Chapter 22
REZNOR
“Coming,” I yell in response to the knock on the door. I set down the book I was reading and head to answer it.
I’m surprised when I open it and see Desi standing there, bright orange sundress on, and a smile on her lips. “Hi there.”
Jesus, that voice, that smile, does shit to my insides.
“Hi.” It takes me a second to see the plate of cookies she’s holding out to me. “You made me chocolate-chip cookies?” My stomach rumbles at the thought.
“I wanted to say thank you for the alarm system.”
“No biggie,” I say as I take the plate from her, pull the Saran Wrap off, and take a huge bite of one as I wave her in.
“Oh my God.” The cookie is incredible. I close my eyes and enjoy it.
When I open them back up, Desi is watching me, and I don’t give a flying fuck if it looks like I just came.
I can’t remember the last time someone baked for me who didn’t share the same gene pool as me.
Our eyes meet, hold, and she shakes her head as if she’s trying to remember why she came here.
“You didn’t need to do that. The alarm. I mean...It was incredibly thoughtful of you.”
She’s nervous. Good. I like when she’s flustered.
“I just wanted to make you feel a little bit more comfortable in your own house.” I set the cookies down and don’t say the obvious. And because I’m going to worry about you when I’m gone and not living within shouting distance of you.
“It has made me feel that way. Thank you...again.”
We stare at each other, both measuring what exactly to say. Fuck it. I’ll go there.
“I stopped by the other day.”
“When?” she asks but I can see the shift in her eyes. I can tell she’s nervous.
“Sunday. Monday. Earlier.”
“Oh.”
It’s all she says—all she needs to say—for me to know my hunch was right. She was home, she heard me knocking on the door...but she decided she should shut me out.
Let me the fuck in, Desi. Ask me the million questions swimming in your eyes.
But she won’t.
“Do you want to stay for dinner?”
She takes a deep breath, and I can see her fighting the need to leave. The need to avoid “more”—whatever the fuck way she defines more in that gorgeous brain of hers.
“I’d love to.”
Thank fuck.
I looked her in the eyes and told her I’d be leaving soon and she showed no reaction. Yet, I still want her, and I’ll take whatever I can get.
Clearly, I’m an idiot.