Page 31 of Kiss Kiss Bang
“Well, I certainly want to look as big as Daddy Pig, whoever that is.” He poured some milk into the bowl and they ate breakfast together as she regaled him with stories about a pig and its family.
He saw her having a hard time finishing the little bit of milk in the bowl.
“Look,” he gestured and brought up the bowl to his mouth and slurped it down like a drink.
“Uh oh! My mum don’t like dat.”
He wiped his chin.
“Yeah, we’re not savages here.” He heard Olivia behind him, and then her arm went past him and she took the bowl from his hand.
“Says the woman who inhaled a chocolate sundae the other night.”
She scowled at him.
“Go brush your teeth and get dressed, Soph.” Olivia took the plates from the table to wash them. “I need to teach her manners. At least I need to pretend to, right?”
He laughed.
“Did she call you mum or did I misunderstand?”
Olivia smiled and then chuckled. “She only watches two television shows. One is a home repair reality show called Flip or Flop. Don’t ask me why a little girl would watch that, but she loves it. The other show is Peppa Pig, which is a cartoon about a family of British pigs. Sometimes she calls me mum.”
“It’s cute.”
“It’s weird.”
“A little. But in an endearing sort of way,” he said, as she cut a banana into a bowl of cereal, looking so domestic in her kitchen. For some reason he found that mesmerizing. How one moment she could be the intimidating politician and the next she was cutting little pieces of fruit for her daughter. Two very different sides of a woman who fascinated him.
“What’s the plan today?”
“Tom should be here shortly. Normally we take Sophie to school then I go to the office.” When he didn’t move she eyed him. “You don’t have to wait for him, you know.”
“Yes I do. I don’t mind.” He moved his head from side to side and rubbed the back.
“You slept terribly. That couch is uncomfortable.”
“I’m fine. It’s fine.”
She walked over to him. She had on a form-fitting skirt that went past her knees and a white button-down shirt that was still untucked and she was barefoot. He couldn’t help it, he pulled her to him and caught her before she tumbled, forcing her onto his lap. “I like seeing you in the morning. Fresh-faced and a little frazzled.”
“Joey.”
“I like you.” He just said it. No need to beat around the bush. “I know you have a million excuses and reasons, but I just wanted to tell you that.”
“Why didn’t you call?”
That was it. That’s what he wanted to hear. That she had noticed. That she had missed him the last couple of days he’d been away. It made him feel an odd sense of relief because if there was one thing that sucked it was feeling something for someone and it not being reciprocated.
“I was busy with work. You have my number. You could’ve called me, you know.” His palm rubbing up and down her thighs.
She let out a breath. “I know. But I wasn’t sure.”
“You weren’t sure? About me? About how I felt? How to use a phone?”
She playfully shoved his shoulder but he gripped the back of her neck and pulled her to his lips and kissed her softly. “I want you. I want to see where this goes. The only one who is unsure and pulling away is you. So whenever you get the urge to call me or kiss me or whatever . . . do it. Don’t think about it so much.”
The sound of the door opening and closing caused Olivia to jump from his lap and straighten her skirt. “’Morning, Ms. Russo.”
