9. Naina
Chapter Nine
NAINA
I pulled my keys out of my purse and slotted the key into the back door, the one that led right into the kitchen.
Kash stood right behind me and I felt the heat from his body seeping into mine, warming me up better than his jacket. Speaking of, I took a surreptitious sniff of it as I unlocked the door. It smelled earthy and delicious, just like Kash.
I pushed open the door and stepped into the empty kitchen, Kash right behind me. We had maybe thirty minutes before the first kitchen staff showed up. It was Tuesday, so we weren’t open for breakfast.
“You and your sister live in the house on the East side of the property?”
I looked over my shoulder, startled to see him directly behind me, towering over me. I knew he was behind me, but I hadn’t realized how close he was, and it threw me for a second. It should be illegal for any person to be this handsome, to have those cheekbones with those pouty lips.
Why was I even having these lusty thoughts about a man who claimed he didn’t want marriage or relationships? Not that I was eager to get married, at least not until Sami graduated college and got a job. Regardless of the timeline, I planned on getting married one day and he didn’t.
Not that we were an option for each other.
“Yes,” I answered him. “How did you know she’s my sister?”
“I told you I looked into you.”
That wasn’t a comforting thought. A part of me still wondered if this was a ploy to destroy me. If he looked into me, how much did he know? Did he know that I used to work for the law firm his family used? I’d never been directly involved with the lawsuit so it wasn’t like there was any evidence other than the obvious. I was the one no longer working as a lawyer.
The other less paranoid delusional part of me said Kash was a busy man who had a company to run. Even if he wanted to take revenge, he would do it quickly and get it over with, not drag it out forever.
“Do you want coffee? Breakfast?”
“Coffee sounds good, thank you.”
I nodded, opening up the cabinet door above the coffee maker. Someone had moved the coffee container to the back of the third shelf. I was tall and my hand reached the third shelf easily, just not tall enough to reach the back of the shelf. I arched up on my toes, arm stretched up. My fingers grazed the container.
Realizing I wasn’t going to reach it, I turned around to ask for Kash’s help and gasped when I found him directly behind me. I breathed in, and immediately regretted it because his scent overwhelmed me. He was so close our arms grazed against each other as he easily reached up to grab the coffee container.
Placing the container on the counter, Kash looked down at me. His mouth tilted up into the most breathtaking smile, higher on the left side, and I almost swooned.
The morning light made his eyes look like glass surrounded by long, thick lashes.
“Thank you,” I whispered. My throat was suddenly dry and I wasn’t sure I could speak at a normal volume.
“You’re welcome.”
He didn’t move away, and I didn’t ask him to. Kash’s eyes dropped to my mouth and a dip appeared between his brows, as if he was really considering the consequences of kissing me. I was certainly considering the consequences of kissing him.
Kash tilted his head, his nose brushing against mine. All the fight seemed to leave my body, and suddenly, I was desperate for Kash to kiss me. It had been long enough that I had forgotten what it felt like to kiss a man I was attracted to.
And let’s be honest, whatever his faults, I was definitely attracted to him; had been since the night I first met him. That was part of the reason I didn’t want to do this.
“Do you want me to kiss you, Naina?” Kash asked.
“No,” I replied automatically. My knee-jerk reaction was to not give him what he wanted.
Kash laughed at my answer, his chuckle vibrating through me.
“Your body tells me differently.”
I was leaning into him, tilting my head to provide easier access to my mouth.
“Haven’t you heard of body betraying syndrome? It’s a very real thing.”
His body created the most delicious pressure against mine and I couldn’t control my labored breathing. I licked my lips, and because we were so close, my tongue brushed against his bottom lip.
It was a bold move, a dangerous move. The small taste of his mouth shot all through my body, making certain parts of me pulse with need.
“What are you doing?”
Startled, Kash and I turned to look at the intruder, our heads knocking together.
“Ow,” I hissed, raising a hand to rub at my temple.
Samira’s eyes danced between Kash and me, half delight, half concern. I took a big step away from Kash. Sami raised her eyebrows, still looking at Kash and me. My cheeks burned with embarrassment.
My sister and I talked about me doing this and she was okay for the most part. We knew this agreement had its drawbacks; we also knew we didn’t have a choice. Money to renovate the Inn plus five million dollars was a lot of money; unfathomable amounts of money.
Keeping her eyes on us, Sami walked to a cabinet and reached up, grabbing a box of sugary cereal.
“You know you’re not supposed to keep that here,” I admonished. Sonia hated us keeping snacks in here, even for emergencies, and especially when those snacks were 98% sugar.
Samira opened the box and grabbed some cereal before popping it into her mouth.
“I don’t think you’re in a position to be calling me out.”
“She’s like a younger version of you,” Kash laughed.
I guessed my sister was a little like me. She was also a lot sweeter, nicer, and kinder. A lot of the time, I didn’t have the patience for people and their particular brands of issues, and there was nothing wrong with that. Not everyone needed to be nice all the time, especially with someone who wasn’t nice to them.
The important thing was I rarely called people out on their bullshit. My motto in life was not my trash, not my raccoons.
“I take that as the compliment it was surely meant to be,” Sami said.
Kash’s eyes met mine. “Most definitely.”
I flushed, looking away from him. This was meant to be a business transaction.
Kash had made it abundantly clear he wasn’t interested in dating or a real relationship. While I wasn’t exactly waiting for Prince Charming, I’d never been a fan of casual dating. I’d tried it a few times, and let’s just say, task failed successfully.
“I’m going to go enjoy my breakfast,” Sami said, wide eyes bouncing between Kash and me. “Stay strong, didi.”
She bounced out of the room, rattling the cereal box. The sound reverberated through me, rattling my insides. I pulled my arms close around me, tugging on the sleeves of Kash’s jacket down to cover my hands.
Sami was right. I needed to stay strong. The dull throb of attraction I felt when I looked at Kash needed to be squashed down. This was a business transaction, nothing more.