Page 19 of Killian
Ellie
Flipping on the lights,my entry and living room came to life. Growing up, we didn’t have a lot of money to spend on things we didn’t need. I remembered my mom always asking meIs it a need or a want?whenever I asked for anything.
Shoes were a need, but the sixty-dollar pair was a want, and I practiced that philosophy today. Don’t get me wrong, I still bought what I wanted, when I wanted. But in the back of my head I always made a conscious effort to think about the purchase.
It was one skill my mother gave me that actually had an impact on my life, which was surprising.
My childhood also meant I shut off every single light every time I left home. No need to waste the power and run up the bill. I was religious about turning off the light if I left a room, so the living room light wouldn’t be on for an extended period of time because I was more than ready to climb into bed. Porch lights didn’t get used either because why spend the extra when I knew how to unlock a door in the dark. Therefore, I entered my house in the pitch black before hitting that switch at the entry. Tossing my bag down on the kitchen table, I flipped on the lights in there too.
My home wasn’t a grand showplace because I didn’t need or want that. It had two bedrooms, two baths, kitchen, living room, laundry room, basement and garage. It wasn’t one of those tiny homes you'd see on television or Amazon. Did you know they sold those things on there? Crazy, huh? But yeah, it was bigger than those. Only it wasn’t overly large either. In fact, I dared to say it was absolutely the perfect house for this time in my life.
Cooking wasn’t really my thing. I could take it or leave it, and most of the time a quick burger at the bar did the trick. My kitchen had white cabinets on top while the bottom ones were painted an eggshell blue. The countertops were Formica, light cream, and in good repair. The appliances came with the place when I bought it. I scrubbed them like crazy and used them to this day.
While I kept my office very organized, my house not so much. It was lived in. There were pieces of mail here and there, dishes in the sink, a loaf of bread on the counter, which was probably moldy because I couldn’t remember the last time I used it. I was sure it needed to be tossed out, but I hadn’t gotten around to it yet.
The funny part of that, though, was most of the cabinets in the kitchen were empty. Yes. Empty. It was just me in this space. I had no animals because I was gone so much, even though I really wanted a dog. The dog deserved more than a sometimes here mom, and I wasn’t in a place to give that. Again, a dog was a want, not a need, so it had to be shelved for a different season of life for me.
My plates, bowls, pots, pans and cups all fit into two cabinets with room to spare. There was food in two more, and that was about the extent of it. It was everything I needed, but I had to admit, not getting the kitchen gadgets sometimes was hard. I figured I didn’t need four rubber scrapers, no matter how cute they were.
I had dinner at the bar, so I grabbed a bottled water from the fridge before locking the front door and shutting off the lights from the entryway, living room, and kitchen.
With the house all locked up, I jumped in the shower, slid on some pajama shorts and a cami top, then climbed into bed without a second thought. Between today and last night, getting a good night’s sleep was my goal.
The problem was it was cold and a bit too soft.
Damn Killian.
His bed was not overly soft nor extremely firm. It was also far from cold with him in it.
Closing my eyes, I drifted into a dreamless slumber.
Cocooned in warmth, I snuggled in deep and tried to get closer, to what I had no clue, but whatever it was felt so damn comfortable.
My eyes fluttered open, and panic invaded.
My bed. I was in my bed.
But I wasn’t alone.
My cheek rested on a hard, well-defined chest. One I remembered implicitly from last night. Holy fuck. How did he … what did he…
Using my hand that was laying on his pectoral, I pressed down on him hard and lifted my body. His eyes flew open, and he tried to make a grab for me. Luckily, I had a bit of an edge and was able to get to the side of the bed before he was able to hook me around the waist. Again.
He pulled me back and laid me flat out on the bed.
“What the fuck?” I shouted in his face. “How did you get in here!”
“Calm down,” he said, pinning me to the bed with his weight coming on top of me.
“Calm down? Are you kidding me right now?”
He grinned. “Nope.”
“I cannot believe you broke into my house!” I squirmed, not getting anywhere and trying really hard not to inhale his sexy scent.
“Told you we were sleeping next to each other tonight,” he said with authority, and anger bubbled inside me.
“And breaking into my home is okay, after I told you that wasn’t happening?” My heart was beating so fast in my chest. I really wanted to say it was all from anger and frustration with this man, but I didn’t want to acknowledge it was turning me on like mad.
