Page 47 of Flame it Up

She giggled. "I am."

SEVENTEEN

MAZIE

Soft sheets slid against Mazie’s legs as she stretched out in Pyrus’s bed. The lingering warmth caught between those crinkly folds, the slick feel of the expensive fabric, and the luxurious mattress beneath her … all this added to a kind of contentment she hadn’t felt in years.

Maybe, ever.

She couldn’t remember the last time she slept in a real bed. She’d been in her camp cot in the tent for so long. Occasional stays in hotels were a nice change, and she was always grateful for a bed … any bed … but hotels could never feel like home.

Never met a hotel bed that was particularly comfortable. Even the one we stayed at recently couldn’t compare to this.

Mazie stretched out on her belly, reaching out with her fingers and toes for the corners of the massive bed. She couldn’t get anywhere near the edges. The mattress was too huge. She ran her fingertips across the smooth sheet, thinking that the thread count had to be insanely high.

She wondered where Pyrus was. Mazie wasn’t worried. She knew he’d be around somewhere. She’d just expected to wake up next to him.

She turned over slowly, relishing the feel of the sheets caressing every single inch of her skin. She pulled the blankets down just a little, so she could see the morning light filtering through the window. There was so much peace in her soul. The entire setting seemed like a daydream.

It’s not, though. It’s real.

Slowly, Mazie sat up, the familiar shapes of Pyrus’s furniture giving her an immediate sense of comfort and familiarity. She hadn’t been here long, but already, it seemed like home.

Home.

It made her slightly uncomfortable to have a home. Up to now, she’d been sure she didn’t need one and, therefore, talked herself out of wanting one. She made her home anywhere she was, and the only thing she truly needed was to make the lives of others better.

Is that my problem? That I think I don’t deserve this happiness?

Mazie sighed, getting up slowly. A robe was thrown over a nearby chair, and Mazie put it on. Pyrus’s subtle scent rose around her, sending waves of pleasure surging through her body. She closed her eyes and wrapped the robe around her even more tightly. It was far too big for her, and she enjoyed wrapping the excess of soft folds around her.

On the bench by the bed, she saw a handwritten note and hurried over to read it:

Mazie,

Sorry to leave you alone, but an emergency came up at work. I’ll only be gone a few hours. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen or order out if you like. Sleep in, relax, enjoy yourself, and I’ll see you very soon.

Pyrus xxx

Mazie ran her fingers over the page, admiring his old-fashioned lettering. She wondered if writing handwritten notes was more of a habit for him, given his age. She found it incredibly sweet and much more personal than a text.

Even though she’d been looking forward to waking up with him, Mazie knew things couldn’t always be perfect, and Pyrus did have a lot of important work to do. She admired his commitment to his employees, and being so responsible was part of the reason she was so attracted to him.

Mazie carefully folded the letter and put it with her things. It might be sentimental to the point of silliness, but she wanted to keep it. Afterward, she headed for Pyrus’s big bathroom.

It was an endless expanse of gleaming white tile graced with elegant silver filigree patterns. The layering of the tiles made the little swirls dance along the walls. The tub was giant, half sunken into the floor with steps leading to its edge.

Mazie was tempted to use the big tub, and the selection of oils and bubble baths lined along it, but the tub looked like it took ages to fill, and she wasn’t sure she was committed to that long of a soak. Instead, she went to the shower cubicle and spent time in the hot spray, using all the fancy soaps and hair products.

It didn’t strike her as odd that Pyrus had so many different types of bath products. Some of it looked like travel bottles left over from hotel stays. Others looked like samples, and some of them had obviously come from gift baskets. She giggled to herself, thinking about years’ worth of gifts and leftovers slowly filling Pyrus’s bathroom because he didn’t know what to do with them.

As she dressed, her stomach rumbled. After brushing out her wet hair, Mazie hurried to the kitchen to check out the pantry.

She gasped as she opened the door. There were rows upon rows of food. In one section were endless boxes of cereal lined up against each other, right next to stacks of wrapped pancakes, waffles, muffins, and bagels.

Other shelves revealed an incredibly varied amount of snack foods, including biscuits, chips, and chocolate. The other side had basics and staples, as well as fancy sauces, dips, and spices.

A little overwhelmed, Mazie headed to the refrigerator. It was almost overflowing with drinks, yogurt, berries, all the luxuries Mazie usually could not afford. She almost felt bombarded by the abundance of choices.

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