Chapter 30
CHAPTER THIRTY
brEAK TIME
Most days, I wake up without the alarm, and today is no exception.
The difference between today and the days that came before is I’ve got a gorgeous redhead lying beside me with her soft thigh resting over mine.
Her hand is on my chest right over my pectoral, and her full tits are pressed up against me.
“I could get used to this,” I whisper.
I run my palm slowly down her side until it’s cupping one ass cheek. I’d like to give it a little squeeze, maybe wake her up, but it’s only five in the morning. I’m an early riser, but I’m not sure MacKenzie is or if she would appreciate me waking her up so early—even for this.
Careful not to wake her, I slide out from beneath her and head to the bathroom.
Standing in front of the toilet, I check out the shower.
“Hell, I don’t think I’ll fit in that thing,” I mumble to myself.
Certainly, us showering together is impossible in that shower stall.
We’d have to do it one limb at a time. I chuckle as I shake myself.
I wash my hands and wipe them on a small cloth she has next to the world’s smallest pedestal sink.
I’m not sure, but I think the damned sink is one of the types that is designed for a camper or a sailboat.
In the kitchen, I search the cabinets for coffee supplies.
The two-cup coffee maker sits front and center in the tiny space.
The can of coffee and the filters are in the cabinet above.
I measure out the coffee and press Start.
Still naked, I move back into her bedroom to find my boxers.
She’s now sprawled out on top of the bed like a starfish.
I must have taken up some of her usual real estate.
I smile, thinking how we’ll have a much bigger bed when she moves into my place.
I stop pulling up my boxers midthigh. “When she moves into my place?” What the hell am I thinking? “Jesus.” I’ve known this girl, what, two weeks? I first saw her on New Year’s Eve. It’s now…. I squeeze my eyes shut and think about the date. “Seven weeks,” I murmur.
“What’s seven weeks?” a hoarse voice says behind me.
I watch as she lifts her head off the pillow, her hair falling in wild waves all around her face. It’s sexy as hell. “We met seven weeks ago.”
“We did?”
“That doesn’t seem possible, does it?”
“Not really, no.”
I pull my boxers up around my waist and add, “I made coffee.”
“Coffee,” she says in her sexy morning voice, “I need coffee.” She hops out of bed and throws on a T-shirt.
Otherwise, she’s naked, and I do my best to keep my dick in check.
She steps into the kitchen and grabs a large mug and fills it with coffee.
She sprinkles in the nondairy creamer. “Want one?” she asks, lifting up her cup.
“Well, that’s why I made it,” I say grumpily.
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t leave you much.”
She didn’t leave me any. “You need a normal-size coffee maker.”
“Why?” she says, taking a long pull of her morning coffee.
I’m about to refill the carafe, but I stop at that comment.
I shrug, feigning indifference. “Oh, no reason.” Is she for real?
Wait, am I for real? I must be losing my damned mind.
We met seven weeks ago, and a lot of that time has been spent trying to figure out how to see her again.
How many days have we actually spent together?
Days? How many hours, would be more accurate.
Hours we’ve actually spent together, add it up, and it might be a total of four days.
What’s wrong with me? That amount of time, and I’m talking to myself about her moving in with me.
Shit, the fact that I’ve been talking to myself at all should be an indication that I’ve lost it. I suddenly feel claustrophobic.
I leave the coffee carafe on the counter and walk into the bedroom.
Pulling on the jeans and shirt from yesterday, I find one sock, but the other is MIA.
“Screw it.” I decide to leave one foot sockless.
I grab my shoes and slip them on. Walking out into the living area, I pick up my coat from her one and only chair.
“You’re leaving? Right now?” MacKenzie is frowning at me over her coffee mug.
“Yeah. Got shit to do.” I’ve got a lot of thinking to do—that’s what I’ve got to do.
“I was hoping we could have breakfast together,” she says, looking confused.
Damn it, she looks adorable. What the hell?
“Sam?”
I turn to her as I’m sliding on my jacket. “I don’t have time today. Sorry, babe.” I lean over and kiss her forehead. “Talk to you soon. Maybe we could get together midweek?”
MacKenzie smiles weakly. “Sure. Great.”
I jog up the steps and unlock her door. Shit, I didn’t show her how to use that damn smart lock.
I’ll get Gill to do it. I open the door and step out into a cold, dark February morning.
“Of course, it’s cold. It’s still pitch-black.
” I stomp to my car, hitting the key fob on the way.
I feel like I can’t get away fast enough.
“Need to clear my head,” I mumble to myself.
Tearing away from the curb, I run my fingers through my hair repeatedly. Frustrated, I start pulling on it.
“Call Perri,” I say aloud to my car Bluetooth system. I know it’s not even six in the morning yet, but she’ll be up.
“What’s wrong?” my baby sister answers in a panicked voice.
I have to smile at her reaction to my early call. Even if I’m freaking out, she’s still funny. “Nothing is wrong. Just wanted to know if you’re free for breakfast.”
“Uh, seriously? It’s like dawn.”
“Please?”
“Geez, what’s the matter with you? You don’t call me without a reason. I’m worried.” I hear her sigh. “But I’ll meet you at the Pancake House on Diversey in thirty.”
“Great. See you there.”
I get to the place first and grab a booth at the back.
This place is a hole in the wall. My sister is so damn cheap.
She’s drawn to these places with the deals of All You Can Eat for $5.
99. I scan the menu and order two coffees with cream.
I don’t have to wait long. I watch as my little sister walks in the door looking like something the cat dragged in.
I have to chuckle at her disheveled appearance. “You look awesome, baby sis.”
“Shut it, bro. I had a rough night.”
“I can see that. Anyone I know?” My sister loves to frequent dance clubs with her college girlfriends. I’ve walked into her place when she’s had a guy in bed on more than one occasion. I shiver at the memories. That’s the kind of shit a big brother can’t unsee.
“No.” She looks around the place. “You ordered a vat of coffee, right?”
“Right.”
Moments later, our waitress approaches with a large carafe of coffee and a tiny pitcher of cream. “We’re going to need another carafe and a lot more cream,” my sister grumbles.
The waitress nods. “Can I take your order?” she asks sweetly. “I’ll bring more coffee and cream with the food. Sound good?”
“Whatever. I’ll take the All-You-Can-Eat special with bacon instead of sausage. Wheat toast. Butter on the side. Cheese on my potatoes.”
“Hungry, sis?”
“Shut it,” she growls again.
“I’ll have the breakfast burrito, please.
Substitute egg whites, and I’d like fruit instead of hash browns.
I’d also like a bagel with cream cheese and turkey sausage instead of pork.
” I smile at the server, and she smiles back.
She can’t be more than twenty-one, but she’s looking at me like I’m lunch.
“That’ll be it. Thanks,” I add at the end.
“You sicken me,” Perri moans. “Egg whites? Turkey sausage? Fruit instead of potatoes? What have you done with my brother, the carnivore?”
“I’m right here. However, I ate a bunch of junk yesterday. I feel puffy.”
“Puffy?” she snickers. “You feel puffy?”
“I do. We got food from Mama Mabel’s and—”
“Oh, God. I love their food. It’s super affordable, too. We should have eaten there, damn it. The breakfast there is to. Die. For.”
It’s not that affordable. Breakfast at Mama Mabel’s is noted, though. “Maybe next time.”
She sucks down one cup of coffee and is well into her second when she says, “Spit it out. What’s going on? Why am I here?”
I take a deep breath. “I need advice.”
Choking on her last gulp of coffee, she squeaks, “You? You need advice from me?”
I nod. “I do. It’s about a woman.”
Choking again, a little less this time, Perri sets her cup of coffee down. “Say what?”
“A woman. I need advice. I’m in over my head.”
“Am I dreaming? Is this a dream or just an out-of-body experience? Who’s the girl?”
“Her name is MacKenzie.”
“The jewelry maker?”
I nod. Of course, she would remember that.
“I knew it. I told you. I told you to call me about it. You’ve been avoiding me.”
“I have. But now I’m ready to talk.”
“Spill. I’ll listen; you talk. Begin.”
So, I start at the beginning. The New Year’s Eve party. About Gill researching her.
Perri crows, “Researching? That’s what you’re calling it, stalker?”
“It’s my job. Are you going to let me finish?”
“Sorry. Please continue.”
I tell her everything I can recall. I finish with this morning’s revelations. While I’m talking, the food is delivered.
“Wow,” she says with a mouth full of pancakes. “I’m speechless.”
“Ha. You’re never speechless.”
“You’re right. So, why do you think you started second-guessing everything this morning?”
“I dunno. I woke up happy to be there with her. I made coffee. At some point, I started talking to myself about how we would have a bigger bed when she moved in with me.”
At that, Perri spits out her mouthful of food. A combination of eggs, pancakes, and bacon hits me in the face. “Jeez, Perri. That’s disgusting.” Pulling some napkins from the dispenser on the table, I wipe off my face and then try to brush the chewed-up food off my T-shirt.
“Sorry. You shocked me. You want her to live with you? You just met weeks ago?”
“Seven weeks ago today. I calculated it this morning.”
“Wow. Almost two months. I’ve seen people move faster, but it’s completely out of character for you. You’re Mr. I’m Never Settling Down.” She watches me speculatively.
“I know.”
“What is it about her? What has caused you to want to chuck your life of complete self-involved solitude and isolation?”
“Self-involved isolation? Jesus.” I take a sip of coffee, hoping there’s no food floating in it. “She’s unique. She’s funny, quirky, a little messy, clumsy, and beautiful.”
“Mom said she was pretty.”
“Mom? How does Mom know?” Oh, good God. “When did she see MacKenzie?” I ask, but I’m not sure I really want to know.
“She went to the store. She bought some pieces that matched her necklace.”
“She did? MacKenzie didn’t mention that.”
“Well, Mom didn’t tell her who she was. She told MacKenzie a friend had one of her pieces.”
“What else did Mom say?” I ask, leaning forward.
My little sister smirks. “Bro, you’re in love.”
I scoff. “Am not.”
“Are too. You wanna know how I know?”
No. “Yes.”
“Because you want our approval. You want to know what Mommy thought of her.”
I lean back in my seat, attempting to look cool again. “Not true.”
Perri giggles. “All right, I’ll tell you. I can tell you’re dying to know. Mom said she was sweet and, in her words, ‘just lovely.’”
I smile wide. “She is lovely.”
“So, what advice do you need from me? Because I think you’ve got things figured out already.”
“I know. It’s just happening so fast. Way too fast. I’m feeling overwhelmed.”
“So, step back. Take a little break.”
I nod. “I was thinking the same thing. Take a week or two off, get my head on straight.”
“That’s a great plan. Take a break.” Perri nods as she finishes the rest of her food. “Nothing wrong with that.”
We finish our breakfast, and I pay the bill. Perri doesn’t offer to pay, which is no surprise. Once a baby sister, always a baby sister. We hug at the door. “Love you, Perrianna. Talk to you soon. Oh, hey… your birthday is in a few days. Are we meeting for dinner?”
“Yeah. Mom’s gonna text you the location. I’m hankerin’ for some tacos. What about you?”
“You’re my favorite sister, you know that?”
“I’m your only sister, jerk-face.”
I chuckle as I hug her again. “See you then.”
I wait for her to get into her car before I walk to mine in the opposite direction. “A break. I’m just gonna take a little break.” Sure, I’m still talking to myself, but at least the subject isn’t cohabitation. I feel better already.