I’m not quite sure how he did it, but he charmed my mother with an ease that was borderline unnatural, yet again making me wonder if he held some superpower. I watched my mother’s eyes dance with romance as she laughed at something he was saying and glanced down at our entwined hands. Normally I would have retracted my hand and crawled under the table in embarrassment, but it would be an insult to this man beside me, his smile wide as his eyes met mine. He ran his thumb around mine absentmindedly, and I found my body shivering with delight in response as I reached for my glass. My eyes found his again, and we shared a secret smile, making my mother clear her throat as she stood.
“Thank you for dinner, Mrs. Aurelle. It was delicious.”
My mother blushed as she pushed her glasses up her nose, strands of hair falling in front of her face as she waved at him dismissively.
“Call me Karen. You should try our take on Japanese food. it’s actually-”
“No, absolutely not.” I interrupted as she burst out laughing, her eyes crinkling in amusement.
“Or we could just eat out. Do you like Japanese food, Bailey?”
She collected the dishes as we stood, helping her clear the table. As we walked into the kitchen, I heard them talking about their favorite dishes as I smiled, loading the dishwasher with the dirty plates. Suddenly I felt his arms around my waist as he murmured in my ear,
“I’m still hungry.”
I turned in his arms, my back against the sink as I looked at him quizzically.
“Seriously? You just ate a mountain of pasta-”
“Not for food,” he said bluntly as my eyes widened. I realized I was biting my lip, and my eyes flew to his as he used his thumb to push my bottom lip away from my teeth, his eyes dark with lust.
“You don’t actually want me to fuck you right here in the kitchen, do you?” he whispered into my ear as I tried to wriggle away, the heat from his body making my heart pound hard against my chest as his lips met mine, our tongues meeting in a slow dance as we explored each other’s mouths. He slid his hands up my t-shirt, the skin-on-skin contact causing goosebumps as he traced my back with his fingers. My hands were lost in his hair as I tugged on it slightly, causing him to growl against me.
“Annabelle, you should come with a warning,” he muttered as he moved away from me, breathing heavily as he gazed at me. I laced my fingers with his as I stood on tiptoes to kiss him, his hands sliding straight down to my ass.
“You are a pervert, Bailey Fenton. Can’t a girl just kiss you without having your mind in the gutter?” I quietly teased as he smirked.
“A girl can. But not you. You are something else.”
He raised my hand to his lips, his eyes on mine as he kissed my skin. I was overwhelmed by sudden jealousy, the mere mention of a girl being able to kiss him invoking a rage I didn’t know I had. It was then that I realized I wanted to know.
“How many girls have you slept with?” I blurted out as his smile dropped from his face, quickly replaced by a frown. I wished I could retract the words, my ears trying to close themselves up to avoid hearing the truth.
“I don’t know, that’s the honest answer. I haven’t exactly kept count.”
It was like he had punched me in the stomach as I nodded blankly. This wasn’t news to me, but suddenly itmattered.His eyes ran over my face with concern as he lifted my head to meet his.
“Hey. I don’t want you to get hung up on that, it’s my past, and that’s where it will stay. No one matters but you.”
I forced a smile as he studied me carefully, his eyes glinting with mischief.
“How many guys have you slept with?”
His smile was contagious as I rolled my eyes.
“I don’t know. I don’t keep count.” I quipped as he grabbed me, pulling me close to him.
“Let’s count together, shall we? One....”
He began to tickle me then, and I squealed with laughter as I tried to get away, his arms holding me in place as he smirked.
“One.....”
I began to gasp for breath as I laughed, trying to speak.
“One! One, stop, please!”
He released me then and moved my hair away from my face as he held it in a makeshift ponytail before looking back down at me, a grave expression shadowing his beautiful features.
