Page 10 of Charm

A soft rap at the front door tells me my neighbor is a few minutes early. I can’t say I’m surprised. I’m anxious to get the night started, too.

I swing open the door to find him smiling at me. He’s shirtless and wearing a pair of striped navy blue and white board shorts. When I saw him naked in the pool earlier, I got a glimpse of his bare chest, but up close, it’s hard not to stare. He’s all muscle and tanned skin. I feel like I hit the lover lottery this weekend.

“Summer,” he says my fake name in a voice edged with intensity. “You’re incredible.”

A slow smile spreads over my lips. “Forgive me if it takes a minute for me to get used to you calling me that.”

“Forgiven,” he says with a smile of his own. “For the record, if you want to share your real name with me, I’m all ears.”

I’m keeping that to myself. When I leave here on Sunday, I can do it knowing this tryst won’t follow me back home. My life is too full for a man at the moment. “For the record, that won’t happen.”

A deep chuckle flows from him. “Understood.”

I move aside to let him in. His bare feet pad across the tile floor as he heads toward the kitchen. “I’ll open the wine.”

“I’m not sure where the corkscrew is,” I say as I trail him. “Or the wine glasses.”

“I know where to find them.”

I tap his shoulder right before he reaches the entrance to the kitchen. Just that light touch sends a pulse of awareness through me. It’s enough to make me freeze in place.

He glances back at me with one eyebrow perched in silent query.

“I…um, I…” I stammer through that before I take a deep breath so I don’t sound like a blubbering fool. “I wasn’t aware that you knew where things were in the kitchen. Did you knowwhere the measuring cups were when I was looking through the cupboards earlier?”

He turns to face me. “Yes, but in my defense, I was enjoying watching you search for them. You tapped your chin every time you opened a cupboard and they weren’t there.”

I hold back a smile. “I didn’t do that.”

He taps his chin with his pointer finger. “Like this. When you do it, it’s fucking adorable.”

“I don’t do that,” I argue playfully.

“You sure as hell do, Summer.”

I drop the subject for one that fascinates me. “So, you know your way around the kitchen here?”

“I do.” He acknowledges with a brisk nod. “Mrs. Frye cooks dinner for me sometimes. Technically, she sits and sips wine while she instructs me on how to cook us dinner just the way she likes.”

Surprised by that, I smile. I only know the owner from our message exchanges on the vacation home rental app. She was incredibly friendly. I could have done without her trying to set me up, but I stepped right into that when I mentioned I’m divorced and traveling alone.

“I told you I was the neighbor,” he reminds me. “I’m a damn good neighbor.”

“I’ll be the judge of that.”

He rakes me from head to toe. “You’ll judge me a ten out of ten.”

Shaking my head, I laugh. “You’re a little too sure of yourself, Joe.”

“I know what I have to offer.” He steps closer to me. “You’re about to have a weekend you won’t soon forget.”

The assurance in his words is matched by the promise in his gaze. I know he’s speaking the truth. This man exudes a raw sensuality that I’ve never experienced before.

“But first, wine.” He flashes me a smile. “I’ll pour two glasses.”

I nod, suddenly struck with the overwhelming urge to ask him a question. “Are you single?”

His gaze finds mine again. “I am, but I’m not looking for anything…”

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