Page 39 of You Know You Wanna

I padded over to her kitchenette quietly on my bare feet, grabbing my underwear and shorts and pulling them on as I went. Then I put on some coffee and leaned against the counter while I waited for it to brew. Last night, I hadn’t been particularly interested in looking at anything other than her, but with her still sleeping soundly now, my gaze roamed around her cabin. As compact as it was, I had to admit that it was more homey and cozy even than my penthouse back in Manhattan.

Her entire place could’ve fit in my foyer, but mine didn’t have a patch on hers in terms of character. Seriously.

Every wall was a different color, sunshine yellow, bright purple, burnt orange, and a forest green. It should’ve been offensive, but oddly, it was warm and comforting. Just like the woman who’d painted them.

A variety of prints and pictures hung on each wall, every available surface a tapestry of places, people, and things that she loved. She appeared to have a particular fondness for floral prints, and while I generally thought of those as either old fashioned or tacky, they somehow worked here, in her little universe.

Meanwhile, her furniture was an eclectic collection of things that looked like they’d come from thrift and antique stores, her décor really cool and in the same style. As I took it all in, a grin I couldn’t stop spread on my lips.

I’d been in many places in my life, but this had to be the residence that most resembled the person living in it that I’d ever seen. A soft swish of steam pulled my attention to the coffeemaker just as the black gold started running into the mug I’d readied, and once mine was done, I made one for her as well.

Just in time, as it turned out. The coffee was barely finished filling her mug when I heard a soft groan emanating from the bed. I glanced at it just in time to see her flip the duvet over her head. “Why are you up so early?”

I chuckled. “Good morning, sleepyhead. I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“Nah.” She lazily peeked out at me from under the covers, looking incredibly fucking adorable while she did. “Judging by the amount of light in here, this is my wake-up time. I wonder why my alarm didn’t go off.”

The words had barely left her mouth when her phone started blaring. She laughed, her hand shooting out to silence the thing before she sat up. Keeping the duvet over her chest, she stretched out and smiled, turning to eye the coffee on the counter. “One of those is mine.”

“It is.”

She smiled. “Yeah, I wasn’t asking.”

I motioned at the mug in front of me. “Just tell me how you take it and I’ll fix it for you.”

“A true knight in shining armor,” she said playfully, apparently in as good a mood when she woke up as she was at any other time of day.

This woman boggled my mind. I had no idea how she was so damn cheerful all the time.

“Half a sugar and a splash of cream,” she said. “They say it’s better for your health to have it black, but I’m not quite there yet.”

“I hear you. I take mine the same way.”

I made hers exactly as I’d fixed my own. Then I carried it over to the bed and handed it to her before I sat down at the foot of it. “You sleep well?”

“Better than ever.” Her blue eyes practically twinkled in the early morning light when she smiled. “How long do you have? I’m assuming you have to go collect Lulu from her sleepover?”

“In a few,” I replied easily, genuinely surprised by how not awkward this morning-after was. “We’re going to breakfast. Do you want to join us?”

Seeming pleasantly surprised, she dipped her chin in a nod. “Sure. That sounds great. You don’t think she’d mind?”

I scoffed down a laugh. “Please. She likes you better than she likes me. We’re all good. Trust me.”

“Okay, then,” she said happily. “Do we have time to finish our coffee before we head out?”

I reclined on my side, stretching out on her bed and propping my head in my hand, careful not to spill my coffee. “We’ve got plenty of time. I just need to head up to the suite to change my clothes before we meet her.”

“Of course. I’ll just grab a shower when you leave. Then I’ll meet you there?”

I nodded again, smiling some more as I looked at her tousled hair and swollen lips, wondering how the hell I’d gotten so lucky that this woman had chosen to spend even a minute with a grumpy asshole like me, let alone all the time she’d given me so far.

I’d sworn off relationships and it was the last thing I needed in my life right then. It would be another complication that would just make things more difficult, but since there was no risk of that here, I refused to let myself worry about it.

Laurene and I had a few more weeks here before we’d be heading home. This thing between Birdie and me had a very definite expiration date, but as I lay there staring at her and listening to her ridiculously happy chatter, I found myself wishing, just for a minute, that it wouldn’t have to end.

20

BIRDIE