Page 41 of Bound By Words

“You’re late,” Kelly smiled while she held the door open. “It’s not nice to keep a lady waiting.”

“I apologize.” Stepping closer, I leaned in to place a small kiss on the corner of her jaw. “I’ll try better next time.”

“Awfully presumptive to assume I’ll be inviting you in again,” she laughed, closing the door as I entered the house.

“We’re both here for the next several weeks. Seems foolish to spend all that time by ourselves. But if you don’t want me around, just say so, and I’ll leave you alone.” She nodded, trying to suppress a smile, but I was onto her. “But I think we both know you like having me here. So there’s no point in lying about it.”

“Quite sure of yourself, aren’t you?”

“Only because I saw you loitering around the window several times today ogling me.”

“I wasn’t,” she stuttered, turning her face away from me as a soft blush appeared on her cheeks. “I was just looking out the window. I wasn’t looking for you. Arrogant much?”

“Not typically, but the phrase ‘takes one to know one’ comes to mind. And I think you’ve got some voyeuristic tendencies in you. You like to watch, don’t you, Kelly?”

“Does everything have to be about kink with you?” She rolled her eyes, crossing her arms, which caused her breasts to push up against the neckline of her sweater. She was trying to deflect, but I saw how she swallowed hard when I whispered the comment about her watching.

“No. But once you know how to look at people’s behavior, it’s not hard to pick out what someone’s kinks might be.”

“Well,” she sighed dramatically, waving her hand toward the hallway. “Why don’t you go clean yourself up, and then you can tell me all about your kinks.”

“Putting me in the spotlight, huh?”

She stepped back toward the kitchen, rolling her eyes and arching a brow at me. “Maybe you’ll stop asking me so many questions if I get you talking about yourself. Let’s be realistic here. You’re probably more interesting to talk about anyway.”

“Don’t.” I shook my head as I stepped into her personal space and tilted her chin toward me with my fingertips. I was sure I was getting her dirty, but I didn’t care. “Don’t put yourself down. Don’t do that. If I weren’t interested in spending time with you and listening to what you have to say, I wouldn’t be here.”

The nervous look in her eyes softened as they darted between mine. I wasn’t sure what she found there, but she hesitantly nodded. “Okay. I won’t. I’m sor…”

“Don’t apologize either.”

She stared up at me hesitantly for a few seconds before she stepped back, bumping into the edge of the kitchen island and grasping the edge of the countertop to steady herself. “The main bedroom is at the end of that hall. Help yourself to whatever you need. I left a towel on the counter for you.”

“Thanks,” I nodded, secretly enjoying how she watched me walk down the hallway. I could feel her eyes on me. As I turned to look back at her from the doorway, I caught her staring in my direction, causing her to jerk her head to the side like she hadn’t been following my movements.

“I’ll just get the food going,” she shouted as I walked out of sight, chuckling to myself as I moved toward the bathroom.

The hot water in the walk-in shower felt good on my sore muscles, and by the time I was scrubbed clean and dried off, my stomach had started to growl. The protein bar I’d wolfed down midday had done nothing to keep my stomach full, and I was glad Kelly had saved me from trying to muster the energy to cook something for myself in the small microwave or on the old propane stove in the Airstream.

“You look refreshed,” Kelly smiled as she looked up from the corner of the large couch in the open living room. “Food is heated up. I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I grabbed a few different things. Whatever we don’t eat, I can always reheat for lunch tomorrow. Although I should probably make a trip into town sooner rather than later, or I’m going to burn through Chase’s whole stash of freezer meals, and then she’ll murder me.”

“I highly doubt your brother or Chase would be upset with you taking advantage of their hospitality.” Running my fingers through my damp hair, I combed it back from my face. I’d forgotten to grab a hair tie, and I was sure it’d dry into a curly mess by the time the evening was through. A haircut hadn’t even been on my radar when I fled Boston, although I knew I was several months overdue for one. It was on the longer side when Kelly saw me months ago, and now it was almost to my chin.

“Well, you underestimate how much my sister-in-law despises cooking. Why else do you think she was quick to move in with Evan?”

“Maybe because she enjoyed his company?” I laughed.

“Hardly,” Kelly giggled. “You have met Evan, right?”

“I’m not sure that’s entirely fair. He’s a cool guy, a little quiet, but he’s pretty funny once you get to know him. They seem to get along well. Considering the whole living together, and getting married and writing books together thing.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She waved her hand in the air dismissively. “Tell me all about how perfectly nauseating they are together. Like that isn’t the topic of half my conversations with my mother since they met.”

Kelly stood, smoothing out the long sweater she was wearing, the edge of the neckline falling to one side to expose the soft skin of her shoulder. It was clear from the outline of her body underneath that sweater that she wasn’t wearing a bra again. My fists clenched at my sides as I fought the urge to pull her into my arms and kiss all that soft, exposed skin.

“Let’s eat before it gets cold, and can we please not talk about how perfect my brother is for the rest of the night? I’d rather not.”

Frowning at the weariness in her voice, I nodded, following her toward the kitchen, where several covered plastic containers sat spread out on this island. “Looks good. Thank you for inviting me for dinner.”

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