Page 8 of Recipe for Romance

Nicole’s mind started to race with some of the fantasies she’d been banishing since the moment she saw Aiden again, so she quickly plopped herself down in a chair facing the opposite direction, fidgeting with the lap belt to distract herself. The man flying with her looked as cool, calm, and collected as anyone she had ever seen. The only thing amiss about him was that his suit had gotten increasingly rumpled as the day went on, no doubt from the long day he’d been having followed by what would be an even longer night.

It would be nearly midnight by the time they arrived in Applewood, her new home for the next few months at least. Aiden had said he wouldtrainher, nothireher. Nicole was smart enough to know there was no way he would do the latter if he didn’t think she would be useful in his new restaurant. Staring across the table, she studied her new...teacher? Mentor? Boss?

Aiden wasn’t really her boss since he wasn’t technically paying her, but he was the one who would make or break her ability to transition from student to practitioner. Even so, Nicole found it difficult to think of him as anything other than someone who had shown her a tiny bit of kindness at a time when she’d felt fairly invisible all those years ago.

The pilot announced that the plane was cleared for takeoff, so Nicole settled back into her seat, the cool leather a lovely distraction from her heated skin. She peered across the way, surprised to see Aiden looking tenser than usual, something she hadn’t thought physically possible.

The man was more strained than a dinner between her and her dad. “Are you alright?” she asked.

Their ride to the airport had been silent, though Aiden had always been very mindful of her comfort, asking if the air conditioning was too cold, if her seat needed adjusting, or if she needed help with her luggage. It was touching, though it didn’t help matters as far as her crush was concerned. Now he was no longer this younger guy she’d gone gaga for as a teen, but a handsome and considerate man that she was trying not to lust over.

“Fine,” he bit out. Apparently, his kindness only extended so far.

Gone was the thoughtful gentleman from earlier and here was the Grumpy Gus she’d read so much about. Usually Nicole would leave someone to their stewing, but something about the tightness in his upper body, the way his fingers dug into the arms of his chair so deeply that she was almost sure he tore the leather that softened her a little.

Nicole scoffed lightly. “You don’t look fine. In fact, you look a little sick to your stomach.” She flicked her eyes to make sure there was an airsick bag nearby. Nicole was a little squeamish, so if Aiden lost his dinner, so would she.

Aiden shook his head tersely. “I’m fine. Just not a fan of flying.”

His voice was low and rough, something she would normally find delightful, but Nicole was too taken aback by his words to go there. His willingness to admit to what some might see as a weakness was refreshing for someone who seemed to project such a wholly confident aura, and even though she told herself she wouldn’t catch feelings, Nicole couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for him. The plane was just starting down the runway when she unbuckled herself and jumped to the seat directly next to Aiden.

One of his eyes flew open and zeroed in on her. “Just what do you think you’re doing?”

Nicole smiled brightly as she secured herself. “I won’t bite,” she promised. She definitely would if he asked her to, but that wasn’t something she was about to admit to out loud. Noticing his labored breathing, she tried to stay focused on making him more comfortable and not assaulting him with her mouth. “I’m just going to help you a little. Are you okay with that?”

His other eye opened and he studied her for a moment. The aqua shimmered like a pool of some otherworldly water she wanted to wade into, but as the plane kicked forward and the engine revved, the color dimmed. “Fine,” he finally agreed.

The gruffness of the concession nearly had her rolling her eyes, but she refrained. It was a bad habit she’d gotten into in response to her dad, teachers, other kids, or pretty much anyone who commented on her clueless nature. “Okay. I’m going to place your hand on my heart, and I’m going to place mine over yours,” she instructed.

Prying his grip from the armrest was difficult, but she managed to do it. The sight of deep grooves where his nails had damaged the leather gave her a little thrill as she imagined the same lines appearing on her hips, back, and shoulders. Wincing, Nicole expelled the sultry thoughts and tried to focus on helping Aiden.

“I’m not sure—” Aiden started, but he stopped the moment she touched his chest. It was firm beneath the cotton of his shirt. Nicole had gotten a brief glimpse earlier when he came to the house. The top two buttons of his shirt being undone gave her a peek at light skin and dark hair sprinkled beneath. While the desire to pop a few buttons and take a peek for confirmation was so very tempting, the feeling of his heart beating rapidly against his rib cage and her palm reminded her of why she was really there.

“Just breathe with me,” she instructed. Placing his hand slightly higher than her heart, she didn’t want to sexually harass her boss by placing his hand so close to her breast after all, at least not without his express permission, she recalled the exercise that had helped her in the past whenever missing her mom became unbearable. “When you feel my chest rise, breathe in slowly. When it falls, exhale at the same pace. Okay?”

Aiden nodded once again and as the plane picked up speed down the runway, the two of them breathed together, slowly inhaling and exhaling, the air between them smelling like mint and licorice. The sweet smell of candy was all her, so the mint must have come from him. Suddenly, she wanted to taste it directly. Shaking her head, Nicole tried to keep all of her focus on their mutual breathing, but as they lifted off into the air, she couldn’t help but find herself staring at Aiden’s profile.

Her stomach seemed to drop as she gazed at him. Her rational mind reminded her that it was the G-force creating the floaty feeling in her body, but Nicole couldn’t think rationally when she was gazing at such a man. Aiden’s nose was slightly larger up close, but it didn’t detract from the beauty of his face, and hewasbeautiful. There was no other way to describe someone who could double as an elf king with the smooth ivory skin of his face and the slightly pointed ears that were barely hidden under thick, nearly black hair.

Nicole moved her eyes down to his lips, and she allowed herself a moment to linger there. His lips were thin, but that made them no less kissable than if they had been plump or juicy. Instead of feeling like she was biting into a peach, Nicole would have to lick and suck her way into his mouth to get a taste of him. It was a challenge she would gladly accept, and the reward of tasting him would be that much sweeter for it. The idea of kissing Aiden had Nicole so turned on that she felt herself drifting closer to him.

Thankfully, before she could make an utter fool of herself as well as blow her best shot at becoming a chef, the steward came out and asked if they’d wanted any drinks. Nicole smiled politely at the man who looked to be about her age even as her neglected vagina shouted a string of curses at him. “He’ll have a glass of ginger ale, no ice, and I’ll have a glass of water. Oh, and could you bring me a warm towel? Thanks.”

The steward gazed at the pair of them curiously for a moment before he nodded and scurried back to the galley. When she turned to Aiden, he frowned at her. “How do you know I wasn’t going to order something else?” he asked.

Unbothered by his calling out her audacity, Nicole shrugged. The movement brought her attention back to the fact that they were still palming each other’s chests and she immediately dropped her hand. No wonder the steward looked at her like that. Aiden’s hand lingered a moment longer than necessary, but he eventually drew it back onto his lap. The light caress of his fingers as they trailed away from her skin felt more intimate than any other touch she’d experienced. She shivered, wanting more. It wasn’t until she saw Aiden with one stiff brow raised at her that Nicole finally realized she never answered his question and shook herself from her stupor.

“I didn’t,” she admitted. “You were clearly anxious, and you looked like you were minutes from redecorating the inside of this cabin with your dinner, so I figured a ginger ale was the best way to help settle your stomach.” The steward dropped their drinks on the table and passed the warm towel to Nicole. After thanking him again, she rolled it and motioned for Aiden to lean forward, draping over the back of his neck. “And this will help ease the tension in your shoulders.” Ignoring the fact that Aiden was staring at her like a science experiment, Nicole raised her glass to her lips only to immediately put it down again. “What’s that smell?”

Aiden blinked at her, his brows pulling together. “What smell?” The question was a reminder to Nicole that he wasn’t used to the hairpin turns her conversations typically made as her rapid-fire mind took over, but he would have to get used to it if they had any chance of working together.

“Boiled peanuts,” she announced. It was a distinct smell, one that lived in her memory from the first time her mother had made some for her dad’s chef friend from Louisiana.

Nicole sniffed her water glass, getting nothing before leaning over to Aiden. He smelled like lemons and evergreen trees, a combination she had never thought to put together but that she now wanted all over her all the time. Surreptitiously sniffing herself, Nicole found nothing and unbuckled her seat belt. This was what her mind did, switched her thought train to different tracks rapidly, though in this case she was thankful for it. Sitting next to Aiden, feeling the heat pouring off his body and onto hers, was a dangerous game she shouldn’t even think about playing.

Rummaging around the cabin, Nicole ignored Aiden’s raised brow and confused expression as she searched side pockets, behind cushions, and even poked her nose into the bedroom until she finally found the source of the smell she had hyperfixated on. “Ah ha!” She pulled the bag of discarded peanut shells out from between two couch cushions and held it up triumphantly. “I knew I smelled something funky.”

Walking over to the galley, she tossed the bag into the trash, smiling apologetically at the steward before rejoining Aiden. She hesitated at the table before deciding that it was best to sit across from him again. It was much safer with a table between them, something solid to prevent her from crawling into his lap and begging him to take her. It wasn’t his fault she was so worked up, well, not entirely. He did look amazing in his suit, wrinkled as it was, and would look even better out of it, but she’d always had a high sex drive, and it had beenso longsince she’d gotten laid.

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