Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
Ayden
As I walked downstairs to the kitchen, I couldn’t get one question out of my head- why did she look as if I had interrupted something?
Did she not sleep well or did she…
No…she wouldn’t.
Okay, so I did, sure. But I was on my couch in my cabin. I could touch myself all I wanted.
Did she….would she?
The thought buzzed around my mind like a fly to honey as I brewed a pot of coffee and cooked us eggs, toast, and bacon. Bluey wouldn’t stop drooling over the bacon and I threw him slice and then a long thick bone to distract him for the day.
Something else needed my attention today. Hell, it didn’t even need it. It totally stole it.
She stole it. Raci.
Raci, Raci, Raci.
I couldn’t think of anything else but her.
Her full, pink, pouty lips.
Her soft, blue eyes.
Her hair, her curves, her ass…
“Ouch!” I yelped as a hot searing pain busted through my finger. Damn it. Grease from the bacon had splattered from the pan and on to my middle finger. I was so distracted I couldn’t even focus on cooking.
“Are you okay?”
Raci’s voice startled me and I turned to find her leaning in the doorway, a lopsided grin stretched across her pretty face. She looked so damn good in my t-shirt and sweatpants, but damn I wanted to see her naked more.
“Yeah, just a small burn.” I said as I shoved my finger under cold water to stop the pain.
“Make sure the water isn’t too cold.” Raci said as she walked over to me, stopping next to me at the sink. “It’s recommended to use cool water. Never cold and never ice.”
I chuckled. “Good to know.”
Raci shrugged. “It’s the little tips that really help the most in life. At least that’s what my mom always said.”
“It makes sense. Another good one is don’t let the grease splatter onto your hand and get a burn in the first place.”
Raci laughed. “I don’t think it’s possible. It smells delicious though. Do you know I’ve never cooked bacon?”
I looked at her sideways. “No?”
“Nope. I haven’t cooked much. I’m terrible at it. Can barely boil water. I use my stove as storage for sweaters.” Raci said it like it was something to be proud of.
“Are you going to be able to survive away from the city?”
“Very funny.” Raci clicked her tongue against her teeth.
“I hardly ever order out. I cook, grow my own fruits and veggies, and try to live off the land as best I can. My parents showed me a lot. They had me in their forties after years of not being able to have kids, so I was an only child and got their full attention. We lived on a farm. We had cows, chickens, a few goats. I can’t keep up with the animals by myself, or I’d have them here. ”
“Wow. It’s crazy how different our lives are,” Raci mused.
“I know. Were you raised in the city as well?”
She nodded. “Yeah, born and bred. This is the first time I’ve been in a small town, never mind a mountain. Any vacations we went on was always somewhere tropical.”
“I need to give you a tour then, before you leave. There are so many beautiful things to see on this mountain. It’d be a shame to miss out while you’re here.” I said as I plated our food and set the plates down on the kitchen island. I fetched the creamer and two mugs, along with the sugar.
“I’d like that,” Raci said as she sat on a bar stool. I placed the coffee supplies in front of her before grabbing the pot and filling our mugs.
As she fixed her coffee, I watched how much cream and sugar she added, wanting to know exactly how she enjoyed it. You know, in case I ever brought her breakfast in bed.
Which I had a feeling might happen.
I was ready to kiss her and never let go.
“At least the rain stopped,” Raci said, bringing me out of my thoughts.
“For now. I checked the weather earlier and there’s another storm moving in. I suggest we find your car soon, or you might be stranded here for longer.” I sat down across from her and fixed my own coffee before digging into my food.
“Is that such a bad thing?” Raci said, raising her eyebrows as she brought her coffee mug to her lips and sipped.
Is she flirting with me?
Yes! Yes, I think she is…
“I could ask you the same thing. Have you liked staying here?” I chewed my bacon and took a bite of toast.
Raci nodded and bit her bottom lip. The action caused me to squirm in my seat. “It’s quiet. Cozy. Peaceful. But last night…it was hard to sleep.”
“I’m sorry. Was my bed not comfortable? I know it’s not a special air mattress or waterbed, or something.” I teased.
“I pretty much have the same bed at home, just a different headboard.” Raci pointed out and stuck her tongue out. I wanted to pull her into my lap and kiss her adorable, smartass mouth. “So no, the bed was fine. I just…I don’t know. Maybe because it wasn’t my own bed.”
“Or maybe because you couldn’t stop thinking about a certain someone?”
Raci’s eyes locked on mine. “What?”
“We can stop skirting around it and come out and say it- I want to kiss you.”
Raci’s mouth fell open. “You—”
“Yes. I’ve wanted to kiss you since the moment I saw you on my doorstep, ruined heels and all. I don’t know why. We’re complete opposites and lead completely different lives, yet…the spark…it’s there.”
Raci placed her mug down and fanned herself, her food completely untouched. “I feel it, too. How could I not?”
“So, may I?”
“May you what?”
“Kiss you, woman.”
Raci nodded, and I didn’t waste another second before sealing my lips to hers.