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“No he don’t,” I protested.
He didn’t disagree any further, maybe ‘cause he knew it was an uncomfortable subject, but all’s he said was, “Alright” and escorted me back into the house.
“I dunno if he had time to do anythin’ while he was out there, but I’ll check come mornin’,” he said to me, so in control of the situation.
“It’s fine,” I sighed. “Just get some sleep, I know you ain’t got a peaceful night in who knows how long, and I know I’m gonna be beat tomorrow. Probably won’t even be able to sleep with my heart poundin’ like this.”
He nodded, but before we parted ways and he headed into his room he stopped.
“Oh, and Shelby?” He looked at me expectantly, pausin’ for just a moment. “If he goes causin’ problems with the cops, I’m gonna have to head on. I don’t wanna cause a fuss anywhere.”
“I’ll talk to him,” I said with a bit more of a pout than I intended. I was exhausted and not able to hide my emotions so well as I wanted to.
But beneath it all, I was burnin’ with curiosity about why he was so afraid to get them involved...
“Thanks,” was all he said simply, before he disappeared into his room and the night resumed its lonesome course.
* * *
The day began bright and early, more so for Asher than me. ‘Cause by the time I woke up and knocked on his door, it fell open to show an empty room. One peek out the window showed him already bustin’ his butt outside, haulin’ junk about and preparin’ for the day.
He was true to his word, had to give the man that.
I headed on down to the kitchen and decided to get to work on some breakfast. If he was gonna be workin’ hard right from sunrise, I figured it was only right I’d get a good meal in him to aid the process along.
It was another bright an’ sunny day, and though he was still wearin’ his shirt now, I knew that wouldn’t last long like this. Not with how hard he was workin’ and how intense that sun was.
And I was really trying to enjoy the view of his hard, sexy body, but my mind was distracted. I was worried about Marcus, about what he might say or do. Especially if Asher was right about him. Just because Marcus knew nothin’ could happen between us didn’t mean he wouldn’t try to keep me from fallin’ for someone else.
Especially someone he definitely didn’t approve of. He was as hard skulled and stubborn as a mule, but I couldn’t let him take that slice of excitement and happiness from me.
“Come an’ get it,” I called out the door to Asher, a big grin on my face as I summoned the man in for the hearty meal I’d made. And he took the summons serious, wipin’ away the sweat from his brow with a cloth and immediately stoppin’ what he was doin’ to march on in to me.
“Hope I didn’t wake you this morning,” he said with a smile, lookin’ so darned good in that tight top and jeans as he sat himself down to the table in a hurry.
“Not even a little,” I said, putting the ham and bacon and eggs in front of him, orange juice and water to either side. I was spoiling him, even had the good jam out for his toast, trying to make amends for Marcus’ boneheaded behaviour.
“I hope you got to sleep easy after...” I trailed off.
“Don’t worry about it, hun,” he said with a dismissive wave as he was already in the process of bringing some bacon to his mouth. He was ravenous, and it brought a familiar feeling back to the house, one that’d been missing ever since pa died. “I just hope I didn’t hit the guy too hard, he wasn’t a big guy after all.”
“Yea, his stupid jacket made him look like a brute,” I said as I sat across from him, leaning in on my elbows. I’d dressed a bit nicer, my newest pair of shorts and a tank top that showed off the cusps of my breasts but not in a slutty way. My blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail and though I didn’t have much by way of lipstick, I’d slapped on what little I had.
Asher gave a chuckle to my statement, and I realized the humour in thinking of Marcus as a brute myself, so we laughed together as we ate the meal.
“You’re a mighty fine cook, Shelby,” he remarked to me appreciatively, and as he peered over the table I could see a special somethin’ glitter in his deep, dark eyes. It weren’t just politeness that motivated him and made him wanna stay.
At least, I dared to hope. I didn’t get a lot of excitement ‘round here, nor a lot of men I was interested in. I wanted to believe I was more than just a good cook and a pretty face.
“Thanks, Asher,” I said and I went to tuck some hair behind my ear out of instinct, forgetting I had it pinned back.
“Never got to eat like this back in the city,” he said, devouring the eggs and toast, leavin’ not a morsel behind on his plate. He had a real man’s hunger, that was for sure.
“Not even when you lived at home?” I asked, and he gave a chuckle.
“Nah. We ate like paupers growin’ up. Oatmeal and toast. Noodles with or without sauce. That kinda thing. Even if you were to prepare it well and not burn it up, it was never anything you’d care to savour. Not like this.”
“I don’t know how you ate like that and ended up with all those muscles,” I said without thinking, and scrambled to come up with something to hide my admiring tone. “I mean, you’d figure you’d look more like Marcus, eatin’ like that, is all I’m sayin’.”
