Page 31 of Naughty Nicky

“Try me.”

I groan in frustration as he walks me into his en suite bathroom and sets me down in the shower.

“You clean yourself up. I’ll take care of the kitchen.”

“But what about the other batch?”

“I’ll handle it.”

I frown at him, but he just rolls his eyes at me and walks away.

As I strip out of the clothes I changed into this morning, a poof of flour goes into the air.

Okay, maybe I am covered in more flour than I thought I was.

I turn on the water and bask in the heat. There is nothing I love more than a hot shower, and this shower feels amazing. I don’t know why, it’s nothing special. Maybe it’s because it’s Nick’s, and I’m a freak and just like being in his shower.

I uncap the bottles lining the wall. The shampoo and conditioner both have the same fresh scent with a touch of mint. I open the body wash next and nearly melt into the wall. This is what I’ve been smelling on him, in the sheets, on his clothes. It’s woodsy and musky and smells like the outdoors but also just smells like a hot sexy man. Like how I imagine that guy on TikTok smells who chops wood. Except I have my own wood chopper now. I think he chops wood at least. But he’s also not mine.

I sigh in disappointment. My crush is getting the better of me today. I wish Nick was mine but know that he never will be.

When I return to the kitchen, it’s immaculate. Like I never even attempted to make cookies at all. There is also a pile of flat, burned cookies sitting on a plate.

“What happened to my cookies?” I ask Nick who’s sitting at the kitchen table twirling a pen in his fingers while looking at what looks like a crossword puzzle book.

“I don’t know. I saw the timer on your phone on the counter and waited for it to go off.”

I really didn’t think the cookies had been in the oven that long before I turned the timer on, but I guess I was wrong.

I pick up one of the cookies from the plate, and it’s as hard as a rock. “Ugh, these are no good.”

Nick smirks at me. “Oh, I know. Just thought you wanted to see what the result from the fruits of your labor were.”

“This isn’t funny. I tried really hard.”

“I’m sure you did. But maybe the next batch will be better.”

I shrug. “Hopefully.”

Nick looks back down at his book and must figure out a clue as he writes down a word. “To be honest, I didn’t think that I had the ingredients to make cookies. I don’t even know when I bought those chocolate chips. Must have been on a whim when I moved here.”

I have no idea how long chocolate chips are good for. But let’s be honest, I ate a few of them before tossing them in the batter. “They tasted fine to me.”

“Well then maybe this next batch will turn out okay.”

“Thanks for cleaning up my mess, by the way.”

“You cleaned up mine this morning.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t destroy your kitchen.”

“True.” He sets his pen down and turns in his chair to face me. “I see you found new clothes.”

I look down at the pair of sweats and the T-shirt I found in Nick’s drawer. “Well, I couldn’t go walking around in flour-covered clothes. You’d probably carry me outside next and throw me in the snow.”

He contemplates that idea. “Maybe I should.”

“Jerk,” I mutter just as a timer goes off on his phone.

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