“Especially my father. I could give a fuck.”
“You sure about that? I think you forget I am intuitive. And some shit don’t require seashells to sense. For someone as closed off as you, once in a while your thoughts broadcast at an ear-splitting volume.”
“What do you mean? Like what?”
“When you told me earlier that Jaz called you gullible, I felt something shift in your energy. And then I read it loud and clear. You’re wary of me, Kurt. There’s a big question mark over your head about if I’m trustworthy. Admit it at least. You’re kicking apples and yelling at me to be honest when you been hiding how you really feel!”
I couldn’t argue with that. He was right. I had been wary of him. I still was. But I realized now I was willing to risk my pride for this man. I liked him that much, enough to promptly stuff any wariness aside, come what may. Especially now that I’d apparently made him this paranoid about it. Paranoid enough to want to bake me a fucking pie just so he could give something back.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “You’re right. Some of what my dad said got under my skin. He said you usually only use romance for some endgame. So, I questioned whether I was being played for a fool. But only fleetingly, Orion. I don’t feel that way now.”
“No need to apologize.” He shrugged. “It’s true I take advantage of people sometimes. But I never wanted nothing from you but…you. If I manipulated you a little, it was only so I could spend time with you. You were my endgame, not your money or your food or nothing else.”
“Okay.”
“You promise you believe me?”
“I promise.” I moved closer to him and took his face gently in my hands. “Listen, okay?” His lashes fluttered as I stroked a thumb over his cheek. “I don’t require reciprocation. You didn’t need to do this.”
“I didn’t need to let you spoil me so much either, but I did. Said yes to everything from cookies to free rent. I just want to make sure we’re square and it doesn’t feel like I’m mooching.”
“You want to know a secret?” I asked.
Big, vulnerable eyes regarded me. “What?”
I leaned in and kissed him softly. His breath shivered as I eased back. “I like giving you things. I like feeding you. Spoiling you. I like succumbing to your every whim. It gives me pleasure. So see, you don’t owe me a damn thing. We’re already even. Because pleasing you pleases me.”
He eyed me with a tentative grin. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s pretty corny.”
Laughing, I nodded. “It is.”
“I still hope it’s true though.”
“It’s one hundred percent true. But want to know another secret?”
“I…guess.”
Leaning in, I gave his neck a quick bite. “I’m fucking starving. Is that baked ziti still warm?”
With a bubble of laughter, he said, “Yeah. Just took it out of the oven before I drove over.”
“Good. Open that wine, and I’ll get some plates.”
An hour later, after feasting on Orion’s surprisingly tasty baked ziti and half a bottle of wine, I was propped up in bed with him at my side. I leaned against his shoulder as he showed me pictures on his phone. “This artist here reminds me of you and your trees. I’ve talked to her, she’s super talented. Does all the craft fairs but doesn’t sell in any stores. Hoping mine will be the first.”
The photo was of a table lined with metal sculptures of various sinister-looking goblins, with exaggerated pointed chins and noses, hexagon bolts for eyes, and leering grins with steely fangs. “Interesting.”
“Right? See, your carvings aren’t the weirdest thing out there.”
It felt strange but good, casually hanging out in bed with him. I’d even let him borrow some PJ bottoms so we were both cozy while he showed me the photos from a flea market earlier. They were all of potential merchandise for when he opened his gift shop. I had no idea if Orion would ever achieve that dream, but he certainly seemed determined, and his eyes lit with passion as he showed me the wares of artists, sculptors, bakers, jam makers, jewelers, you name it. All Hillock Beach locals he wanted to one day feature in his store.
This was the kind of thing I’d only ever done with my ex-wife—sitting up in bed together, talking about our day, and our dreams for the future. It felt like a transition with Orion, a shift in our relationship, and it scared me a little, how naturally it was happening, despite our frequent spats and speed bumps. Every time he allowed me a little closer, sharing his inner world, I found myself softening, letting my guard down, something knotted inside me unraveling.
I studied his face while he talked, lamenting how smitten I was. Even more so now than before, and I knew it would get worse before this ended. I also knew I wouldn’t be the one to end it. I was helpless to resist him, even when he pissed me off.
I slid my hand up under his faded red tee shirt, and he stopped talking midsentence, closing his eyes with a smile. “What you fishing for in there?”
“Take your shirt off.”
His eyes opened and put his phone down, then shifted on the mattress to face me. “Why should I?”
I chuckled, because he was giving me his bratty smile, and I knew he intended to tease me, and make me work for it. But I was confident he craved my attention as much as I craved his, so I gave him what he wasn’t expecting—the truth, unfiltered. “Because you’re so fucking beautiful and I want to see you without your clothes. Then I wanna touch and taste it all.”
Orion’s brows shot up and he laughed. “Holy shit.”
“Problem?”
“Hell no.” He straddled me, knees on the mattress, and peeled his shirt off. I immediately smoothed my palms up his belly and over his chest, then pulled his hair tie out, letting his locks fall free. Grinning, he leaned over, pressing his hands down on my chest. “Someone’s getting bolder,” he whispered.
My touch glided down his bare sides, then reached back and squeezed his plump ass with both hands. “Someone can’t help himself.”
He hissed, and I grinned as I watched his erection bloom beneath the pajama pants, fabric straining against the outline of his cock. With a breathy laugh, he said, “I like when you say what you want and take what you want.” He glanced down at his erection. “Obviously.” He shifted his hips and my breath caught when I felt his balls rub against me.
“Obviously,” I agreed, my own body responding. I knew he could feel my cock swelling, and his smile confirmed it.
“You like that?” He moved his hips again.
“Yes,” I gasped. “I like it.”
“How much?” Still straddling me, he leaned his upper body back, one palm resting on the mattress behind him, and his stomach muscles rippled as his hips gyrated in a circular motion that did crazy things to my cock.
I was rendered mute, my breathing strained as I watched him, the sensations driving me crazy. I lifted my hips, aching for more, but when I did that, Orion rose up on his knees, breaking the contact. “Come back,” I whined.
“Don’t get greedy,” he said. “Trying to eat your cookie while it’s still too hot.”