Chapter 3 #2
I stand with the key between my fingers and pretend to think about it.
“Nope. All good. This is Everhope. The entire Lake Spark County actually, the crime rate is like nada. I mean, the last time a security alarm went off in this town, it was because a goat got loose and broke into someone’s kitchen.
Actually, it was going after a bowl of Halloween candy, or was it Thanksgiving pumpkin pie. I don’t remember,” I ramble.
His mouth opens, but he gives up his rebuff.
Opening the door, we both walk in and up the stairs. We leave our wet coats on the hooks and the umbrella by the side. He trails behind me as we enter my home.
“Tea, coffee, wine, magic potion for the sake of Halloween?” I offer the list.
“Tea is fine.”
I glance over my shoulder, questioning if I heard him right.
I turn and walk backwards as he follows me.
“I was not expecting you to say that. It’s so…
I’m not sure, but it’s hard to imagine someone so…
drinking tea. I mean, no offense, but you seem kind of cold and heartless to many. Yet, you drink a cup of tea.”
“It’s detoxing.”
“Okay. Will lemon ginger work then?”
“Sounds good.”
“Perfect. It pairs excellently with the piece of Halloween candy that you’ll get if you’re nice.”
“I’m never nice,” he replies flatly.
“And that’s what the world likes about you.” I spin on my heel when I get to the kitchen, and Asher straggles behind in the living room. It’s open plan, which means conversation can carry on.
My hands are busy preparing the water, but I notice Asher perusing my living room, pausing when he sees the framed photographs on my side table.
“Who is this?” he asks and holds up a photo in a frame.
I smile instantly and abandon the kettle that I just set on the stove to join and study the photo with him. “That’s my brother, Drew.” I was younger in the photo, probably around three.
He scoffs a laugh. “What? He’s like the same age as your mom.”
“Yeah, he’s my half-brother. We have the same dad.
You would think it would be kind of awkward at every family dinner, but we just never say stepmom and then it’s fine.
He married a Blisswood, so he lives not far in Bluetop and helps with their winery when he isn’t constructing things.
” Everyone knows about the Olive Owl brand.
Asher seems interested and meets my eyes for a beat when he sets the frame down.
I point to the next one. “That’s my great-grandmother. She died when I turned ten. A fiery woman. Hysterical, too.”
“That explains a lot.” His comment is flippant.
He seems like a tough cookie, but also, there is a glimmer in his eyes that makes me believe it’s for show and he is toying with me.
“I’m honored if I take after her, although my dad is 100% convinced that she haunts him every time he makes a non-traditional choice.
” He huffs out a laugh because I sound serious, and I am.
“No joke. When I didn’t have a Bat Mitzvah, he couldn’t sleep for weeks.
Then one Eastover, when he had an Easter egg hunt for everyone before Passover dinner, suddenly this clock on the wall just poof.
” I gesture with my hands. “Just dropped to the floor and broke for no reason.”
His eyes squint and his face screws up. “Your family is interesting.”
I pat his shoulder. “And I’m sure yours isn’t.”
He whistles and grins. “That explanation is for another day.”
“Well, it’s another day, so spill.” I motion for him to join me in the kitchen, and he obliges.
He perches on the stool at the kitchen island while I return to my task of making tea.
“My parents are loving. My dad is ruthless when it involves business but completely turns soft if it involves his kids. He came to every hockey game growing up, even though he probably wishes I played football—”
I interrupt as the kettle on the stove begins to whistle. “My father would happen to agree.”
“Right. You must have been to your fair share of football games growing up with your dad.”
I nod proudly as I pour the water over the bags in each mug. “Yes. But he also tried to keep me out of the public eye so I could live a normal life. And tell me about your mom?”
“My mom is a free spirit who will photograph anything. I also have a little brother.”
I interrupt. “Yeah, also a hockey pro, right?”
“He is.”
I slide the cup of tea to him before I grab my own. “Close?”
A fond little smile curls on his lips. “Shaw and I are not as close as I would like. The age difference perhaps plays a role, but when we see one another, you wouldn’t know it. The messages we exchange when we play his team are hysterical.”
“I bet.” Leaning against the opposite counter, I get comfortable.
“My mom has never been a great cook, and one year she accidentally burned an elf doll pretending to eat cookies to ashes because the roast chicken on Christmas Day came out on fire from the oven.”
My jaw drops because that is hilarious.
“My dad was prepared for a mishap, so had already ordered Chinese food. The eggrolls were pretty damn good that year.”
I laugh because he’s more upbeat than I thought. “We seem to talk about our family a lot when we run into one another. I guess we are family people.”
He snorts a laugh. “Sure. But I am by no means rushing to have my own family. I’m not sure I even have the personality to be a parent. I’ll stick to having family photos in my living room.”
“Huh, okay. But do you actually have a cozy home? Because I am getting the vibe that you just live out of a suitcase and might only occasionally turn on the washing machine if the dry cleaner is closed.”
His cheeks remain light and tight. “This is where I need to tell you that actually I have a house where I can unwind. And even though I will not be handing out candy to little heathens, I have a bowl of Halloween candy in my kitchen purely for aesthetic because it’s October.”
“No!” I gasp and grin. He nods his confirmation. I raise my hand with stretched fingers into the air. “Mind blown right now.”
He bites the inside of his cheek and tilts his head gently to the side, and it’s clear he has a sinister thought from my sentence, but it kind of feels natural between us, so I don’t think twice.
Instead, I switch gears. “I’m kind of surprised to run into you.
I assumed you don’t really, well…” My lips slide side to side.
“Have a life outside of hockey. Then again, you were with a colleague.”
He hears the humor in my tone, thankfully. “Sometimes I wonder if I have a non-work life, then I remind myself that I need to shut off, even if just for an hour.”
“That’s a good mindset. When you are a creative person, you have the problem of never being able to calm your brain. Sometimes I just want to sleep but a design hits me, and I can’t help but want to draw.”
He takes a quick sip of his tea then indicates with his long finger to the pile of notebooks at the end of my counter. “Are those them?”
“Some.” He reaches out, but I tsk. “Invading privacy, huh?” I tease. His eyes tell me that he isn’t an easy man to challenge.
“Just dresses?”
“And lingerie. Lots of lingerie,” I say bluntly. “It’s always lace season,” I taunt.
The way he licks his lips and his eyes glue onto me gives me the sign that he isn’t disappointed by our unexpected encounter this evening by the slightest.
“You mentioned Halloween candy if I’m good.” The way he says it with a straight face, but with inuendo dripping in his sentence causes my stomach to tighten. He has a domineering presence.
But I’m still testing the waters of where this evening might go, if anywhere at all. With purpose, our eyes locked, I walk to the bowl that I have in the corner by the toaster and ceremonially pick it up, returning to him to offer him a piece.
His eyes drop down, and he smiles. “Alright, you have good options. I approve. I was a little worried you might have gummies or those sticks that are pure sugar.” He fishes out a chocolate coconut bar, and I swoop up a chocolate caramel bar before setting the bowl down.
“Happy my Halloween candy choices appease you.” We both unwrap the candy and pop them into our mouths. “You don’t strike me as someone who indulges in candy,” I mumble, as I have chocolate in my mouth. Asher is in as good shape as the players on his team.
“Balance. It’s about balance, especially when you have a job with grueling days.”
I chuckle under my breath. “I’m well aware, and I don’t believe it has anything to do with age.
If this is where you are highlighting that you’re older than me, then you have succeeded.
It doesn’t matter if we are just two people having a friendly conversation. ” It’s very obvious this is attraction.
“Right.” His face says he disagrees, and it’s playful in a way.
For a few seconds we stew in the tense air that pulls us closer even without moving.
Suddenly, I remember why we even came up to my apartment.
My eyes drop. “You’re lucky your coat protected you. I need to get out of these wet clothes.” Maybe there is a tint of sultriness in my tone. “There is more tea over there if you want another cup.” He has barely touched his current cup.
Without thought because this is my home, I walk away and begin to peel my sweater up and off my body, then move on to the zipper on my jeans but pause.
The sound of a hum stuck deep in a throat causes me to look back at Asher. His eyes skate over my body then anchors to my eyes.
“You just happen to be wearing that?”
I glance down, and a satisfied smile crawls on my face because I’m in a black lace bra with a touch of orange integrated with the lace of the band. “Yes. Every day I dress in case a fireman needs to save me. I also attempt to coordinate with the holiday.”