AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Can I assume you like reading?” he says and I turn to face him, walking backwards.
“I love reading. I have piles of books at home.”
“Piles? Not shelves?”
I shake my head. “They ought to be on shelves, but that’s one of those things I haven’t gotten around to. I bought the shelves, and they were delivered a while ago, but finding the time to actually construct them seems to have evaded me.”
He tilts his head to one side as we come to a stop outside his office door. “That’s my fault,” he says.
“No, it’s not.” I’ve had the bookshelves since before I left SKJ, but Lucian was making life difficult in those last few weeks, and since I’ve been with TBA, I’ve had other things to think about… like the man standing before me.
He pushes the door open a little wider and we go inside, although he hesitates on the threshold. “Sorry… did you wanna freshen up? I can show you to your room…”
“No, it’s fine. I think we should get some work done, don’t you?”
It’s warm in here, and unusually for me, I slip off my jacket, placing it over the back of the chair in front of Hunter’s desk. He stops, staring at me for a moment or two, and then walks around his desk, sitting down, and turning on the computer.
“Where do you want me?” I ask, with my hands on my hips.
He looks up, taking a deep breath. “That’s an excellent question.”
We’ve got a surprising amount done in the last few hours, but it’s getting late now.
“We’ll stop,” Hunter says. “You must be exhausted.”
I get the feeling he could carry on, and while I’m tempted to say it’s okay, I know I’m past performing at my best. He doesn’t even wait for my answer, but gets up from behind his desk and stands, looking down at me.
“I’ll take you upstairs and show you to your room. You can freshen up while I make us something to eat.”
I stand and follow him from the room, waiting while he grabs the bags, and then I let him lead me up the stairs.
“My room is around there,” he says, nodding to the right as we reach the top. He pauses, leaving his bag, and then turns to the left, and we walk along the hall, stopping at the second door, which he opens. I pass in ahead of him and pause, letting out a sigh. “Is it okay? It’s probably the most feminine of the guest rooms, and the view is pretty good.”
I turn and look at him. “Pretty good? It’s beautiful.”
How could he think otherwise, when I’m faced with a view over the harbor, and the evening sun pouring in across an enormous bed, made up with pristine white sheets, and a lilac-colored throw that matches the drapes?
“I’ll open the window for you.” He puts down my bag at the end of the bed and walks to the window, opening it wide to let in the gentle breeze. “The bathroom is through there.” He nods toward a door in the corner.
“Okay.”
“Take your time and make yourself at home.” He moves back to the door, hesitating on the threshold. “Can you find your way back to the kitchen?”
“I think so.”
“Okay… that’s where you’ll find me whenever you’re ready.”
I nod my head, smiling, and he smiles back, closing the door as he leaves.
I turn around again, taking in the splendor before me, and while I’d like to lie down and rest, and absorb all this magnificence, I know I can’t take too long, whatever Hunter said. If he’s making dinner, I need to shower and change, and get back down there… not keep him waiting.
I pick up my bag and carry it over to the couch beneath the window, setting it down there, and slipping out of my clothes before I wander into the bathroom.
I can’t help giggling as I’m faced with yet more opulence. This isn’t a bathroom at all, but a wet room, the walls and floor of which are covered with white marble, and I walk in, standing beneath the shower head and turning it on, luxuriating in the splendor of it all.
It doesn’t take me long to shower, or to find one of several white fluffy towels to wrap myself in. I braid my hair, rather than letting it drip over my shoulders, and then open my bag, pulling out stonewashed jeans, my pink blouse, and some underwear, wasting no time in putting it all on.
Once I’m ready, I rush back downstairs, going through the living room and into the kitchen, where I find Hunter, on the other side of the island unit, chopping bell peppers. He looks up, without me saying a word, and drops the knife he’s holding, his eyes drifting down my body, and slowly back up again. That ought to make me self-conscious, but it doesn’t. There’s a hunger in his eyes I haven’t noticed before, and I like the way his gaze makes me feel… little shocks, like pin-pricks, bubbling over my skin.
