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“Come on, then,” he said, patting my leg. “I’ll help you. You can put me to work.”

We spent the next hour and a half in the kitchen working on dinner. The area felt smaller with him working beside me, but in a good way. He always took every opportunity to touch me, in little ways, when we worked together like this. I liked it.

He was working on prepping vegetables for the salad while I began breading the chicken. Every time I glanced up, he was looking at me. I had no idea how he wasn’t cutting himself with the knife since he didn’t seem to be paying much attention to what he was doing. I noticed a smile pulling at his lips.

He picked up a disfigured carrot, examining it as if it would tell him some secret he didn’t know. Placing the carrot on the counter, he came up behind me. He wrapped his arms around my waist, his chin resting on my shoulder. “What do you think?” he asked, nodding toward the strangely shaped vegetable.

It had one top, but two legs and they were twisted around each other. “I didn’t know they could grow that way. I wonder why it has two instead of one?”

He moved my hair out of the way and kissed my neck. “It reminds me of you when you’re sleeping, how your legs get tangled up in the sheets.”

“It does?” I asked, looking at the odd carrot again. It did kind of look like two legs intertwined.

“Yes. You have very nice legs, Brianna.”

The room suddenly felt really warm, and it had nothing to do with the heat coming from the stove. He’d helped me cook a few times in the past, and it wasn’t unusual for him to kiss or hold me now and then in between. In fact, it was normal. He always seemed to go out of his way to look for excuses to touch me. This was the first time, however, that he’d taken it to a sexual place. I was anxious, but not in a bad way.

His hand slid from my waist down the front of my jeans to the apex of my thighs. “Mm. Warm,” he whispered, running his hands along the inseam of my jeans.

I sank back into his chest, enjoying the feel of him behind me, around me. My earlier afternoon stress faded away as I tried to concentrate on not making a mess with my egg-covered hands. The only thing I could think about was how good he felt, and how good he made me feel.

“How are you feeling?”

“Warm,” I answered honestly.

He chuckled. “Are you prepared for tonight?” His fingers followed my hipbone and then up to the top of my jeans until they were tickling my skin beneath.

“Yes,” I breathed.

“Good. So am I.” He stepped back then, letting go of me.

I felt the loss immediately and from the look on his face, he’d had to force himself to stop. It made me smile. I still didn’t know what he saw in me and why he was willing to deal with all my issues, but I was grateful. I loved being with him.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Brianna

Dinner was just as I’d hoped. He complimented me on the delicious meal even though he’d help make it. I smiled, and blushed, under his praise. It felt good to do these small things for him.

After dinner, he told me to get my night things and meet him in his room instead of his chair. I was a little disappointed about missing time in his chair, but I was hoping that meant that we’d be doing more physical exploration tonight. It was early, though; only about seven.

When I entered his bedroom with my pajamas clasped against my chest, he stood fully clothed near his bed. He’d removed his jacket, tie, and shoes, but other than that, he was still dressed. I guessed we wouldn’t be taking our shower yet.

“Come,” he said, holding out his hand. I walked over to stand in front of him. He took the clothes out of my hands and placed them behind him on the nightstand. “Lie down on the bed.”

I felt the beginning of my nerves start to build. This was new. His bed had always been off limits. My knees sunk into the mattress as I crawled onto the bed and lay down as instructed.

He followed, hovering over me for a second before lying beside me. “You okay?”

I nodded. Nervous, but I always was if we were trying something new.

“We’re only going to go as far as you’re comfortable with tonight, Brianna. I know the last time we were in a bed things didn’t end well, but we’ve come a long way since then. For tonight, think of this as my chair. You are to speak freely. Tell me if something is bothering you, or doesn’t feel right.”

“Okay.”

He smiled, reaching up to run his hand down my hair. “I was thinking about you today in my meeting.”

“You were?” I couldn’t imagine why he’d be thinking of me during one of his meetings.

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