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“You’d do that?”
“Without a second’s worth of hesitation.”
Her smile allowed me to know I’d at least said the right thing.
“Okay, but just for tonight,” she said. “Dinner sounds good. My baby needs to eat.” She broke our connection, but she allowed the gaze to remain for a few seconds longer. “I’ll go pack.”
By the time she reached the door, I had to laugh. “There’s just one little problem.”
“Oh, yeah? What’s that?”
“There’s no food at my house.”
The admittance caught her off guard, the light in her eyes returning as she looked at me. “You know what? I think I can handle that.”
CHAPTER 17
Jessie
“That was without a doubt the most incredible spaghetti dinner I’ve ever had,” Sebastian said as soon as I returned to the living room.
“Uh-huh. If I had to venture a guess, I’d say you’re used to eating filet and lobster tail, likely never resorting to a cheap meal like spaghetti.” I was surprised he’d lowered the lights, even lighting the two candles Walter had placed on the flat hearth in front of the fire. The warmth and beauty were exactly what my fragile soul needed.
Even if I didn’t want to admit it to the man who’d done everything that he could to protect me. I wasn’t good at letting anyone come to my defense, especially a man, but I’d been terrified of James, his actions entirely different than before. Being here with Sebastian somehow felt right. At least I might be able to get some sleep.
He acted as if he was hurt from what I’d just said, placing his hand against his heart, sputtering several times. “I’ll have you know my brother and I used to demand we eat nothing but spaghetti when we were younger.”
“Let me guess. Made fancy by the chef.” I eased down onto the rug, curling my legs under me. He’d opened a second bottle of wine, which maybe I didn’t need but it was also nice not to have rotgut varietal grapes.
“Okay, you got me there.” We both laughed and I wanted so much to ask him questions about his past life and his current one, but the day had drained me all the way around.
Maybe it had him as well.
We sat quietly, saying nothing, simply staring into the fire. I pulled the full glass of wine to my lips, inhaling the rich scent, but it was nothing in comparison to the tingling sensations coursing through me from his aftershave.
I’d never found a single man’s cologne so enthralling before, but the citrus and spice, sandalwood and mossy forest tinged with his own heightened level of testosterone was breathtaking. I could easily get drunk off the fragrance. The wine had nothing in comparison to the man. I almost giggled from the ridiculous thought. He’d been so disarming, insisting on helping me make as much out of dinner as possible with the limited food available.
He hadn’t been kidding about the refrigerator being bare, the pantry as well. He’d acted as if the coffee and creamer I’d brought for the morning was nirvana directly from the gods. He’d been playful, remaining barefooted the entire time. He’d made both Britta and me feel at ease, even enjoying the children’s music I’d allowed Britta to select.
At least now, he’d switched it to sultry Spanish guitar, one of my favorites. I doubted he could have found that in whatever documentation had been provided about Sarah, the girl behind the thick mask of steel. That’s the way I’d thought of myself for so long, pretending nothing and no one could disarm me. Somehow in the span of a couple days, this arrogant, sensual, and very addictive man had managed to draw me out of my comfort zone kicking and screaming.
I was still kicking but the only screaming I wanted to do was writhing underneath him. I couldn’t help myself, tossing him sinful, secretive stares every few seconds. In the warm glow of the fire, his eyes were shining like beacons of sin.
“Why do you think James wants back in your life?”
“Oh, it’s not about me,” I said. “He wants Britta and I don’t get it.”
“Men like him take possessions.”
“You mean powerful men like you?”
He half smiled. “I’ve been known to take a thing or two, but when a child is involved, even I’m not that crass.”
“I’ve been told he’s siccing the state on me, having a social visitor come to see if I’ve provided for my own daughter.” I gazed into the fire, feeling a strange closeness with him even though we were basically strangers. Maybe I just needed to trust someone like he’d suggested.
“You have nothing to worry about.”
“You’ve seen my house. James is rich. He can provide her with so much more. He could now if the bastard would just pay child support.”
