Page 33 of The Grump

My face felt like it was burning. I was so flushed that I thought I might faint any second now. I didn’t even dare turn around.

“We need you in the living room.” It was a guy’s voice, but with my back turned, I couldn’t tell who it belonged to. At least it wasn’t Isabeau or Celine, but it had to be someone from the family.

“We’ll be right there,” Xander said.

How did he look so annoyingly calm and composed? The man wasn’t even blushing. I felt like a roasted tomato.

When the footsteps faded, he turned his gaze on me. His eyes were super dark and even sexier than before. “I’m sorry.”

“Oh.” My smile fell, and I quickly hopped down from the counter. “Umm... we can pretend it didn’t happen.” I pulled my dress down to my knees and smoothed out the nonexistent wrinkles just to give myself something to do.

Xander touched my arm, and a current of awareness moved through me. I instantly straightened up. He gripped my chin next. “I didn’t mean the kiss. I’m not fucking sorry about the kiss, just that we were so rudely interrupted. I had big plans.”

There was the man I knew, straight and to the point.

“Really? What were they?” I was suddenly feeling a little better about our getting caught.

“Something completely impractical for the kitchen.”

Holy shit!My nipples turned to tight buds; they were almost painful against my bra.

“I completely forgot we were in the kitchen.” Xander seemed to revert back to his sensible self, and I had to smile.

“Funny, I totally forgot that I was in your grandparents’ house too.”

He looked at the eggnog. “This is ready to put through the strainer,” he said. With dexterity, he grabbed the utensil and the simmering pot and poured the contents into the empty pot right next to it.

“My God, you’re strong,” I whispered.

“What was that?”

I laughed nervously. “Nothing, I was talking to myself.”

After putting down the pot, Xander turned to me. “Bailey, we just passed that stage where you have to keep your dirty thoughts to yourself.”

“Who said I had dirty thoughts?” Ha! If he only knew.

“I can read your body language. Right before the kiss, you pressed your thighs together.” His voice was suddenly an octave lower.

“Yes.”

“Was it because you were wet?”

I got even wetter at his words. I couldn’t say it, so I simply nodded.

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. “Fuck,” he murmured. “We need to join the others.”

My heart was beating out of my chest. What was I doing, kissing this man, flirting with him? I was working at the branchhe planned to close. This thing was messy anyway. Why was I making it even worse?

But when he fixed his gaze on me, I couldn’t think straight.

“Or what?” I murmured.

“Or I’ll lose my head completely.”

I needed to tease him more than I needed my next breath.

“What would that entail?” I prodded.

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