AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“If you have a dish and a fork you can join me,” He flipped the skewers over with his bare fingers. No doubt having callouses from playing guitar for so many years created a barrier to the heat. “Just hand your plate over, and I’ll load it up.”
That made Rainy laugh. There wa
s a reason Benjamin Brock was a front man—he was drop dead gorgeous as well as talented, and apparently, a bit weird in real life. He wasn’t model beautiful, but he had a wonderful face and plenty of allure, and the perpetual wicked twinkle in his eye wasn’t bad either. She just couldn’t figure out how such a charismatic man was so unconventional, but they were in Portland so being hip and trendy, if not a bit unconventional, was kind of a requirement.
She clarified, “You want me to pass a plate to you and you’ll send it back full?”
“Yeah,” he answered plainly.
It had sounded bizarre at first, but somehow it made perfect sense. He was Benjamin Brock and he was willing to share his food, but maybe not his time. She could live with that. Rainy retreated to the kitchen, got a plate and a fork, and handed them to him over the fence. He had a habit of looking her directly in the eye. His look pierced her to the core. She tried her best not to blush.
“No other dishes in your house?” She teased him because she couldn’t resist.
“It’s a thing. I just have what I need. If I have guests, I have them bring their own. It’s just a suggestion, not a rule. I’m not a fan of rules.”
Rainy nodded. She could officially count herself as a guest of Benjamin Brock.
“I’m Kris by the way.” He seemed to watch her face for some reaction.
Rainy nearly slammed into the fence. She was looking at the Benjamin Brock, not a guy named Kris, but his secret was safe with her.
“Oh.” Her voice trembled and that embarrassed her. “I’m…” She was losing her mind. She stood there for a moment trying to remember her name. “I’m Rainy.”
“Are you sure about that? Beautiful name by the way if it’s real.” He raised his brows with skepticism.
“Yeah, I’m sure, and yeah, that’s the name my parents gave me.”
“I know what you’re thinking.” He stretched his arms out like he was a sacrificial offering. “I go by Kris.”
He’d read her mind.
“Then that’s what I’ll call you,” she said gently.
“Cool.” He took another swig of his beer.
Two
Kris
Kris drew back the board that he engineered on the common privacy fence between his and the house next door. He loaded up Rainy’s plate with skewers of roasted assorted vegetables, but he had also heated her plate. Now she would need mitts to handle it, or he’d have to wait until it cooled.
“You know what?” he asked with mild impatience. “Come around. I’ll hand it to you through the gate. Sorry for the hassle.”
He watched the top of her head as she walked along the fence to the gate. She had the shiniest, softest looking hair he’d ever laid eyes on in real life. He wanted to reach over and touch it.
She dashed through her side gate and swung over to his. When he opened it, her face lit up as people’s often did when they first glimpsed his back yard. He had a collection of statues and ornate landscaping that surprised first-time visitors. For him it was a personal magical space, and he was pleased by her reaction to the wonder of it. But there was more to the pull he was experiencing with her. His reaction to her wasn’t like what he usually had to most people. There was something real and honest about her. She knew who he was and it didn’t seem to matter. He liked that. He let her pass him as she took in the space with wonder.
Kris had a multi-tiered fountain in the middle of the yard and eclectic statues of various media dotting the perimeter. Some were gargoyles, there were absurd ones like a cartoonish fish and a clown, and some were realistic nude forms of men and women. There was one of both depicting a passionate scene that made Rainy’s breath hitch—he heard the unmistakable sound. His face flushed and his blood stirred knowing the erotic statues affected her.
“You okay?” His voice vibrated through the air. He couldn’t hide the gravelly baritone that left his lips—a telltale sign of his attraction to her.
If she wasn’t a new neighbor, the thought crossed his mind to seduce her. He had done that a lot when he was first well known, but then he stopped man-whoring around. It went against his conscience to take advantage of fans. It wasn’t nice and it wasn’t safe. It was tempting, and many of his cohorts didn’t bat an eye indulging in mindless promiscuity. He held back the desire he felt for Rainy, but the attraction was strong, and he was reconsidering his stance on superficial relationships.
“I’ve never been moved by art before,” she confessed. “I mean physical art. It doesn’t usually do anything for me.”
“Which one in particular draws you in?” He baited her though he knew damn well it was the near pornographic statues that made her gasp.
She looked at him with big eyes and the sweetest embarrassment on her face.
