Page 34 of Never Let You Go

“Just ask her,” he shoots back, gaze darkening as if I’m still half-naked and wet in the bathroom and really, what’s up with that?

Her eyes dart between the two of us, curiosity and amusement in her gaze. “I just did. You didn’t let her answer.”

Arms crossed, which, incidentally, makes his biceps bulge, eyes still pinned on me but trailing down the length of me and that’s just downright unnerving, he answers without missing a beat. “She didn’t answer ’cause you’re too intimidating. I don’t want you scaring her away.” My spine tingles at his confession.

“Well, I’ll be fucked,” Kiara mumbles. “I’m scary now?”

Christopher glances at her. It takes him a nanosecond to round her body with his gaze. She’s all of five feet, maybe one hundred pounds. Seeing her point, he explains, “Your social skills need polishing.”

“Look who’s talking.” She steps away from Christopher. “Yo, Bambi.”

She’s looking my way, so that would be me. “Y-yes?”

“Why’d you come all the way to Creepy Creeks to learn how to bake?”

Creepy Creeks? Okay.

Modeling my conversational style after hers, I point my thumb to Christopher. “What he said.”

“To stick it to the big guy?”

My lips curl up. “Something along those lines, yeah.”

“Huh. I’ll need the whole story over a coupla drinks, but until then, I can say I like you already.”

Five foot, one hundred pound pastry chef with a pixie cut who’s clearly making an effort to not swear like a sailor likes me? I beam. “Thanks. Feeling is mutual.”

“Don’t get too excited ’til you really know me, honey.”

Christopher clears his throat. “If you ladies are done. You. Kitchen,” he tells me, pointing his chin to the door. His eyes are drilling through me, and I can almost feel the physicality of his gaze.

I should have used the damn vibrator. Maybe I’d feel more in control this morning.

“First things first. Make some coffee,” he grunts when the door closes behind him.

Thank god for that. “How d’you like it?” I ask.

He seems surprised. “It’s for you.”

Another boss telling me to get some coffee first thing in the morning? I really need to work on looking more awake.

“I take mine hot and naked,” he adds.

Holy crap. The heat on my face crawls down to my chest. I stay carefully with my back to him, busying myself with water and ground coffee as he continues, “No cream, no sugar.”

“O—okay.” My voice comes out a quack. Get a grip.

I pull myself together while going through cupboards and drawers in search of mugs and spoons. The smell of coffee completes my calming down process. I find cream and sugar, fix my cup the way I like it, and set Christopher’s on a coaster on the farmhouse table without my hand shaking too much.

“Thanks,” he grunts, and takes a long sip. Then he points to a pile of papers he’s been busy setting on the table. Snatching the top document, he says, “That’s the apprenticeship contract. We need to sign it.” He drops it back on the table, where it lands and slides with a woosh, and grabs a pen from a drawer.

He scribbles his name on the last page, then hands me the pen.

I flip straight to the last page and start signing my name on the other side of the page, across from his.

“You’re not reading it,” he comments.

“Should I?”

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