Page 14 of Where We Found Our Home
His lips turn up in a grin. “You’re welcome.”
As I close the bedroom door behind me and slide under the covers, I wonder how the hell I’m going to shake my attraction to this man.
Ciara
Ifeel his muscular arms on me, and I want to bite him. Not in a sexual way. I want to cause him pain so he’ll leave me the fuck alone.
“Nooo, not again. No more, Linc. My name is Ciara Jeffries. I’m twenty-eight years old. The year is 2020. We are in Austin, Texas. A cheese puff is president. See? I’m fine.”
I open my eyes to find Lincoln sipping from a “World’s Bestest Uncle” mug, eyeing me with all the amusement. “You know, to be fair, I tried to be quiet every time I came to check on you so that you wouldn’t wake up, but you really are a light sleeper. I just figured since you were up I’d have a little fun and quiz you. I came in here this time to let you know that breakfast is ready. Sasha said feel free to sleep in if you want, but the food is there.”
“Oh. Umm, yeah, I’ll come down.”
“Take your time, slugger.” He smirks.
“Slugger?”
“Ha! Yeah, you punched me in the arm when you woke up during my four a.m. check-in.” He rubs his arm, looking for sympathy, as if I could ever make a dent in that piece of steel he calls an arm.
“I did not!”
“Oh, but you did. It’s okay. It’ll heal, I’m sure.”
“Great, I was so worried.” Cue the sarcasm.
He flashes that panty-melting smile at me again. “See you soon.”
I take a moment to really appreciate the gloriousness that is Sasha’s home. I realize I was so caught up in Lincoln and Nevaeh last night that I didn’t really notice my surroundings. The guest room I stayed in is hotel level quality. It’s considerably more neutral compared to the rest of the house.
When I was a kid, my mom took me to North Carolina for a week on vacation. She never wanted me to miss out on experiences she didn’t get as a child, so she worked her ass off to give me once-in-a-lifetime moments. In North Carolina, we had an entire rental house to ourselves. It was gorgeous. The place was painted slate gray and white, but it still felt warm and inviting inside. I’d help my mom cook dinner every night, and she’d ask me about all my hopes and dreams while we ate. We’d go for walks every day, and she’d tell me stories on the balcony every night. Those days were some of the best days of my life. This room takes me back there. I can practically feel my mom’s loving embrace in this room, and that makes me grab my stuff quickly and head downstairs.
Heavenly scents pull me into the kitchen. It smells like bacon and cinnamon, and I can feel myself salivating. The kitchen is mostly gray, but every accent is a sunshine yellow that catches my eye. I wonder if Carter had any say in the decorating for the house or if Sasha just ran point. This house screams family and happiness, unlike my cold apartment. My place screams hiding in plain sight.
Sasha is buzzing around the kitchen in full-on Mom mode. Carter is pouring coffee into a mug for her—surprise, it’s yellow. Lincoln is pretending to steal bacon off of Nevaeh’s plate, but she’s not paying him any mind because her pancakes are demanding her full attention. She catches a glimpse of me standing in the entryway and waves to me. “Good Morning, Ciara!” she says, then goes right back to stuffing her face.
“Good Morning, Nevaeh. Good Morning, Sasha. Good Morning, Carter.”
“Good Morning, Jim Bob,” Lincoln mocks.
“Shut up before I sic a zombie on you.”
Lincoln smacks his hands to his chest. “You wouldn’t.”
I only offer him a smirk in return. “Everything smells delicious, Sasha.”
“Aww, thank you.”
“Who is Jim Bob?” Nevaeh asks.
“It’s from an old TV show calledThe Waltons, Munchkin,” Carter responds.
“Oh. Well if it’s old, why’d you say it, Linky?”
“I was teasing Ciara, that’s all, Short Stack.”
“He was trying to be funny, but it fell flat,” I tease.
Lincoln sticks his tongue out at me. This is all feeling very…domestic. I don’t like it.
