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Chapter Sixteen
***Autumn***
Thatnight,Gretaand Jeremiah were off. Zeke stepped up and decided he’d cook dinner for us if I helped him. So, the kids hung out with Con and the new babies while Griffin caught up on work. The house felt lighter with the dogs in it, the kids happier. It was almost like a normal home for a moment.
I was in such a good mood. I was so impressed with Griffin adopting two dogs from the shelter. I was impressed that Jones and Caroline hadn’t wanted puppies, but two older dogs who’d been in the shelter for at least a year each. Sir Fluffy Butt and Wiggles, named by the shelter staff, were going to do amazing things for Jones and Caroline, I knew. Jones had already loosened up some.
I typically danced and sang while I cooked for myself, and it was hard to keep my excitement in after having such a good day. I didn’t want to expose all my secrets to Zeke, though.
He seemed like he was in a good mood, too. He was all flirty looks and light brushes as he moved around me. There was something else to him, too, though, that I couldn’t figure out. He seemed almost pensive.
I’d been assigned chopping carrots for the dinner, but I quickly realized my knife skills weren’t up to par with Zeke’s expectations. He shook his head and moved behind me, wrapping both arms around me to show me how to properly hold the knife.
“They were getting chopped.” I bit my lip as he closed the space between us and pressed his body into mine. “Maybe not perfectly, but still.”
He chuckled. “This way they cook evenly and you’re less likely to lose a fingertip.”
I held my breath as he wrapped his hands around mine and adjusted my grip on the knife. He tucked my fingers in and then moved, helping me glide the knife through the carrot expertly. I’d never known cutting carrots could be erotic before then.
Lowering his voice, he pressed his lips against my ear. “I missed you while I was gone.”
My stomach fluttered, but I ignored it. “How could you miss me? You don’t even know me.”
“I know enough.” Moving away, he went back to preparing the steaks. “I also know that you turned this house upside down while I was gone. I am flabbergasted that you somehow got Griff to adopt two dogs. The kids have asked for a puppy a thousand times. He never wavered before.”
I went back to chopping the carrots the easy way. “I don’t know what got into him. Maybe seeing the kids playing with them? I really did just take them by to play. It wasn’t meant as a sneak attack on Griffin to make him get them a dog.”
Zeke looked at the carrots and sighed before looking me over. “I’d fire you if you were in one of my kitchens, but you’re fucking beautiful enough that I’ll keep you around here.”
I laughed. “Shut up. My carrots aren’t that bad. You’d really fire me?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Your knife skills are atrocious. I’ve seen Jones chop better than you.”
“Now you’re just trying to hurt my feelings.”
“Not at all.” He washed his hands and then leaned against the counter and looked at me. “Do you cook a lot when you’re at home?”
I thought about my apartment and sighed. “Some. My mom and grandma live close enough that I’m guilty of stopping by to eat their food sometimes.”
“You miss them?”
I snorted. “God, no. They’re insane. I’m glad to get some space from them. It’s the apartment I miss.”
“You could probably have Griff give you the weekends off if you want to go home. As long as you’re good with taking me with you.” He winked and straightened when he saw me almost cut myself. “Okay, you’re fired here, too. Just…sit on the counter and keep me company.”
I laughed when he easily lifted me onto the counter and moved to fix his precious carrots. “You’re a tough boss.”
“I have plans for your hands. Plans that would suffer if you cut your finger open.”
“Plans?”
He gave me a searing look. “Plans. I’m far from finished with you, Autumn.”
My core pulsed and I shifted on the counter, trying to stay in control. “Anyway. I don’t own the apartment anymore. I rented it, but with the price going up so high, I couldn’t afford it. I’ll find something in time for the school year, but for the summer, it was either live in the house with my mom and Granny Lane or do something like this.”
“I have a hard time believing Griff’s mood swings are easier to deal with than whatever your mom and grandma can throw at you.”
“Well, you’d be surprised.”
Moving to stand between my knees, Zeke offered me a perfectly cut carrot. When I took it, he stroked his thumb over my lips. “I’m sorry about your apartment.”
A wave of unexpected emotion washed over me and I had to look away to keep him from seeing the unshed tears in my eyes. “Thanks.”
“I’m not sorry that you’re here for the summer, though.” The oven made a sound, and he backed away to continue with dinner.
I sat there, contemplating loss and time, wondering what I was doing with my life. Being a nanny was strange and overwhelming in a way. Time didn’t feel real when I was just hanging out with the kids every day, not really doing anything. I didn’t have a ton of downtime to think, though, and that had been nice. The summer would’ve been the first chance I really got to mourn Dad’s passing, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to do that. If I just kept moving, maybe it would just fade away in time. Maybe, it would be easier.
“You okay?”
I looked up and found Zeke watching me. Forcing a smile, I nodded. “Sure.”
“I know a lie when I see one. Is it something I said or did?”
I shook my head. “No, of course not.”
“Sure you don’t want to talk about it? I’ve been told I’m a great listener.”
“I’m sure. Thanks, though.” I hopped off the counter and walked over to him. “Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do?”
He pulled me into his arms and pressed me into the counter. “I’m sure there’s nothing you can do for the food.”
“And for you?” I ran my fingers down his chest and smiled. “Is there anything, at all, I can do to help you out, Zeke?”
His nostrils flared, and his fingers tightened on the counter behind me. “You offering something?”
I was thankful for the distraction, and despite having no intentions of sleeping with Zeke again when I came into the kitchen, I found myself beyond tempted. I licked my lips and sank to the floor with my knees spread on either side of his legs and my back pressed to the cabinets behind me. Looking up at him, I smiled sweetly and batted my eyes. “Are you offering something?”
He swore and reached down to cup my chin. “You’re fucking addictive.”
I grabbed his pants and unbuttoned them so I could free his cock. I knew it was wrong to do it at all, much less in the kitchen, but I was turned on, and there was something about the Phoenix men that I clearly couldn’t resist. Pulling him out, I stroked him and then took him as deep in my mouth as I could. I fought off a gag and sucked hard, tasting the slightly saltiness of his precum and the rest that was purely Zeke.
He jerked and gripped the counter over my head. “Jesus, woman.”
I chuckled with him still in my mouth and then started bobbing my head up and down his length. I teased the tip with my tongue and swallowed when it pressed into the back of my throat. I gripped his legs and held on while I tried to take even more of his length. I wanted to give him the best blow job he’d ever had. I wanted to leave my mark.
Zeke groaned and gripped my hair, pulling me off of his cock. “You’re going to make me come too fast. Jesus.”
I held my tongue out and slapped the dark red tip of him against it. I stroked him and then shook free of his hold to take him back into my mouth. I wanted to make him lose control. I wanted to swallow him while he stood in the kitchen. I wanted him to think of me on my knees every time he stepped into a kitchen for the rest of his life. Pulling him into the back of my throat, I sucked hard and moaned.
Zeke slapped the counter and let out a growl of pleasure as his balls tightened in my hand. “I’m going to come, Autumn.”
I moaned again and relaxed my throat to take him even deeper. With the head of his cock buried in the back of my throat, my tongue stroking the underside of him, and my hands massaging his balls, he lost it. He came with a loud curse, spraying the back of my throat with his come. Hard and hot, he came so much that it dripped down my chin and onto my chest, leaving a mess. Still, I sucked him clean and smiled up at him when he pulled back.
Wiping my mouth, I giggled and shrugged. “You made a mess.”
He put his cock away and then sank to his knees in front of me. “You just about killed me.”
Proud of my rarely used skills, I preened. “Thank you.”
Laughing, he leaned forward and kissed me hard. “I want to send a gift to whoever taught you that while simultaneously wanting to find him and beat the shit out of him for ever daring to touch you. That’s normal, right?”
I didn’t want to get into what it said about me that the man he wanted to find was his twin brother. Kissing him back, I pushed him away and stood up. “I’ve got to get cleaned up before dinner. You can handle the rest of this without me?”
He laughed. “I think I’ve got it.”
