Chapter 4 #2
I dropped a few handfuls of blueberries in the batter and gave it a few quick stirs before checking on the sizzling bacon.
I made a little extra because he’d told me that one of his closest friends, Bass, was stopping by this morning to see me.
I was close with all of Cutler’s friends, and I couldn’t wait to see everyone.
“Damn, my stomach started growling in my sleep,” his deep voice said as he came around the corner, and I turned around and took him in.
I tried to keep my expression unaffected.
But hot damn. He wore a pair of gray joggers, hanging low on his hips, and nothing else. His chest was a mix of golden skin and chiseled muscle. Just the right amount. His abs were defined and cut, and my eyes trailed down to the deep V that clearly led to places I shouldn’t have been looking at.
This was Cutler, after all.
I forced myself to turn away and cleared my throat. “Good morning. I hope I didn’t wake you. I just thought I’d start cooking breakfast because I know you’ve got Bass dropping by this morning, and you wanted to take me to see the house after. There’s so much to do. So. Much. To. Do.”
Why was I rambling?
I looked at the batter in the bowl.
Focus.
I should be counting blueberries, not my best friend’s abs.
A deep, husky laugh rumbled from behind me as his strong arms came around my shoulders. He kissed my cheek and held me there for a few beats. “Damn, it’s nice having my girl back.”
“Do we always walk around in no clothing?” I asked, peeking over my shoulder as he made his way to the coffeepot.
I got a glance of his back and smiled as I took in his tattoo. The one I’d gone with him to get right after he turned eighteen. It was a tribute to his father and godfathers.
Ride or die.
“I mean, I sleep naked, so I put on pants just for you.” He winked.
I wondered what lay beneath that layer of gray fabric.
I’d had a teaser last night, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The erection he’d pressed against my lower belly was something I’d thought only belonged in the pages of fiction.
What was wrong with me?
It had been a while since I’d had sex, or any affection for that matter.
Maybe it was my newfound desire to liven things up in my romantic life.
I was no longer looking for a partner.
No. I was looking for a lover and nothing more.
The new me was not an overthinker. She wasn’t looking for forever. She was looking for a good time.
A good damn time.
Because when was the last time I’d had a good time?
“Well, thank you for that.” I tried to hide my smile as he topped off the coffee in my mug. “I hope you’re hungry.”
“Always.”
“Yo, yo, yo!” a voice called from the door to the garage. Obviously Bass had the code, and of course he’d just walked in. “I hear our favorite girl is back in town.”
He came around the corner, and before I could react, he was pulling me into his arms, lifting me off the ground, and spinning me around. “Glad you’re back, Gracie girl. Our boy has been a miserable shit without you.”
He was tall, just like Cutler, with brown hair that was longer on top and shorter on the sides. He’d always had a good amount of scruff, but he was sporting a full beard now.
He set me back down on my feet, and Cutler chuckled. “That’s a bit dramatic, yeah?”
“Are you claiming you haven’t been a sad sack these last few months?” Bass moved toward the stove and turned off the flame to the bacon.
Always the chef.
“Damn, this looks perfect. I forgot how good you were in the kitchen,” he said.
It was a huge compliment, considering he’d recently been named one of the most talented chefs on the West Coast by a very prestigious cooking magazine.
He owned a well-known steakhouse in town called Bennett’s on the Bay.
People were willing to drive a great distance to eat there too, just to experience the famous Bass Bennett’s food.
“I cannot wait to come in and have one of your amazing steaks.”
He eyed me from the stove as he dropped some batter in the skillet. “It’s on the house, so get your ass down there, now that you’re back in town.”
“Count on it,” I said as I moved to scramble the eggs. I added a bunch of cheddar cheese and veggies into the skillet.
Cutler took three plates from the cupboard before grabbing napkins and utensils. The three of us settled around the table, just like we’d done so many times before.
“Well, damn. It feels like old times,” Bass chuckled.
The three of us had been close ever since our undergrad days.
And then Cutler went off to architecture school, Bass went to cooking school on the East Coast for a year, and I interned at J&J Interiors in Los Angeles after graduation.
“He really has been a grumpy fucker lately.”
“I’ve got no shame in my game. I missed my girl, and everyone knows it.” Cutler popped a piece of bacon in his mouth. “I’m not denying it. We’ve never lived far away from one another. And I didn’t like it.”
This was one of my favorite things about Cutler. He said what he thought. He was the most confident man I’d ever known, and he never hesitated or held back when it came to saying what he thought or what he felt.
Vulnerability was most people’s weakness.
But it was Cutler Heart’s superpower.