Page 43 of Starts With a Bang

I tightened my arm around his waist and sighed.

“Just like that,” Dom said.

My sigh was nothing like the noises he made. “Did I sound like I never want to leave your embrace?”

“Yeah, like that.”

“Good,” I said. “Because it’s how I feel.”

Dom inhaled, and his breath got snagged. He let out a little cough, and I knew what was coming. The air in the house was dry, and I should’ve brought a bottle of water to bed for him just in case.

I sat up and slid from the bed. “You need a drink.”

“It’s just a tickle in my throat,” he replied. “Come back.”

I turned on the table lamp and blinked against the sudden light. “I’ll dash to the kitchen and grab cold water for both of us. Then we’ll test out some of the shower features.” We’d cleaned up after sex, but we were both too tired to experiment with theoptions. I grabbed the pajama bottoms off the floor and pulled them on. “I’ll be right back.”

Dom looked like he might protest until he barked out a warning wheeze. I held up my forefinger and eased out of the bedroom. The wood floors were cold beneath my bare feet, prompting me to move swiftly down the hallway. It seemed like the odds were in my favor. Not a single floorboard let out a squeak as I navigated the massive house in the dark predawn hours. A swath of light cut a path through the darkness at the back of the chateau. It was bright enough to guide my way without having to turn on overhead lights. I’d get in and out of there in no time.

I stepped into the gathering space and discovered I wasn’t the only one up and about. The light above the stove provided just enough illumination for me to see Janet shut the refrigerator door and turn in my direction. We locked gazes at the same time and gasped as we clutched our chests. Janet’s eyes looked as big as saucers in the dimly lit room, and they grew impossibly larger when she took in my state of undress. Whoops.

“I didn’t think anyone would be awake,” I whispered. “I just came in to get water.”

That’s when I noticed Janet still wore the same clothes from the previous evening. Her hair stood up like she’d just walked through a cyclone on her way to the refrigerator. Janet’s mascara had smeared into black crescents under her eyes. She sniffled, and I realized I’d interrupted a very private moment.

“I’ll come back.”

“No, please,” she said, waving at the refrigerator as she stepped away. “Go ahead and help yourself.”

I felt her gaze on me as I walked into the kitchen, mindful of how little I’d put on to retrieve the water. What did someone say to a woman he’d just met the previous night? I didn’t want to ask how she’d slept since it seemed she’d passed out in herclothes. The weather hardly seemed appropriate, and I didn’t know enough about sports to make idle chitchat. Politics was out of the question.

“Dom is a lucky guy.” Janet let out a mortified squeak and slapped a hand over her mouth. She stared at me with wide eyes for a few seconds before lowering her arm again. “That was inappropriate, and I’m so sorry.” The words came out muffled, but her embarrassment rang out loud and clear.

“Don’t be,” I said. “If I’d known you were out here, I would’ve put on a shirt.”

She lowered her hand. “And cover up your hard work? Seems like a crime.” She covered her mouth again and shook her head in disbelief.

Flaunting my assets had been my strategy for a long time. I’d leaned toward tight pants and belly-baring shirts for so long it had become a habit more than a preference. I’d gone from nerdy Stevie to suave Sven and hadn’t looked back. Sven’s bold attire and attitude shielded Stevie’s tender heart from those who’d abuse his trust. And it wasn’t an act, per se. Somewhere along the way, Sven and Stevie merged into a powerhouse personality that loved fiercely and fearlessly while looking like a million bucks.

I opened the refrigerator and removed a bottle of water, drinking half of it before recalling my good sense. I released the door, but I got a good look at Janet’s face in the flash of light before it closed. Her nose was as red as Rudolph’s, and her cheeks were blotchy and wet from crying. Sex became the last thing on my mind when faced with someone who could be in a crisis.

“Do you need anything?” I asked, gesturing to the refrigerator. “Did you get something to eat?”

A soft sob escaped her, and she turned her back to me. Janet’s narrow shoulders shook, and I was on the verge of mentallykicking myself when she faced me again. “I can’t remember the last time someone asked me how I was feeling or if I needed anything. I think it might be my fault. I’ve become so antagonistic. You saw the way my husband talks to me. My sister avoids me like the plague. And my own mother can barely tolerate me, and she dyed her hair that awful shade of blue just to spite me.”

I wasn’t in a position to help her with any of her personal entanglements, so I said the first thing that came to mind. “I could make you something to eat if pizza doesn’t sound good.”

Janet smiled weakly. “The pizza looks so good. I want to try it, but I’m not sure my stomach could handle it.”

I opened the refrigerator and took stock of what we had on hand. I saw eggs, ham, cheese, and leftover veggies. “I could whip up an omelet.”

“You’d do that for me? A virtual stranger?”

I peeked around the open door and met her gaze. “I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t willing. What do you want in yours?”

“Load it up with all the goodies,” Janet said.

She turned on a few lights and sat down at the island while I gathered ingredients and tools to make her breakfast. The extra vegetables and thinly sliced ham left over from the pizza party were perfect and only required a little dicing for the omelet.

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