AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Ah, you found my stash, huh?”
She laughed, and the sound warmed me to my toes. “I did. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all. My home is your home while you are here. I’m glad you found them enjoyable.”
“Where did you learn to cook?”
“At the firehouse. We had to take turns cooking for the house while we were on duty. I learned a lot and found I enjoyed being in the kitchen.”
“Have you ever been married before?” She asked as she took a bite of her chicken.
“I was, for about five years.”
“Divorced?”
“Yeah,” I replied and decided that now would be the proper time to swerve away from that train wreck. “How has work been?”
She chewed what was in her mouth, studying me, and I pretended I didn’t notice as I waited for her reply. Obviously, she was wondering why I didn’t want to talk about it, but she would have to keep wondering.
After she swallowed, she took a sip of her wine as she kept watching me. I chuckled self-consciously. “What?”
She held her glass, swirling the wine around the goblet. “Nothing. Work has been good. I’m learning a lot, and I hope I am helpful to Lydia.”
“She said that you are. I believe her last words about you were that you were a godsend, and she would never let you leave her employment.” We both chuckled. “Then she said something about me staying away from you — again.”
The two of us locked gazes again, and I reached over and touched her arm with the tips of my fingers. “I’m having a tough time doing that, Whiskey.”
She didn’t speak for a long time, and when she did, her voice was little more than a whisper. “So am I.”
“What if we stop fighting it? What if we let ourselves go? We are adults, single adults, who are attracted to one another. There is nothing wrong with that.”
“No, there isn’t, except I work for your company.”
“Yes, you do, but I’m not going to fire you if things don’t work out.”
“Well, you might once you realize how boring I am.” Her chin dropped to her chest, and I reached forward and curled my knuckle under it, lifting her face back up.
“What the hell are you talking about, Whiskey?”
She shrugged. “I’m just not interesting, and um—”
“I doubt there is anything about you that could be boring, and I don’t give two shits what your ex said. He’s an ex, and his opinion does not matter anymore.”
“That’s easy for you to say.”
“What exactly do you think I would get bored with?”
“Um,” she looked everywhere but at me, her cheeks turning a light pink that had nothing to do with the fantastic sunset before us.
“Do you mean sex? Are you saying I would get bored with having sex with you?”
She nodded, twisting her napkin in her hand. “Yes. That’s what I’m saying.”
I thought about that for a long moment, then nodded to her. “How about we discuss this after dinner. Let’s enjoy the meal you cooked, and then I’d like to ask you a few questions.”
“Questions?”
“Nothing difficult, just a few questions.” I pointed at her plate. “Eat, Lilly. We have plenty of time to discuss those other matters.”
