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I just hope she keeps wanting me around the longer this relationship goes on.
I know there are still parts of my past I need to open up about as well, which might make me sound like a hypocrite since I’m frustrated that she won’t do the same. I’m just afraid that it might make matters worse if she finds out too soon or will make her feel obligated to reciprocate before she’s ready. That’s why I’m going to play tonight by ear—feel her out, see if she’s getting more comfortable or if she’s gearing up to push me away again.
“Are you sure you don’t want any help?” Penelope asks, sitting on one of the stools on the other side of her kitchen counter, sipping a glass of red wine. “I know how to cook. I won’t mess it up, I promise.”
“It’s not that I think you will. I just want to do something for you. When’s the last time someone did that? When’s the last time a man cooked for you, for that matter?” I look over my shoulder, waiting for her response.
“Never,” she replies, swirling her wine in her glass.
I almost drop my spoon. “Never?”
“I told you, Maddox.” She points to her chest with her free hand. “I don’t do relationships. I don’t even date.”
“Wow. Well, then this is just another first of yours I get to claim.”
She arches her brow. “There are other things you could claim as well, you know?”
Letting out a groan, I go back to stirring the onions and garlic and then pour in the can of crushed tomatoes. “Don’t worry, I have plans for later.”
She chuckles. “Yeah, so do I.”
I finish up dinner and then take two plates over to her dining room table that I decorated with candles, placemats, and flowers I brought.
That’s right. I’m pulling out all the stops tonight.Wine and dine, baby.
“This looks and smells amazing. I feel like I’m living in a rom-com movie right now. Thank you again.” I reach across the table to refill her wine glass.
“You’re welcome.” I take a drink of my water and then dig in. “And this is what you deserve, Penelope. Those movies aren’t popular with women for nothing.”
“You’re not going to have wine?”
“Nope. I’ll need to drive in a bit, and I have a hard no-drinking-and-driving policy.”
“And just where do you plan on taking me?” she asks before pulling a bite of noodles into her mouth. She lets out a moan as the flavors hit her tongue.
“It’s a surprise.”
“You and your surprises.” She finishes chewing and then wipes her mouth. “This pasta is amazing, Maddox. Where did you learn to cook like this?”
“From my mom. She always made sure we knew how to make at least a few dishes before we left home.”
“Do you cook a lot for yourself?”
“Only during the off-season. Normally, I have a personal chef who will come in during the season and prep meals for me. But when I have the time, I do enjoy making a few things on my own. One of my guilty pleasures is watching cooking shows sometimes.”
She smiles at me, clearly amused. “I can’t get over how there are so many facets to you. I just never would have thought when I met you that you would turn out to be so...”
“What?”
“Quirky,” she says.
“Quirky?”
“Yeah. You tell dirty jokes to defuse tense situations, you have an infatuation with eighties music, you’re a momma’s boy, obviously, but when we’re alone...”
“What?” I ask, my heart rate increasing immediately.
“You grow so serious, so demanding.” She leans back in her chair. “It’s so fucking hot. It’s like you have a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personality, and it’s not a bad thing.”
