Page 46 of Wild Desire

"We never have guests over for dinner," Christopher said as he dug a scoop of enchiladas onto his plate.

Ever since their dad left, it had just been us, and that had been enough. But I liked having Killian here. It was nice.

"Try to leave us some, please," Mom said, used to him eating a lot of food.

He was a growing boy now, and he ate more than he used to. It meant a larger grocery bill, but it was necessary. I never wanted Christopher or Winnie to feel like we didn't have enoughfor them. I worked hard so that they never felt that scarcity like I had.

Killian scooped some for Winnie, me, then Mom before getting some for himself.

Mom had made lime waters for everyone, which went great with the meal. We talked about Christopher's training, Winnie's new lessons, and things going on at school. It was nice to catch up, and Killian seemed genuinely interested in my siblings' lives.

After dinner, I helped Mom clean up while Killian went outside to shoot some hoops with Christoper. We'd hung a hoop over the single-car garage when he was eleven.

"Killian's a nice boy," Mom said as she loaded the dishwasher.

"He's not a boy anymore, Mom." He was all man, and I couldn't forget that, even if he was injured. His muscles tested the threads on his clothes, and I'd walked in on him naked and close to it twice already. Since I moved in, I made a point to avoid his bedroom at all costs.

It wasn't that I didn't want to see him naked again, but I didn't think I could control myself.

"Don't think I didn't notice. What's going on between you two?"

I stiffened. Had she noticed that his hand had been on my thigh at the beginning of the meal, or that he'd held my hand when we were looking at the pictures? "Nothing. Why?"

"He's here with you. That has to mean something."

I rolled my eyes. "He insisted on coming over because he was bored. I didn't invite him."

"Well, you should have. That poor boy needs a home-cooked meal."

I put my hands on my hips. "I've been cooking him home-cooked meals."

Mom grinned triumphantly. "You have?"

I groaned. "It's part of my job. I'm his personal assistant."

Mom raised a brow. "Did his other assistant cook his meals?"

"I don’t know." But my heart clenched at the idea. Had Riley done things like that with him? Because cooking for him felt intimate. I didn't like the thought of him doing it with her too.

"He seemed interested in Christopher and Winnie in a way his brothers aren't. I mean Xander took an interest in Christopher and helped him get lessons, but he's never invited himself to dinner."

"It doesn't mean anything."

"Are you sure about that?" Mom pointed a wooden spoon out the window where Killian was leaning on his crutches and attempting to shoot at the same time. He missed by a lot, and I could tell that Christopher was ragging him.

Winnie grabbed the ball and attempted a shot. When she missed, Killian demonstrated proper form with his hands.

They enjoyed his company. It was nice to see.

"You like him."

I moved my gaze from Killian to my mom. "I've always been friends with him."

"Did something happen when you were kids? Because one minute you were friends, and the next I couldn't even talk about him."

I sighed. "I kissed him, but he didn't kiss me back. He didn't like me as more than friends."

"Did he say that?"

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