Page 23 of Naughty by Nature

Chapter 8

The girls did justas she’d expected them to, they’d all crowded into one bed. It would have been a pretty cute picture if she dared get her phone out. The two bigger girls were on the outside, and it looked like Grace had just wedged herself between them.

Cheyenne herself had been restless all night. The bed was fine and the room was fine. She just couldn’t settle.

Wonder if Sheridan has tea…

Before they’d gone to bed he’d reiterated to them several times that they were to help themselves to anything in the house and kitchen.

Cheyenne stuck her head out into the hallway, but it was quiet. Pulling her t-shirt down, she debated whether or not to go out. She’d forgotten her sleep pants. She couldn’t sleep in them because they restricted her movement in the bed, but she wore them a lot because they were so comfortable. They were a staple in her wardrobe. But somehow she’d walked out without packing a single pair in her bag.

There was no one out there to see her. Heck, even the dogs were outside.

Padding down the hallway, she tried to remember the layout of the living room. Someone had left a couple of small nightlights burning so she had enough light to make her way to the dark kitchen. She blinked, straining to see, but for some reason there was no nightlight in this room. Resting her hand on the marble island she began to circle toward the far entrance, where the light switches were. There was a rustling to her right and she let out a squeal of terror just before she bumped into a hard, warm, wall.

“Sheridan?” she hissed.

A light switch flipped and he was revealed, in all his mouthwatering glory. Oh, fudge, why did he have to look so good?

He’d forgone sleep pants as well, only wearing tight black boxer briefs and a soft blue t-shirt that molded to his upper chest. Cheyenne snatched her hand away from his chest and curled it against her breasts, then tugged her own t-shirt down as far as she could over her hips.

“I’m so sorry,” she gasped. “I didn’t think anyone was up.”

Sheridan’s broad jaw started working, and she realized that that had been what she’d heard a few seconds ago. Him chewing something hard. She looked at the island and the family size package of Oreos, the tray half empty, and felt a smile spread her lips. “Really? You’re raiding the cookies in the middle of the night?”

He shrugged his massive shoulders sheepishly, mouth still too full to speak.

Cheyenne laughed, loving that she’d caught the big, self-contained man in something so innocently naughty and childlike.

He held the tray out to her and offered her a cookie. Cheyenne generally didn’t like the too-sweet cookies, but she took one anyway. Then, twisting the two halves apart, she licked the white icing, just like she’d done since she was a kid.

Sheridan stilled, his gaze latching onto her tongue. A warm wash of heat rolled through her, suddenly reminding her of things better forgotten. That was awareness she could see in his expression. Awareness of male and female things that she’d tried to tamp down for the past several years.

He turned away abruptly, moving to the fridge to pour a tall glass of milk, then he moved around the corner of the island. He drank half the glass down, then grinned at her, his face polite. That awareness was gone and she wondered what had happened.

“You caught me. This is my dirty little secret.” He dragged the package closer and took a couple more cookies, shoving one into his mouth.

Cheyenne laughed lightly. “I guess you could have worse habits,” she told him softly. “Although it’s probably not healthy to do in the middle of the night. Do you do this every night?”

His shoulders moved in a shrug. “Maybe,” he garbled.

Cheyenne laughed and snagged herself a second cookie. “Better be careful,” she warned. “These are going to be bad for that manly figure of yours.”

Sheridan flexed his bicep for her, and Cheyenne almost drooled. Her heart thudded heavily against her chest as she looked at the massive, veined muscle. It was the size of her calf! Bigger!

“Okay,” she conceded. “You’re still strong. But these cookies will go to your belly.”

Sheridan gave her a long look, like he knew she wanted to see his stomach. Then, pulling up the hem of his t-shirt a couple of inches, he allowed her to see the cobbled landscape of his abdomen, and the thin like of brown hair in the center heading south. Cheyenne jerked her eyes away, her breath suddenly tight in her throat. But she tried to play it off.

“I don’t know,” she teased. “I think I see a bit of a paunch, there.”

Sheridan’s green eyes glittered in the light from the island pendant and he fought a smile. “Yeah, okay. If you say so.”

They both started laughing and he handed her another cookie. Cheyenne stuffed her mouth before she said anything more incriminating. It also gave her eyes something to focus on.

His abs had been perfection, and she wondered what he did to take care of himself. Obviously fighting with criminals all the time kept him strong.

Reality hit her hard then. The only reason she was in his house was because of another criminal, her ex. She had no business even considering anything more than taking care of her kids and getting their lives back in order.

---