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It was a lot, he supposed. “There’s a bathroom through that door with a shower, or you can use the one across the hall. It has a bathtub.” She didn’t say anything, and it occurred to him that she might be hungry. It had been a few hours since they’d last eaten. “Are you hungry, or would you rather go back to sleep?”
“I probably shouldn’t go to sleep this early. I’ll end up waking up in the middle of the night.”
Daniel nodded. “Then come with me and I’ll see what I can throw together.” He didn’t wait for her to agree before heading toward the kitchen, but he heard her footsteps behind him on the hardwood floors.
The kitchen was why he’d bought the house. He loved to cook. On the rare occasions when his children did visit, they would spend hours in the kitchen cooking and catching up. Some of his best memories with his kids happened in that room.
Going directly to the refrigerator, he pulled out sausages and some leftover pasta sauce. It may not be fancy, but it would be filling.
Ali hovered on the other side of the large island, so he nodded toward the stools.
“Have a seat. Dinner will be ready soon.”
She lowered herself onto the stool. He could feel her gaze on him as he cooked the sausages, boiled the pasta, and warmed the sauce. She didn’t say anything, only watched, following his movements as he tended to the food.
After draining the pasta, he removed two plates from the cabinet and piled a healthy portion of noodles on top, along with the sausages and sauce. Belatedly, he thought he should have made some garlic bread to go with it, but it was too late.
He walked around the island to where she sat and set one of the plates and a fork in front of her.
“Thank you.” She smiled and picked up the fork. “It smells good.”
Daniel took a seat at the island as well but made sure to keep a stool between them.
Ali pursed her lips and blew on the steaming pasta before bringing the fork to her mouth. He couldn’t pull his gaze away from her lips as they wrapped around the fork. Then, she moaned, and all the work he’d done earlier to calm his attraction to her was moot.
He cleared his throat and forced himself to look away. “Eat up, and then you can turn in early. I want you to get plenty of rest tonight.”
“The nap in the car helped.” She twirled some more of the pasta onto her fork. “This is good.”
“I’m glad you like it.” He chanced a glance at her again, making sure to keep his gaze away from her mouth this time. “I assume you have to work tomorrow?”
“Yes, I do.”
Daniel nodded. “What time?”
“What?” she asked.
Her forehead wrinkled and her nose scrunched up a little in the cutest way. Damn, he had to stop thinking about her like that. He looked away, gathering more food onto his fork.
“What time do you need to be at work?”
“Seven thirty.” She paused. “But I need to get my car first.”
Again, he nodded. “We’ll leave around six thirty. That should give you plenty of time.”
They ate the rest of the meal in silence. When she was finished, he gathered their plates and took them to the sink. By the time he faced her again, her eyes were already half closed.
She looked up when he approached.
“Did you need anything before you turn in?”
Ali blinked. “I don’t think so.”
“I’ll be here or in my room.” He indicated a hallway off the kitchen. “Should you need anything.” He prayed she didn’t come looking for him in the middle of the night.
Daniel waited, but she didn’t move. He raised an eyebrow, indicating he expected some sort of response from her.
She slid off the stool and began walking toward her room. Then she stopped, turned, and met his gaze. “Daniel?”
