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She peeked out from the blanket because the couch faced the small kitchen, the cupboards curling around on three sides, stove on the left, fridge on the right, sink in the middle.
There was one small lamp switched on in the living room in the corner. The kind that had the tiny chandelier bulb. The stove light clicked on. Kier instantly went from a dark shadow to gold. She nearly gasped because he was shirtless, and his jeans slung low on his hips. Without a t-shirt or shirt covering anything, she realized how perfect his ass was. How those jeans fit the bulges of his leg muscles. She noticed a heck of a lot of other things too. The Adonis V, the tight, hard abs, his broad shoulders rippling with every movement.
He wasn’t just a man or a bear. He was a masterpiece.
He washermasterpiece.
She slipped out of the quilt before she realized what she was doing.
He spun around and when he saw her, his eyes widened. They were already shadowed, with fine little lines around them that pulled tighter when he saw her. Strain. Stress. He didn’t look like he’d slept yet.
She’d only had maybe two hours, but they helped. She didn’t feel like a walking zombie anymore.
Her body was decidedly un-zombielike at the moment unless it came to her lungs, which were refusing to work. It felt a little bit like she could stand here forever and look at the beauty of this man. At least until she realized that she was staring and felt her face heat up and dragged her eyes away towards the fridge and then slowly back. She realized Kier was holding a glass in his hand. He hadn’t filled it with anything yet.
“Did I wake you up?” The lines around his eyes deepened. She couldn’t stand seeing regret there. Pain. Worry. She wanted to make this all better for him.
“No. I woke myself up. I thought something was wrong, but nothing’s wrong. Everything is fine. I just…I guess it’s hard to sleep after all of that. I was so exhausted I just collapsed when we came home, but a few hours’ sleep was all I needed to recharge.” She wanted to reach out and touch him. His hair was wet, dripping down his neck in a single, straight line. The urge to put her mouth there and lick him was so strong that she could have doubled over. “You…haven’t slept yet?”
“No. You wouldn’t think it, but I’m hungry. I forgot to eat pretty much all day.”
Her stomach rumbled loudly. She covered her mouth with her hand to hold back a laugh. “Me too, I guess. The last thing I was worried about was food.”
“Everyone else was here taking care of Misty, your parents fed Onyx, we were all over the place.”
He glanced at the pot rack hanging from the tongue and groove blonde pine ceiling above the sink. “If you think we can make something to eat without waking the girls, I’d be happy to.”
“Sandwiches?”
“All I have is cheese. Or peanut butter and jam. Oh, I guess there’s honey. Peanut butter and honey is alright. Or pasta. Plain macaroni with butter and salt. That’s always a great option. Maybe not late at night. There’s cereal. Or Misty’s favorite, pancakes. A salad? Steaks? I actually have lots, now that I think about it. I just don’t know if most of that can be made silently.”
Kier’s smile was catching, and she found herself nearly laughing. “Cheese sounds good. I think I could grill us a mean sandwich without waking anyone up.”
She noted his glass again. She walked over and he seemed to shy away without even moving. He inhaled sharply when she closed her hand around the tall, bubbled cup. “Can I get you some water?”
“I can get it. Don’t worry, Taylee. This is my house. I can take care of all of it.”
“I’d like to. I’d like to make you a grilled cheese and get you a drink. You’re tired. Sit down. Let me help, Kier.”I’m your mate. I want to. I want to do this for you. Will you let me?
Kier crossed the room and pulled out a chair at the table. He didn’t say anything, but he did reach for a deck of cards at the other end of the table, slipped them out of the cardboard pack and started to shuffle them, methodically and quietly. Just card over card, end over end, not the divide the deck and make a big noise kind of shuffle.
He was agreeing. Giving her control over his kitchen. He was stepping aside because she’d asked him to. He was willing to let her take care of him in this small way, and to her, it meant the world.
She pulled things out of the fridge as quietly as she could. Her mom made grilled cheese into an artform, and she was determined to do no less. She pulled out a jar of banana peppers, found a tomato, got the brick of aged cheese, found Kier’s bread, something with lots of seeds, and then she found the pickles and a bottle of southwest mayo. When she smelled it, it went right up her nose in the best way, and instantly flooded her mouth with saliva. Her stomach twisted with hunger.
Kier watched her while pretending he wasn’t. She appreciated the effort.
She’d never been quieter in her life as she cracked jars, assembled sandwiches, and got the pan heating.
“There are olives at the back of the fridge,” Kier whispered casually.
She found them easily, then spun around and nearly dropped the jar when she looked up at him and found him lounging in the chair, muscles bulging all over the place, abs bunched together. She wanted to abandon the sandwich and have him instead.
She was honestly debating doing that when the softest voice cut through the kitchen.
“What are you guys doing?” Misty rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She was adorably wild haired, blinking into the soft kitchen light.
Kier dropped the deck of cards. “Making a midnight feast. Are you hungry?” He patted the chair next to him. Misty walked over and sat down. She rubbed her eyes again with both fists then glanced over to the stove and counter with interest.
