Page 12 of The Naughty List

“What do you want to happen next, Kate?” I whisper the words and I see her eyes searching mine. She wants to know what I want, but I won’t give her the satisfaction. I want to hear the words from her lips; I want her to say that she wants me, that she needs me as badly as I need her. I step forward again. This time she’s against the counter and my body is almost flush against hers. I reach my other hand up and I place one on either side of her face. “It’s just us in here, Damon and Kate. Whatever happens can just be left here, in these moments.” I lean in, my mouth a centimeter from feeling her sweet, pillowy lips again. “Do you want me, Kate?” I start to close the distance when there’s a loud knock on the bedroom door and it’s immediately opened.

“Kate, sweetie, dinner is al—oh! Oh goodness. I’m so sorry.” Laurie blushes and pretends to cover her eyes as I take a step back.

“We’ll be right down, Mom,” she says as she waves her off.

“I see where you get the knocking as you open the door thing; it’s a Flowers family trait,” I say as she pushes me away and turns back to face the mirror. I want to resume what we were doing; it’s killing me not knowing what she would have said or if she would have let me kiss her again. I don’t dwell on it though. I unbutton my jeans and pull them down my legs along with my boxers, kicking them to the side before stepping toward the shower and flicking on the water.

“Jesus, Damon, what the hell?” Kate asks as she throws a hand up against her eyes.

“It’s just an ass, Kate. Relax. Plus, the glass is frosted.” I step into the shower. “You’ve seen a man’s ass before, right?”

“Yeah, I look at your face every day, don’t I?” she quips and I can tell she thinks it’s a zinger. I burst out laughing at her corny joke. She always comes up with these little one-liners that she thinks are so clever and they always work because I always end up laughing.

Ten minutes later we’re both dressed and walking down the stairs for dinner. I grab her hand right before we enter the dining room and at first she stiffens, but then I feel her fingers entwine with my own.

“So,” Laurie, Kate’s mom, begins, “how did you two meet?” I’m surprised it’s taken them this long to ask, if I’m honest, considering two seconds ago they’ve never even heard about me. I glance over at Kate who has a nervous look on her face as she takes a sip of her wine.

“Through work actually. One of those classic both working for a big company and met in the elevator situations.” I smile genuinely while I reach beneath the table and squeeze her hand. I’m not sure why but I don’t want to lie to her family any more than I have. “I know for me it was love at first sight,” I say, giving her a wink. She rolls her eyes at me and smacks my hand away.

“Speaking of work, Kate, whatever happened to that asshole boss you worked for?” Laurie asks as we begin to eat. Kate chokes on her wine and I reach over to pat her on the back as she grabs her napkin. I take the opportunity to ask another question because I can’t wait to hear what her family has to say about me.

“Which guy is this?” I furrow my brow, trying to look convincing.

“D something?” her mom says as she’s trying to remember his name. “His first name started with a D.”

“Derek!” I say enthusiastically and they all agree.

“Yes, Derek,” her brother chimes in. “He’s a total prick apparently. Has one of those uppity frat guy attitudes and treats her like shit. I told her she should have sued him for harassment and then walked out with both fingers in the air.”

I glance over at Kate and I see the blush creeping up her neck; she’s mortified. She waves her hand dismissively as she takes a sip of water and clears her throat. “He’s not that bad; you guys are blowing it out of proportion. Besides, it’s Christmas. We don’t want to talk about work.”

“Not that bad? Sweetie, didn’t he make you cry like every single day for the first several weeks? That’s awful and honestly I wish you’d let your father speak to him.”

Shit. Is that true? I made her cry? I knew I was harsh but she gave it back just as good so I thought… Fuck, I feel like an idiot.

“Apparently he’s got a small you know what,” her mother whispers as she points to her lap.

“Is that right?” I ask as I reach my hand under the table and rest it on Kate’s thigh. She tries to push me away but I don’t budge. “And how would you know that, baby?” I say in my most syrupy voice.

“I don’t know that; it’s just an assumption since it seems like his personality is so dickish, I can’t imagine there’s a lot in his pants.” She reciprocates my cheesy smile. “Enough about my boss’s penis, okay?”

“Damon, what is it that you do again?” her father, Dennis, asks me.

“Investment banking, sir. Not very exciting I’m afraid.”

“That’s an excellent career, son. One can never go wrong with finance. Got me where I am,” he says, lifting his glass and gesturing around the massive dining room.

“Cheers to your success, sir; you’re an inspiration, truly,” I say as I raise my glass and everyone follows suit.

“And cheers to hoping that Derek’s tiny penis gets chewed off by a rabid raccoon and he finally gets what he deserves,” Laurie chimes in and I can’t help but burst out laughing.

“Mom!” Kate says in utter shock.

I can’t wait to tease her about this later.

6

KATE

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