Page 66 of Sweet Little Thing

Shay flicked her middle finger up. “Skinny bitch!”

I stayed paused. Unsure if it was polite to leave now.

Shay smirked at me. “So, let’s talk about you being Jasper Van Allan’s maid then moving on in with mister broody, hot and sexy upstairs. Please teach me your ways,” she said wiggling her eyebrows.

I felt my face heat. “It isn’t like that,” I assured her. It had been with Jasper though. I left that part out.

The smile on her face made it clear she didn’t believe me. I didn’t want Stone hearing that anyone thought it was that way either. He’d think I said something that made them believe it then correct me again on my place in this world.

“I’d offer you food, but they seriously have nothing unless you consider kale, lemon, and quinoa food. And I haven’t got aclue how to cook that quinoa shit. But I was about to go down to Mack and Marty’s. They have the best snacks. Marty brings home fresh donuts from the place by the fire station he works at.”

She had let it drop so I decided to as well. Perhaps she was joking and knew better. She was aware how out of my league Stone was.

“I ate before I left work but thank you. It was nice to see you again,” I told her.

She nodded. “Yeah. Same. Thanks for getting rid of the bitch. She was insane. I don’t live here, but I’m here enough to dread seeing her. I caught her with Dan in his study one afternoon when I first started working for the Elswoods. I never said anything, but I haven’t been a fan of hers since. Claire isn’t the warmest or most likable woman on the earth or in a room of ten people, but no one deserves to be cheated on. I keep my distance from Dan,” she grinned. “Anyway, too much info, I’m sure. Have a good night. I need to get sustenance before I pass out.”

“Yeah, you too,” I replied awkwardly as she jogged down the stairs toward Marty and Mack’s apartment. I really hoped none of them thought I was with Stone like she had teased. Stone would hate it. I climbed the last flight of stairs as that thought bothered me.

Staring at the door a moment before opening it I found myself wishing I had gone with Shay downstairs to give Stone more time to himself. I decided I’d walk inside quietly and go to my room. He was free of Presley now and I was sure he was enjoying his peace. I wouldn’t intrude on that. I could apologize for this morning later.

Garlic, butter and heaven met my nose as I stepped inside. Closing the door softly behind me, I glanced toward the kitchen and heard classic rock playing over the sound system. I wasn’t shocked that Stone could cook. I was starting to believe therewas little that he couldn’t do. Still, I had a hard time picturing him over a stove or wearing oven mits. A grin tugged at my lips at the image that had formed in my head and I bit my bottom lip to keep from laughing. Not that he could hear me over his music if I did.

I turned and headed down the hallway just as Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” started playing. I liked his taste in music but again not something I would have thought he listened to. My mom had loved Lynyrd Skynyrd. I had memories dancing in the kitchen with her and Heidi to that very song. Mom singing into the wooden spoon as if it were a microphone.

“It’s rude to not even come say hello. And here I am in the kitchen slaving over the stove making our dinner.” Stone’s deep voice carried down the hallway.

I spun back around to see him standing in the entryway wearing a white apron tied around his waist, a black t-shirt and faded jeans holding a glass of whiskey in his hand. His tanned bare feet completed the image. My words faltered as I stared at him. He was different. The tension in his shoulders was absent. There was no clenched jaw, or scowl on his face. This was Stone relaxed, and that was as out of character as it was attractive. Maybe attractive wasn’t a strong enough word. He was striking, breathtaking, much like Fiona had been in her running gear. Except Fiona hadn’t left me speechless. I struggled to form words. Say something as he stared at me over the rim of his glass as he took a drink.

I cleared my throat. “I, uh, I didn’t know you were cooking for me. I thought…you might be celebrating your evening of peace.”

His laugh was a deep husky sound that made a small tingle run through me. Not good, Beulah. Bad. Very bad.

“Oh, I’m celebrating a Presley free space. But I don’t bother to cook pierogi for just myself. That shit’s too damn hard.”

I had no idea what pierogi was, but it smelled delicious. I’dmade a tomato mozzarella salad with grilled chicken for dinner at Geraldine’s. We’d sat on the back patio and enjoyed our meal while she told me stories of Stone and Jasper’s childhood. The happy kind of stories. The ones that made us laugh although my guilt had grown a little more with each one. I hated that I was the cause of their fight today. Listening to her talk about them had been impossible to resist regardless how it affected me.

I wasn’t going to tell him I’d eaten. This week alone, Stone had helped me and saved me repeatedly. He had also insulted me more than once and made sure I knew my place in his world, but he had been there when I had no one. If he was cooking for me then I could eat a second dinner. At this point, if he asked me to walk a tightrope from one building to the next, I would have a hard time telling him no. I would, of course, tell him no because I had a recurring dream of falling from a tightrope to my death. But I would feel bad about not doing it.

“Thank you. I should be the one cooking you dinner. You had a rough morning, and then you had to deal with the situation at Geraldine’s. I’m causing problems for you.”

He lowered his glass and held my gaze. “Jasper is my best friend. I’ve been pulling him out of shit since we were kids. He’s emotional, and I’m not. Today wasn’t about you, it was about him. This…is about him,” Stone said, staring at me. His gaze locked on mine. “Don’t feel as if you owe me anything. Except to eat the meal I slaved over.” He finished his last sentence with a softer, almost teasing lilt to his voice.

I didn’t want to think about the seriousness of his words. I’d come to expect Stone’s brutal honesty. He gave me security and feeling indebted to him could lead to other thoughts. Things that would never happen. He was protecting Jasper. None of it was because of me. It was just that the man was exactly like Shay had described him- Broody, hot and sexy. It got in the way sometimes.

Stone was not opening his arms for me to find comfort in no matter what anyone else in this building seemed to think was happening between us. If I wasn’t important to Jasper, then Stone wouldn’t have helped me like this.

“Thank you for making dinner,” I replied simply.

“You’re welcome. You gave me a reason to cook. I’ve missed it.”

Jasper had given him a reason to cook. That thought popped up so quickly that it almost sounded bitter in my head. I put a hand on that thought mentally and squished it down. Clearly, I was letting my emotions get all warped and confused. I’d had such strong feelings for Jasper, and they’d all be ripped away so quickly. My raw, needy emotions were blurring the lines, confusing things.

“Get comfortable. It’ll be a few more minutes. Dinner here isn’t a formal thing. I’m barefoot, and the table out on the balcony won’t have a tablecloth on it. Wear whatever you want.”

With that, he walked back to the kitchen. I waited until he was gone before letting out a sigh. From day one, Stone had made me uncomfortable, nervous, and angry. The relief, gratefulness, and odd flutter in my chest at the sight of him now, mixed with those other emotions, was making this all too complicated. If I could just stop that damn flutter. I was good at adjusting. I was a fighter. But this…this was different. Fighting my attraction for a man I did not want to be attracted to was not something I had experience in.

Stone wasn’t the kind of man a woman should get attached to because he lacked emotion. Unless he was looking at Geraldine. Or when he allowed his stepsister to drive him crazy because she had no home. Or when he stepped in time and time again to save Jasper from causing himself any pain or harm. Other than that…he was without emotion.

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