Abby #2
“I enjoy many forms of physical activity,” he says with a smirk, and I feel my blush creep up my neck despite my best efforts to keep my cool.
“You certainly put me through my paces. But I eat to fuel my workouts, not the other way around. Usually I wouldn’t indulge in so much fat with one meal, but you said you wanted comfort food, so there was really only one answer. ”
Humming my agreement, I dig into the last sack left on the table for something sweet, but only find napkins and packets of parmesan. No dessert? Guess he’s not so perfect, after all.
“In the fridge,” he murmurs, snagging a parmesan packet and adding it to his final few bites of food.
“Excuse me?”
“You’re looking for your dessert, Abby.” He doesn’t ask, he says, and fixes me with a stare so intense I can’t look away. “It’s all in the fridge. If you’re ready for it now, I’m happy to bring it to you. Cheesecake, chocolate cake, and a Key Lime pie slice. You can have your pick.”
I fucking love cheesecake.
“Cheesecake it is.”
Misha stands gracefully from the couch, taking both our plates to the kitchen on his way. Before long, he’s back with a mouthwatering slice of cheesecake and two spoons.
“It’s my favorite, too. Mind if we share?”
As soon as I shake my head, he sits down beside me, much closer than he was before.
I can feel his heat now and smell the faint scent of his cologne mixed with something that must just be him.
It’s an overtly masculine smell, and it’s a wonder I’m not running for the hills.
Thinking that a smell associated with a man is intoxicating is as impossible for me to consider as the giant freaking crush I’ve developed for the first time in a decade.
It takes all my willpower to hold in another moan at the creamy cake, but Misha doesn’t make the same effort. The low sound of pleasure he makes as his first bite hits his tongue travels straight to my core, and I have to break this tension before I combust.
“Is your fridge full of magnets from your vacations?”
He shrugs as if he was waiting for me to circle back to the magnets, handing me the plate with the last couple of bites and sinking back farther into the couch.
“Many are. Some are just funny ones I’ve seen in gas stations. A few I’ve received as gifts.”
“What’s your favorite?”
There’s no hesitation before his answer.
“I have a few. One is a sunrise over Thunder Bay that my friend bought for me when we first moved here. Another is an opossum wearing a cowboy hat that I picked up in a truck stop in Texas.” He pauses for a moment before continuing, quieter than before.
“I also have a pair of emerald-green figure skates that I’ve grown quite attached to. ”
The air charges between us, and time stands still. The urge to burrow under his arm for a cuddle is an undeniable itch under my skin, but at the last moment, I come to my senses and plop down beside him instead, an inch away.
“Would you like to travel?”
“Absolutely.”
“If you could go anywhere—?”
“Italy,” I interrupt. “I’ve always wanted to see Lake Como, Venice, Rome…”
“They’re all beautiful.”
“You’ve been? I mean, I noticed you speak Italian, so it makes sense.”
“I speak many languages, lesnaya.”
Damn, that’s hot.
“But yes, I’ve seen much of Italy. Not all, though. Tuscany remains on my bucket list.”
A chime from his phone pulls both of us from our rambling conversation about dream vacations, and I realize with a start that time has gotten away from me.
“Oh my God, I’m so sorry to have kept you for so long.”
“It’s no trouble,” he says, making no move to rise from the couch. “I was planning to sleep on your couch, actually. I assumed you wouldn’t want to be alone after you were so frightened earlier.”
“Oh, I—”
“Of course, the more reasonable option would be for you to move in with me—”
“Wha—”
“At least until I can have a proper security system installed to give you peace of mind.”
I’m frozen, staring at this man who’s sitting on my couch like he’s already comfy for the night.
“I can also stay outside your door, then arrange for one to be installed first thing in the morning, if you’d prefer for me not to intrude on your space.”
“No, I…you aren’t an intrusion. But you don’t have to do any of that. I was probably just being paranoid. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
Finally, he stands, towering over me in a way that makes me feel safe, not scared.
“I don’t do anything I don’t want to do, Abby. You’re my skate coach. I’d like to consider you a friend, as well. And I’d never leave a friend to feel alone. Your couch is quite comfy. May I please stay? Unless you want to come see my magnets.”
It’s tempting to take him up on his offer, but tonight’s already been too surreal.
“I would feel safer if you stayed on the couch,” I say softly, rolling my eyes at how pleased he looks. “Thank you for…everything.”
“I’ll get the security handled tomorrow and make sure you have access to the app.”
After he’s brushed his teeth with one of my spares and checked to make sure the door was locked, there’s nothing left to do but say good night.
“Do you need anything?” My question is sincere but seems unnecessary since Misha’s already making himself comfortable under my pink blanket. Pulling my caterpillar into himself to be his little spoon, he looks like he belongs. On my bed, though. Not on the couch.
“I’ve slept in hundreds of less comfortable places, Abby. I promise I’ll be fine. Nobody will come through that door tonight, though. I can promise you that.”
With that, I leave him and shut the bedroom door between us. My hand hovers over the lock, but somehow, I feel it’s unnecessary and insulting to put that between us. What if he needs something and can’t wake me up?
No, a locked door between Misha Mavrin and me feels wrong. And I have a feeling that sooner rather than later, he might not tolerate anything between us at all.