AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Everything in moderation, Lucas.”
“Half a stick of butter is moderation to you?”
“Are you going to eat this entire pan of apples in one sitting?” I asked.
“Probably not.”
“Well, then, moderation.”
He stepped closer. “Excuse me.” His voice was softer as he motioned and bent to pull out a large lower drawer on the island. Reaching for a skillet brought him even closer, and my nose tingled with his woodsy scent wafting up, enticing and warm.
His shoulder grazed the outside of my thigh and sent a shock straight to my core. Crap. I didn’t want that with this guy.
I gave my head a little shake and stepped farther back. “So how is it you never learned to cook?”
“I was into other things like building a computer, coding, and reading about video game development.”
“And girls,” I smirked. High school Lucas probably had girls by the dozens with those looks.
“Ah, no.” He pointed to himself as he stirred the butter in the warming pan. “Reformed nerd. I was skinny. Finn was the brute who threatened to beat up the people who picked on me in school. Humiliating, having your little brother be your defender.” His smile was sheepish, but his eyes were laughing.
“Seeing you now, I can’t imagine there were no girls.”
He grinned and stood taller. “I didn’t say there werenogirls. In college, I learned the more I worked out, the more girls talked to me. I worked out almost every minute I wasn’t on a computer or eating. Now, I work out to counter my overactive sweet tooth. If I didn’t,thenthere would probably be no girls.”
Huh, that was surprisingly honest and revealing for a bro.
He continued. “My mom makes great food, and I know enough to avoid starvation, but that’s about it. I’d like to be able to feed myself healthy stuff without relying on a meal service like I had in Seattle.”
“We can do that. So reformed high school nerd now a tech hot shot with a fancy car and a personal chef.”
“How did you know I worked in tech?”
Oops. I wasn’t specifically trying to hide the fact that I recognized Lucas from the party but admitting it now could be weird, and I didn’t want to talk about that horrible night at the restaurant. It was all in the past. So, I lied. “Well, I assumed. This is the Pacific Northwest. Your snappy clothes, Belltown, that car. You aren’t an office lackey.”
“Good assumption. How did you learn to cook?”
No one had asked me that question in a long time. I softened at my early memories, before food became an enemy to conquer.
“My grandmother. I stood on a chair in her little farmhouse kitchen and paid attention. People came from all around to eat at her table. Everything tasted wonderful, though it wasn’t always good for you. Chicken and pork, vegetables from the garden, except for turnip greens and collards. For some reason, she cooked those until they were gray. If I need to cook something until it’s essentially gray to be edible, I’m not sure I want to eat it.”
“So, no greens on your menus?”
“Not gray ones. Green beans are a staple. I use chard and spinach and kale. They don’t have to be stewed to be tender. Some folks make good collard greens, but not me.”
“You should hang with Emily. She loves kale.” He focused on the hunk of butter melting gently in the pan.
“When that’s melted, add the chopped apples, and keep the heat low, right above a simmer.” Something flashed in his steely blue eyes before he turned back to his task.
Spending time with Lucas wasn’t awful. That electric spark, his scent, and his sincerity had all been unexpected. I could do this, maybe even be friendly. I would cook for him and get a lot of money doing it. That’s it. That was the deal.
9
LUCAS
“I thoughtyou’d be excited to get a new car. I would be.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not you.” Her shoulders slumped as she rested her arm on the passenger side door.
