Page 56 of Found Through Fire

Nope, I made the plans to lead you on your vegan journey! We should start right away if we are going to get the toxins out of your body before you go back. How do you feel about kombucha tea instead of beer?

Future-Mr-Fox

This is what Smoke was talking about when he said he couldn’t tell if you were kidding.

Me

That can be a struggle.

Future-Mr-Fox

So…you’re kidding right?

Me

I gotta get ready for work but I’ll see you at 6:30. Bye!!!

Future-Mr-Fox

Babe?

Fine. I’ll see you at 6:30.

I laugh as I finish getting ready. I’m loving the fact that Knox texted me today when he knew that I would be struggling.

When I finally get home afterall of my meetings at the club and visiting the garage, I am peopled out. I head straight for my room, get undressed, and take a hot shower. Once I’m done and feeling more relaxed after my stressful day, I put on my cotton shorts, tank top, and fuzzy frog socks, and pile my hair into a messy bun that resembles a haystack instead of the cute ones you see on Pinterest.

I make my way down to the kitchen and start on dinner. I was so busy today I forgot to eat lunch, so I decided to go big for dinner and make a lasagna recipe that I have been wanting to try from the Food Network. Trashy reality TV and cooking shows are the only thing I really watch when I have time—maybe a murder documentary if I’m feeling crazy.

Just as I put the lasagna in the oven, my gate notification goes off on my phone. I check it and see that it’s Knox, waiting on his bike. I wipe my hands on a towel and start walking to the front door. By the time I make it there, he starts knocking. I force open the door before the butterflies start in my stomach.

It doesn’t help that when I open it completely, he is standing on my porch, looking at me with his crooked smile. His hair is up in another man bun, and he is wearing a tight, white V-neck under his cut with dark wash jeans. I feel the smile on my face growing as I give a lame “hi” and step aside so he can come in.

He walks through the door, drops the backpack that I didn’t even notice he was carrying, and turns to me. His arms shoot out, wrap around my waist, and pull me into his body in a tight hug. He rests his head on the top of mine, breathes deeply, and says, “It smells too good in here for vegan dinner,” making me laugh. He releases me a little and looks down at me.

“I’m pretty much a vegan master chef at this point. You would never know,” I say, trying to act normal despite being so nervous that my hands are sweating.

“For you, I would eat soy, but only for you,” he says in a joking voice.

“Good to know for future reference. But I guess we will have to make do with the lasagna I made instead,” I say, wanting to get out of the entry hall. Maybe with some space between us, I can calm the fuck down. “Let me show you the guest room so you can put your stuff in there,” I say as I turn away from him and head towards the hall. I put him in one of the rooms at the end, and Grey in the one right next to him. He follows me as I walk, looking more confused with every room that we pass. He has already seen my room when him and Jackson drove me to the airport, so I don’t get why he looks confused.

“Shouldn’t I be closer to your room if I’m supposed to be your back up?” he asks after we are two doors down from my room.

“I pretty much put you in the closest one to me. The door to the right of my room is an office, and the one to the left is my library,” I answer. I’m even nervous about him being four doors down from me. I’ve never lived in this close of quarters with someone that I find attractive, besides Grey—but that was different. We were both working, and he was always in his room, plus I was gone all day.

“I can give you a tour of the house if you want. I mean, you will be staying here, so you should know where everything is. But we should probably wait for Grey so he can know, too,” I ramble on as the nerves build up again and I start wringing my hands.

“Willow,” he says as he grabs my shoulders, signaling for me to stop talking. “A tour would be great,” he says while giving me another smile. I take a breath and turn to open the door to the guest room that I put him in. It’s nice, but basic; I haven’t taken the time to personalize the guest rooms yet, since I was busy with the rest of the house. It’s painted the same light grey color as the rest of the house with white trim. Knox looks around and sees the king-sized bed.

“I got the bigger beds because only my brothers have stayed at the house, and they are giants. The door over there is the walk-in closet, and the bathroom is across the hall. Feel free to unpack and meet me downstairs whenever you want. Dinner should take another forty-five minutes.” The nerves are evident in my voice.

“I don’t have much to unpack. I’ll come down with you,” is all he replies as he tosses his backpack on the bed and turns around to follow me. I decide to stop talking and just walk back to the kitchen.

I say nothing on the way there while Knox walks behind me. When we enter the kitchen, I head straight to the fridge and open it. “Do you want something to drink? I have beer, wine, water.” I stop talking when I feel hands on my waist and am lifted off the floor and placed on the counter next to the fridge. Usually, I would have freaked out about being man-handled. I may be small, but I have legs that work just fine.

I was about to say something when Knox braces his hands on both sides of me on top of the counter and leans forward, so close that our noses are almost touching, and looks into my eyes.

“Hi,” is all that he says. I can feel his breath on my face, and my nerves melt away as I start smiling at him.