Page 32 of Only You

Nine

The next morning, Kayla was in that foggy state between sleeping and wakefulness when she heard a knocking sound. She still hadn’t gotten used to Jack’s house noises and figured it was just the house settling. Then the knock came again, only louder this time.

“Kayla? Are you awake?” Jack asked through the door.

“No,” she replied.

He chuckled. “You just answered me.”

“You woke me up,” she grumbled.

“Do you know what time it is?”

Kayla opened her eyes just wide enough to peer at the clock on the nightstand. “What the hell!” She bolted upright. “It’s ten o’clock!”

“I know,” Jack said. “Can I come in?”

“What for?” She ran her hands over her messy hair and tucked the covers tightly around her chest.

“I just want to make sure you’re okay,” Jack said.

“I’m fine.” She’d had a rough night’s sleep but was fine other than that.

“Can I please come in?” Jack pleaded.

“I guess so,” she huffed. So what if he sees me like this? If he were my boyfriend, he’d think I was beautiful no matter what I looked like.

The door creaked open, and Jack stepped inside. His gaze roamed over her. “I was worried when you didn’t come down to breakfast. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I had trouble sleeping last night,” she admitted.

“Were you too hot? I could turn down the thermostat.”

She’d been hot all right, but not for the reason he thought. After all their touching last night, she’d been hot and bothered, and her erotic romance book hadn’t helped. “It wasn’t that. I was just keyed up from all the … activity.”

“Me too.”

“Really?” Kayla expected he’d slept like a baby in his plush king size bed.

“Yeah. It was hard to turn off my mind.”

What about your body? “I’ll be fine once I take a shower and have some coffee,” Kayla said.

“The coffee is ready whenever you are. See you downstairs.” With that, Jack turned and went out of the room.

Dammit! I should have set my alarm. She didn’t want Jack thinking her bad sleep had anything to do with him, even though it had. Kayla couldn’t stop thinking about his fingers twirling her hair and massaging her neck, and his muscular thigh pressed against her leg under the table. Forcing the memories from her mind, she flung off the covers and climbed out of bed. It was a twin-size bed, and sufficiently comfortable, but it would be a little cramped for two. Stop it!

Kayla hurriedly took a shower and styled her hair. Then she chose her Thanksgiving Day outfit: black dress pants, a forest green sweater set, and low-heeled boots. She recalled Jack’s reaction yesterday when she’d come out of his room wearing a dress. He’d never looked at her like that before, with desire flaring in his eyes, his gaze lingering on the top buttons of her dress. Last night in bed, she’d imagined him undressing her, slowly undoing the buttons, and pushing the dress off her shoulders. That was why, today, she dressed like she did for work. Kayla doubted Jack would have the same reaction when she was wearing a sweater set.

Soon, she went downstairs and joined Jack in the kitchen. He pointed to the pan in the middle of the table. “I saved some for you.”

“Cinnamon rolls. My favorite.” Kayla could have kissed him, but of course, she didn’t. She slipped into her seat, where a mug of coffee awaited her. “Thank you for doing this.”

“It was no big deal. They’re just the ones in the tube,” Jack said.

“I’m not fussy about cinnamon rolls. I’ll take them however they come.”

He tipped his head back and laughed. This was the Jack she knew, the easy-going guy she hung out with at work. Being with him was so much easier without all that sexual tension hanging over them. The sweater set was a good call.