Page 49 of Entangled in Them

I was hugely conscious of her directly behind me, standing on tiptoes so she could see around me. She was so petite, the top of her head barely reached the middle of my chest.

“Are you kidding? I love them.”

I set about pulling out ingredients. “I think we’ve got everything we need for a cheesecake. I don’t know what we’ll make for the main part of the meal, but at least we’ll have dessert sorted.”

“I’d say cheesecake is a balanced meal.” She counted the contents off on her fingers. “Dairy, carbs, protein, fats.”

I grinned. “And I’ll throw in some blueberries and lemon to make it healthy.”

She returned the grin, her blue eyes sparkling. “Perfect.”

I set out the ingredients on the counter. “Have you ever made one before?”

“Nope. I haven’t done much cooking at all, though I made everyone pasta last night while you were away.”

I turned to her, a smile of surprise and pleasure on my lips. “You did?”

“Yeah, and everyone cleared their plates.” A shadow crossed her delicate features. “That’s okay, isn’t it? I mean, I didn’t want to try to take your place or anything.”

I chuckled. “That’s fine, Rue. I’m pleased the guys had someone else around to make sure they ate properly.”

She exhaled a little breath from between pursed lips. “Phew.” A few moments passed, and she gave a small, awkward smile. “What?”

I realized I’d been staring at her mouth.

“Nothing,” I said, tearing my gaze away. “Let’s start with melting some butter.”

Chapter Twenty-one

Rue

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KODEE AND I BOTH DID our best to ignore the moment that had passed between us, and we got to work, crushing graham crackers to mix with the melted butter and sugar. He talked me through each step, and I stared up at him and his handsome profile, not really caring about the cooking process, but more than happy to listen to his smooth, deep voice. My mind kept flitting to what Dillon had said in the bathroom the previous night. I wondered if he was right, and Kodee found me attractive, too. From the way he’d just been staring at me, I thought Dillon was on the mark.

Getting ready to bake, he yanked off his tie and undid the top button of his dress shirt. It was only a flash, and they would have been easily missed against his brown skin, but I noticed the blue and purple marks.

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