck as I watched her. There was something natural about having her here, as if she belonged somehow.
“No way! You had a home birth? Your family is kind of a real-life Little House on the Prairie.”
“Don’t get carried away. We had running water and electricity.” I walked up to her and touched her shoulders before bending and whispering into her ear, “Can I take your coat? I’d really like you to stay awhile.”
“Sorry,” she said, tugging her coat off her curvy body. I took in her curves and found my mouth was watering and my mind was running with all kinds of filthy thoughts. I was sure she could see the hunger lurking in my gaze. She would think I was a damn animal.
“Any requests?” I asked, walking down the hallway toward the kitchen. I turned and saw her hesitant to follow me; she looked so damn cute, unsure as her feet glided gently on the wood floor.
“For?” she asked, biting her lips while her eyes roamed the room wildly.
I turned and walked back to her; as I got closer, she walked backwards until her back was fast against the wall and I had her caged in. I bent down and inhaled her sweet scent—gingerbread and powdered sugar. I wasn’t sure if that was her perfume or my imagination.
“What would you like for dinner?” I asked teasingly and then stepping back and watched as the flush took over her creamy flesh. My fingers glided along the bare skin of her collarbone. “You’re awfully cute when you blush.”
“I’m easy. I mean, anything is good. I like most food.” She looked down and gestured toward her body. “I mean, obviously. I’m far from skinny.”
“You’re beautiful and perfect. I don’t ever want you to ever say anything that contradicts that,” I said, taking her hand and continuing to walk down the hall. “You can sit right here,” I said, patting the stool at the end of the island.
“The kitchen must have been remodeled,” she said, getting herself accustomed to the low-back seat.
“It is. It’s probably the only part of the house that’s new. I tried to refurbish what I could. Memories and all that.” I opened the fridge and looked inside, swearing internally at the fact that I hadn’t picked up groceries all week. “Looks that I have to give you a raincheck.”
“Oh, it’s okay. I don’t have to eat.”
“Don’t be silly. I’m going to offer you a drink, let you get comfy while I run to Blitzen’s and pick up the best damn burger you’ve ever had in your entire life.”
“No, please don't go to any trouble.”
“I have a beautiful girl in my home. I’m not messing this up more than I already have. You drink beer or wine?”
“Beer please,” she said before I handed her a cold one and smiled.
“Feel free to roam where you wish. I’ll be back in a flash.”
“You sure you want to go out in this? It looks like it’s storming pretty badly,” she said as she stared out the kitchen window. “I didn’t think the snow would fall this quickly.”
“It’ll be fine. I’ve driven in way worse.”
Chapter 6
Candy
“Those burgers were amazing,” I said, staring down at my spotless plate.
“No one makes a burger like Blitzen’s,” he said, leaning back in his chair and patting his solid belly. I wasn’t sure how it was possible for a human being to have absolutely no fat on him.
“Let me get the dishes,” I said as I got up and started to clear the table.
Nic jumped up and startled me. I lost my grip on the white dinner plate, which leapt from my hand and crashed onto the hardwood floor, breaking into three solid chunks.
“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry,” I said as I bent down to pick up the mess.
“Don’t be silly. It’s just a cheap plate.” He followed me to the floor to help.
“Ouch,” I said as I looked down at the small trickle of blood falling from my index finger.
“Here, sit,” he said, pulling me off the floor and sitting me back in the same chair I’d been sitting in a moment ago.
He dashed to the kitchen, disappearing for a moment before coming back with a first aid kit. There I sat, staring at the top of his head while he was examining the tiny prick on my finger. As far as injuries went, it was absolutely nothing.
“A piece of tissue would suffice. It’s just a tiny cut,” I protested.
“I’d still feel better if I looked at it and made sure some antibiotics were on it.”
“You don’t think you’re being a tad dramatic?”
He tilted his head back, his eyes burning into mine. His fingers gently held my hand. “I take it seriously when people I care for are hurt,” he said, his voice low and serious.
Care for? I was sure it was a slip of the tongue, something that people just casually said but didn’t really mean. Still, in the short time that I’d been around Nico Rudolf, I knew that he never said anything that he didn’t mean and seldom used words lightly. I sat there silent as he bandaged up my finger.
“Where did you learn to be such a doctor?”
“Sarah,” he said as he placed a Band-Aid on my finger and then brought his lips down and kissed it. “There. All better.”
“Thanks for kissing my booboo better,” I giggled.
He rubbed the back of his neck, a frown furrowing his forehead. “Yeah, sorry about that. It’s a force of habit with the girls. I think Sarah instilled some kind of weird kissing ritual with them.”