Chapter 5
Dakota
As he asked if I was free for dinner, Colin’s face flushed red, the blush starting at the base of his throat and creeping upward. It was endearing and made my stomach flip in a way I didn’t expect, making me want more. I cleared my throat and rubbed the back of my neck. “I have Lina.”
“Oh. Well… we could all grab dinner together. If you wanted. Or we can do it another time. Or not. Whatever.” His words came out in a hurry, as if he was trying—unsuccessfully—to sound casual and unbothered.
“If you don’t mind spending your evening with a five-year-old, sure. We can get dinner. I’d like that. I’m sure she would, too.”
“Really?” Colin sounded pleasantly surprised.
“Yeah, of course.” I gently pushed his shoulder with my palm. “Neighbor.” I gave him a sly grin and laughed a little.
“Right,” he murmured, face turning redder. “Neighbor.”
I cleared my throat and mercifully changed the subject. “How does pizza sound? It would make Lina’s day.”
“She’s a pizza girl, is she?” His face had slowly returned to its normal color and I found I missed the blush already.
I nodded and laughed again. “She could eat pizza for every meal. Pizza or mac and cheese. With ice cream for dessert.”
“Well, there is an experimental pizza place in town that does mac and cheese pizza.”
“Absolutely not,” I said, grinning. “That sounds terrible.”
“Aw, where’s your sense of adventure?”
I leaned in as if I were going to tell him a secret, enjoying the way the pink graced his face again. “I don’t have one,” I murmured. My stomach fluttered again as his breath hitched, just a little. What was I thinking, flirting with this guy? I wasn’t even interested. Right?
Colin shifted his weight from one foot to the other before he gave me a nervous little laugh and shrugged, blush fading away. I had the urge to reach out and touch him, so I stuffed my hands in my pockets as he spoke. “You’re missing out.”
“I’m sure I’ll survive,” I assured him.
He closed his eyes briefly before looking at me. “So, how about this? I need to change clothes and get washed up for dinner. Why don’t you do what you need to do and I’ll walk over when I’m ready. Is that okay?”
I nodded. “Perfect.” He grinned and thanked me, heading back home. As he walked away, I found myself thinking about his tight, round ass on display through his dark blue jeans. I cleared my throat again and shook my head at myself. Neighbors, I reminded myself. Neighbors.
A few minutes later, I’d put the remaining supplies back into the little storage shed on the side of the yard and went inside to shower and change.
Caroline was still watching cartoons, as expected, a show about a princess who saved the day without needing a prince to rescue her.
It was one of my favorites—if I were going to pick a cartoon I actually liked, that is.
I made my way to my room and stripped down, grabbing a towel from the clean laundry hamper before stepping into the bathroom through the door that adjoined it to my bedroom. There was also a door leading to the hallway, which I left unlocked in case Lina needed to come in and use the potty.
I turned the spray on, running the water hot, as in, depths-of-hell hot.
As soon as it was warm enough to not feel frigid, I stepped in and groaned loudly.
The heat melted the soreness in my shoulders and back, relaxing me as I soaped up and scrubbed myself down.
Knowing Colin was on his way soon, I cleaned up quickly, turning the water off before the room filled with steam—which was usually my favorite part of getting out of the shower.
Once I was out, I paused, listening carefully to see if I could hear any voices in the living room. The only sound I picked up on was the princess show’s end music, signaling a new episode would be starting momentarily.
I dried off in a hurry, and just as I wrapped the towel over my shoulders to catch the water dripping from my hair, the doorknob from the hallway door rattled. The door swung open a fraction of a second later, before I could process what was happening.
“See? No—oh, shit.” Colin’s voice was abruptly echoing off the tile in the bathroom. “I’m so sorry.”
“Hi, Daddy!” Caroline’s little voice said joyfully, obliviously.
I spun, turning my back to the door and my hands going to cover my groin. “Just a sec!” I said, panic in my voice. The door shut firmly behind me a moment later, and I hurried into my bedroom.
From the hallway, Colin called out again, a muffled sound. “Sorry!”
“It’s fine! I’m out now,” I called back.
I locked the door to the bathroom just in case.
My heart was racing in my chest, pounding hard as if I’d been running, adrenaline coursing through me.
I wrapped the towel firmly around my waist and locked the main door to my bedroom for good measure, before I sat down on the edge of my bed and caught my breath.
Colin had seen me—naked. Completely, utterly naked, except for a towel on my shoulders. How much did he see? I couldn’t help but wonder. And then, another thought popped into my mind. Did he like what he’d seen?
I shook my head. No. Neighbors. It doesn’t matter if he liked it. I mean… unless he did… and then maybe—no.
My thoughts swirled, jumbled and confused, torn between a wishful lust and practicality.
In a hurry, I dressed in clean clothes. As I pulled on a T-shirt, the toilet flushed in the bathroom next door.
“I’m done now, Mr. Colin!” The next thing I heard was the hallway door to the bathroom opening again, and Caroline speaking again. “And now I have to wash my hands,” she said, cheerfully.
“Yes you do,” Colin agreed. “We always wash our hands after going potty.”
“Right!” she agreed.
I stopped listening then and finished dressing before scrubbing my hair dry with the towel. With my fingers, I tried to arrange my hair in a way that looked less “just woke up” and more “I look like this on purpose.” Then I took a deep breath and opened my bedroom door to face Colin once again.