she started asking him personal questions.
“So do you make everything from scratch? That pizza is starting to smell really good. I could eat a horse.”
Kaylee giggled and pulled the fixings for a salad from the refrigerator. “We just had lunch six hours ago. I don’t usually eat two big meals in a day.”
“Logan said you’re a great cook.”
She turned a pretty pink and began chopping up greens. “Logan’s only had a few things I’ve made but he was an appreciative audience. I swear those two live off pizza and cheesecake.”
“I promise I’ll be just as grateful. I don’t cook much for myself. This is a real treat.”
Her face glowed with happiness and he felt something lurch in his chest. She was a nice woman, pretty and smart. The kind his mother would have told him was “a keeper.”
But he didn’t keep anyone anymore.
* * * *
“Do you want any coffee?” Kaylee asked. They’d had dinner, talked about books, movies, and music, and generally got to know each other without getting too personal. She’d learned that Reed was indeed an introvert who enjoyed quiet evenings reading a variety of books. In fact, she’d given him one of hers and he said he was going to start it right away.
“No, thank you.” Reed shook his head. “What do you normally do in the evenings? I don’t want to get in your way. You know, just pretend I’m not here.”
There was no way that was going to happen. Effortlessly and as if he didn’t care one way or the other, he took over every room he was in. He’d be the perfect Dominant in her next book.
“If it’s nice, I sit out on the back patio and read or write. It’s covered and screened in, plus there’s a heater for when it’s chilly.”
“That sounds great. As I said, if you need to work just ignore me.”
She with her laptop and he with his book settled on the glider sofa with its overstuffed, bright red cushions. Snapping on the small lamp next to him, Reed stretched out his long legs to read while she turned on the propane heater. It glowed in the dim light and she instantly felt the heat begin to warm the chill that had descended quickly after sundown. It was late in October and winter was just around the corner.
Opening her laptop, she tried to concentrate on her work in progress but the presence of the man next to her made it almost impossible. She could feel his body heat and smell the clean scent of his skin. Her fingers itched to reach out and touch him, running her hands along the dips and planes of his muscles. She’d only had a glimpse of them yesterday but it had been enough to fire up her imagination for the last twenty-four hours.
“You’re really good,” Reed murmured, still intent on the pages of the paperback. “I mean really good, Kaylee.”
She felt a flood of warmth invade her from head to toe. She was hard on herself at the best of times, and hearing praise from someone she liked and respected meant more than he could imagine.
“Thank you. I’m glad you like it. I was kind of afraid to give it to you if you want the truth.”
They were speaking softly although there wasn’t another living soul around, her neighbors inside to escape the dropping temperature. But wrapped in the gray darkness it seemed right and proper to keep their voices down.
“You have a gift of revealing a human’s strengths and weaknesses with love and humor while at the same time keeping the tension between them high.”
Tears pricked the back of her eyes. He got it. He really got what she was trying to do in her stories and her chest tightened at the overwhelming feeling of being understood. She had regular friends and writer friends and only a few ever really comprehended what she was trying to convey. Ava was one of them and now this man.
“Thank you,” she said again, her voice thick. “You know, I didn’t expect you to be a book kind of guy.”
Luckily he didn’t take offense at her awkwardly worded statement. Instead
“So do you make everything from scratch? That pizza is starting to smell really good. I could eat a horse.”
Kaylee giggled and pulled the fixings for a salad from the refrigerator. “We just had lunch six hours ago. I don’t usually eat two big meals in a day.”
“Logan said you’re a great cook.”
She turned a pretty pink and began chopping up greens. “Logan’s only had a few things I’ve made but he was an appreciative audience. I swear those two live off pizza and cheesecake.”
“I promise I’ll be just as grateful. I don’t cook much for myself. This is a real treat.”
Her face glowed with happiness and he felt something lurch in his chest. She was a nice woman, pretty and smart. The kind his mother would have told him was “a keeper.”
But he didn’t keep anyone anymore.
* * * *
“Do you want any coffee?” Kaylee asked. They’d had dinner, talked about books, movies, and music, and generally got to know each other without getting too personal. She’d learned that Reed was indeed an introvert who enjoyed quiet evenings reading a variety of books. In fact, she’d given him one of hers and he said he was going to start it right away.
“No, thank you.” Reed shook his head. “What do you normally do in the evenings? I don’t want to get in your way. You know, just pretend I’m not here.”
There was no way that was going to happen. Effortlessly and as if he didn’t care one way or the other, he took over every room he was in. He’d be the perfect Dominant in her next book.
“If it’s nice, I sit out on the back patio and read or write. It’s covered and screened in, plus there’s a heater for when it’s chilly.”
“That sounds great. As I said, if you need to work just ignore me.”
She with her laptop and he with his book settled on the glider sofa with its overstuffed, bright red cushions. Snapping on the small lamp next to him, Reed stretched out his long legs to read while she turned on the propane heater. It glowed in the dim light and she instantly felt the heat begin to warm the chill that had descended quickly after sundown. It was late in October and winter was just around the corner.
Opening her laptop, she tried to concentrate on her work in progress but the presence of the man next to her made it almost impossible. She could feel his body heat and smell the clean scent of his skin. Her fingers itched to reach out and touch him, running her hands along the dips and planes of his muscles. She’d only had a glimpse of them yesterday but it had been enough to fire up her imagination for the last twenty-four hours.
“You’re really good,” Reed murmured, still intent on the pages of the paperback. “I mean really good, Kaylee.”
She felt a flood of warmth invade her from head to toe. She was hard on herself at the best of times, and hearing praise from someone she liked and respected meant more than he could imagine.
“Thank you. I’m glad you like it. I was kind of afraid to give it to you if you want the truth.”
They were speaking softly although there wasn’t another living soul around, her neighbors inside to escape the dropping temperature. But wrapped in the gray darkness it seemed right and proper to keep their voices down.
“You have a gift of revealing a human’s strengths and weaknesses with love and humor while at the same time keeping the tension between them high.”
Tears pricked the back of her eyes. He got it. He really got what she was trying to do in her stories and her chest tightened at the overwhelming feeling of being understood. She had regular friends and writer friends and only a few ever really comprehended what she was trying to convey. Ava was one of them and now this man.
“Thank you,” she said again, her voice thick. “You know, I didn’t expect you to be a book kind of guy.”
Luckily he didn’t take offense at her awkwardly worded statement. Instead
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