Page 86 of Stolen By the Billionaire
Sarah laughed at how quickly it had come together and told Blaze, “You’re allowed in my kitchen anytime.”
He raised one eyebrow but still didn’t smile. “It’s actually my kitchen.”
Aaron Savoie was chomping on apple ends he’d filched from the cutting board. “I think you should let her have it.”
At least Aaron Savoie had loosened up a little.
She scoffed at Blaze, “Well, yeah, but you know what I mean. My dad was not allowed in my mom’s kitchen. He was a menace. Just more trouble than he was worth, having to be told what to do every second and messing it up anyway.”
She saw the glance Blaze shot at Mr. Savoie, who rolled his eyes.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing. His skills must lie elsewhere,” Blaze said.
Sarah looked between them. “You guys meant something else.”
Blaze still didn’t smile, but the skin around his eyes softened. He wasn’t scanning the room like he was looking for an attack anymore, either. “But I would be allowed in your kitchen, and I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Sarah smiled more at him. “Yeah, it is.”
Mr. Savoie muttered, “Get a room.”
Sarah turned away from Blaze, sputtering. “Oh, no. It’s not like that. I’m not—he’s not—we’re not—it’s not like that.”
Blaze said to Savoie, his voice hard and curt once again, “Can it, asshole.”
Mr. Savoie dug back into the snack bowl. “My apologies. I must have misread the room. I need to return to surveillance. Thanks for the Puppy Chow.”
And he left.
Leaving her alone with Blaze once again.
He said, “I appreciate you helping take care of my guys.”
“It’s not a problem,” she said. “They’re your guys.”
Blaze nodded. “They are.”
He reached for her hand, and Sarah controlled her flinch backward.
His warm fingers curled around hers. “Back in the gym—”
He was holding her hand again. “I was a wuss, huh? I appreciate that you calmed me down. I’m usually tougher than that.”
“You didn’t have to be.”
Embarrassment at her wussiness scorched her cheeks. “Yeah, I do. But I appreciate that you calmed me down.” She glanced at where he’d captured her hand. “But I’m all right now.”
He nodded and slowly released her hand, holding on with his fingertips until she let her arm fall to her side. He said, “Anytime.”
His gaze seemed to hold her immobile more thoroughly than his hand, but it was too much, too soon. The stirrings in her chest quaked her. “I’d better wash these dishes.”
Blaze turned his head, looking at his cutting board and apple peels on the counter. “I’ll clean up. You can go sit down.”
Oh, sure. Sarah would just go hang out in the living room with the murdery automaton and the other guy with the serial killer stare who’d assured her that none of them were good guys. “I’ll wash. If you could tidy up the rest, that would be great.”
His kitchen had a double sink, which was yet another luxury of city living that Sarah could get used to. She found a dish brush and red dish gloves under the sink. So nice.
