Page 271 of How to Kiss a Hawthorne Brother
I can see the smile playing on Lennox’s lips, but he doesn’t cave, just keeps those deep green eyes trained right on me. Finally, he unleashes his smile in all its overwhelming glory. “You talked a little.”
I groan. “Was it bad? Tell me it wasn’t bad.”
He turns around and pulls a couple of mugs out of the cabinet, setting them on the counter next to the already gurgling coffee maker. “Depends on who you’re asking.” He lifts his shoulders in a playful shrug. “But I didn’t mind it.”
I squeeze my eyes closed and move my hands up so they’re covering my entire face. “Just tell me,” I say. “Can you repeat it? Am I ever going to be able to look at you again?”
He’s quiet for a beat, then I feel him move closer. His hands close around my wrists, and he gently tugs them away from my face. He places a warm mug of fresh coffee into my hands. “Stop stressing. All you said was my name.”
A surge of relief washes over me. “Oh. That’s not too bad, I guess.”
“I mean, it definitely sounded like you were trying to seduce me. A little sexy, a little breathy—” He opens the fridge and pulls out the cream, offering it to me.
I swat at his arm before setting my mug on the counter and taking the cream. “I did not sound like I was trying to seduce you.”
He smiles. “You kinda did.”
Something tugs at the back of my consciousness, and the kissing part of my dream pops into my mind in all its vivid glory.WasI trying to seduce him? But I wasSLEEPING. It couldn’t have been that bad.
Either way, Lennox is enjoying this way too much.
“I think you must have mistakenfrustrationfor interest.” I pour a splash of cream into my coffee and leave it on the counter, turning to face Lennox fully. “I was probably dreaming about you taunting me with dry pastry or expensive cheese.”
“Dry pastry?” he says with a smirk. “I wouldn’t know where to find any of that.” He steps toward me. “Besides, I know what you sound like when you’re frustrated. Andthiswas not that.” Another step. “This was softer.” He reaches forward and hooks a finger around my pinky, tugging me toward him. I go willingly, my breath catching when his free hand slips around my waist and pulls me against him, our bodies flush. “You sounded like you wanted me.”
Outside the back door, Toby barks, startling us both. I jump away from Lennox, one hand pressed to my heart, and look at Toby who is staring at us through the glass.
Seconds later, Brody and Kate come downstairs, then Lennox is making everyone breakfast, and I’m left to process one of the most emotionally charged moments I’ve ever experienced while we’re all laughing and talking over pancakes.
You sounded like you wanted me.
Well, that’s not hard to imagine, because I definitely do.
I did not think about the downside to unexpected days off.
Now that the snow is mostly gone and we’re up and running again, I’m playing catch up, and it isnot fun.
The wedding scheduled for the day after the snowstorm only had to be postponed one day, which, great for the bride and groom, but it means I have to handle a wedding dinneranda corporate retreat dinner on the same night. Both events were supposed to happen in the farmhouse dining room, but Lennox has agreed to have the corporate retreat people use a corner of his dining room for one meal, leaving the farmhouse open for the rescheduled wedding. That just means I have to figure out how to have staff in two places—up at the farmhouse serving a wedding, and here, serving thirty corporate attorneys on a week-long restorative mountain getaway. Olivia brought in extra waitstaff, and Lennox offered to let me use a couple of his line cooks, so everything should run smoothly.
But the situation is still less than ideal, and it’s made even more complicated by the tree-sized hole in the ceiling of my office. Every time we shuttle food out the back door to the van we use to transport it up to the farmhouse, we’re walking through a construction zone which does exactly nothing to soothe my already frazzled nerves.
Meanwhile, whenever I see Lennox, all I want to do is forget I even have a job and run into his arms. What else could I possibly do after that last moment between us?
I can’t stop thinking about the way he looked at me, his finger hooked around mine, a fire burning in his eyes. He wanted to kiss me. I’m absolutely positive about that. And had we not been interrupted first, by Toby, then by Brody and Kate, I’m pretty sure he would have.
So that’s fun. An unrealized kiss hanging between us, and zero time to actually make it happen. We’re both thinking about it though. I can tell every time our eyes meet across a crowded kitchen or our fingers brush, lingering a little longer than necessary whenever we’re close enough to touch.
It’s just past ten when I finish for the night, but Lennox’s kitchen is still hopping. On the one hand, I hate that he’s still on his feet. On the other, if his staff is still cooking, I’d do anything for some apple brandy pork tenderloin right about now.
Lennox finally sees me, and motions for Zach to come take his spot as expeditor before he makes his way over. As soon as I see the tired lines etched into the side of his face, I quickly change my mind about asking him for anything. I’m half-tempted to offer to cover for him so he can go home and go to bed.
“You guys are working late.”
“About to plate the last orders,” he says. “I guess this big extended family is in town for a funeral, and they all came in together. There’s something like twenty of them.”
“Do you need any help?”
“Nah, we’re through the worst of it. But can I ask your opinion about something else?”
