I grinned. I could have gone somewhere with that line, but I chose to let it slide. I patted his chest and rose to my toes to kiss him on the cheek. Somewhere in a secret part of my heart, I loved that he didn’t know how to cook.
“It’s fine,” I said. “I’ll teach you.”
17
EVERETT
Deacon texted me around nine that he had dropped Lily off at home. I knew he would have walked her and made sure she had dinner, but I didn’t want to leave her alone for too long, especially since she had such a big day away from me and wasn’t used to being home alone all night.
That meant I couldn’t stay the night, and while we ate our late-night post-sex sandwiches, I mentioned that I needed to get back. There was a slight roll of her eyes when I said it, and I worried she didn’t believe me. That she thought she was a one-night stand.
I had no intention of not seeing her again though.
We dressed, still laughing and giggling about how far flung some of our clothes were. It was a bit difficult to find one of my socks, and I nearly walked out the door with just one of them on. Then we found it in the hallway near the washer and dryer.
Helen threw on an oversized T-shirt and some shorts and walked me to the door. As I stood on the stoop outside, the street that basically accounted for the main street in Ashford running directly in front, I pressed her against the wall and kissed her deeply under the light of her door.
It was wild and intense and public, like I was staking my claim. In a way, I was. I wanted not only everyone else to know that she and I were a thing, but I wanted her to know it too. That I wasn’t going away forever or that I wasn’t just going to become a guy she saw occasionally and exchanged awkward glances with from across the room.
“See you around?” she asked.
“Absolutely,” I said and pressed another deep kiss to her lips.
As I got in my truck, I waved once and then started it up, revving the engine and peeling out onto the street. My mind was going a million miles an hour as the sight of her apartment faded in the distance. I didn’t live too far away, living in Rebecca’s parents’ place at the foot of the mountain, but it was enough of a drive that it gave me a little time to think.
What happened that night was perfect, and I’d enjoyed every single second of it. And I wasn’t going to let it be a one-time thing. There was no way I was going to be able to keep myself from finding a way to get us both in the same place with the same lack of clothing on again—and soon. But I also knew that Helen wasn’t exactly the kind of girl who stuck around. She was a city girl, a chef, and someone who put her career ambitions above silly things like a steady boyfriend.
I understood that. Or at least, I was trying to. She wasn’t the type to be a girlfriend. I had to deal with that. If she wasn’t the kind who stayed, then that meant I needed to be okay with being able to have her for now. Just for now.
I got back to my house and Lily was already at the door, excited and happy to see me. She nearly knocked me over on the porch before I could grab her leash and hook it on. A little midnight stroll was just what both of us apparently needed. She sniffed around and I thought about the night I just had. I could still smell her on my skin. I could still taste her on my tongue. My lips vibrated with the sensation of hers.
She wasn’t going to be getting off my mind any time soon. And now any shower fantasies had a lot more detail to draw memories from. Especially the tattoo that ran all the way down her back and the other that went up her thigh. I saw where both of them ended and so much more.
As I got back in the house with Lily, she wandered over to the massive bed I’d bought her and crashed into it, clearly done for the day. I smiled and made my way to the bathroom where a quick shower before bed was called for. As much as I wanted to go to bed with the scent of her surrounding me, I knew that I needed to shower now so I didn’t have to do it in the morning. I had to be there early for my first day back and I needed all the rest I could get.