Page 45 of Mother Pucker
Not that anything has even happened besides that kiss.
But Jesus, that kiss . . .
Let’s talk about that fucking kiss. A kiss to obliterate the memory of all other kisses. A kiss that, even when Rowan and I eventually fizzle out, will be fodder for my nights alone with Jensen, Denzel, Leonardo, George–
“Mom?” Kai’s voice pulls me out of my musings about my battery-operated lovers.
I sigh. “Fine, but–”
“Thanks, Mom!” Kai throws his arms around my legs before he marches up the stairs, calling to us over his shoulder, “Let’s go!”
And I wonder, yet again, who this bright-faced and confident kid even is.
fourteen
rowan
“Whoa!”Kai gasps as soon as I open the door to my penthouse, going straight to my floor-to-ceiling windows to look at the panoramic view of the Boston Harbor, focusing on the ships and boats that glide over the glistening water. He turns his wide eyes to his mom. “Look at this view, Mom!”
She smiles at him, taking off her jacket. “It’s pretty cool, right?”
Our eyes connect behind Kai’s back and, taking a chance, I quickly run the tips of my fingers down the exposed skin under her forearm, getting a subdued shudder from her. My eyes drop to the goosebumps sprinkled across her neck, and it’s only when Kai shuffles to the other side of the windows that I break away from her to wash my hands in the kitchen before getting things out of the fridge.
Shay follows me in as I’m retrieving the turkey meat, the tray of sliced vegetables, and the spices. Her eyes scan each ingredient carefully before she picks up one of the spice bottles. “These haven’t been opened.” She winks. “You sure they’re not just for decoration?”
I smirk before opening up two full-length drawers filled with all my used spice bottles, perfectly laid out in alphabeticalorder–I don’t like to search for things when I’m in the kitchen–making her eyes go wide.
“Positive. Rest assured, you and Kai will be well-fed. These new spice jars are from an organic store I found recently. They come with a non-GMO, no pesticides guarantee.”
Shay fixes me with a bewildered look, still holding the bottle of paprika, but turns away before I can decipher her expression.
I watch Kai admire the trophies on my living room shelf with dazed adoration, and a renewed sense of pride runs through me. Never would I have thought that one kid’s admiration was what I’d aspire for, but the look in his eyes makes me want that even more.
I clear my throat before mixing breadcrumbs and spices into the turkey. Balling a handful into my palm, I flatten it into a patty with my other while Shay watches me intently. I tilt my head toward the fridge again. “Want something to drink? You might like what I got for you.”
She eyes me curiously before heading to the fridge. Her eyes find the bottles of wine I’d bought. “These are organic, too,” she states, but I don’t miss the little fold between her brows. “And my favorite kind.”
I nod. “So was that drink I gave to Kai earlier.” I smirk, taking in the confusion swirling on her face. “I don’t know if you were wondering at the time, but I figured I’d let you know. It had all natural ingredients without the dyes and sugars.”
Her mouth drops open, and for a second, she doesn’t say anything, looking down at the wine bottle in her hand like she doesn’t know how it got there. Meeting my eyes, she asks, “You got that for Kai? Why?”
I shrug, going back to my task. “Pour me a glass, too, and then come help me with this.”
She does as I ask, placing my wineglass near me before washing her hands and coming to stand next to me, closer than Iwould have expected. The heat of her body and the sweet scent of her flowery perfume has me clenching my jaw. “What can I do?”
I nod toward the pantry. “Mind slicing some potatoes for me? I figured we could airfry some French fries along with the turkey burgers.”
She comes back with a few potatoes before finding a peeler in one of my drawers and getting started.
“Do you cook much?” I ask, too intrigued with the way her delicate hand wraps around the large russet potato–while shoving off the thought of her grasping the half-hard erection inside my pants with that same hand.
She chuckles. “If you consider blending or tossing ingredients together, boiling pasta, or making soup in the slow cooker ‘cooking’, then yes. Some nights I’m in charge of cooking for everyone at the house. I can also make a mean ham and cheese omelet, bake sweet potato brownies, and roll some delicious protein bars. ”
I side-eye her playfully. “You mean the ‘delicious protein bars’ the raccoons have been getting hefty on?”
“Hey!” She elbows me, catching my sarcasm. “They have tons of nuts, seeds, and good oils! Almost everyone I know loves them.”
Kai coughs dramatically in the living room, and Shayla squints at him before he goes on pretending to be busy with the puzzle I have laying out on the coffee table.
