Page 136 of Dirty Like Jude
“Oh.” A tentative smile played at her fulllips.
“Jesus. Did I just say that shit to you when you’re standing in my kitchen wearing my shirt and makin’ mebreakfast?”
“Youdid.”
“Foot-in-mouth disease. I haveit.”
“It’sokay.”
“I’ll eat whatever you wanna make,darlin’.”
“Cool.” The toast popped and she put it on a plate for me. “Butter?”
“Just abit.”
“You want coffee or anything? I couldn’t find where you keepit.”
“I don’t. You needone?”
“No. I’m a casual user.” She smiled. Girl was pretty as hell with her unbrushed morning hair and no makeup on her face. “Here you go.Fruit?”
“I’ll grab some.” I helped myself to some of the apples and strawberries and whatever she’d sliced up into a bit of a fruit salad, throwing it on my plate. Looked like she was already finished her breakfast. “You could’ve woken me up. No idea why I slept so long. I’m usually up prettyearly.”
She shrugged. “I dunno. You looked so cozy there, and I washungry.”
“Thank you.” I leaned against the counter and bit into my toast. “Best toast any girl’s ever buttered forme.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re not gonnasit?’’
I looked at the chairs around the table, which I rarely pulled out. “Just always stand here to eat breakfast,” I said. “Usually I just have asmoothie.”
She smiled a little. “You want some jam onthat?”
“I havejam?”
“I found this on the porch,” she said, pointing out a little mason jar of what looked like homemade jam, on the table. “Went out there with my juice to check out your sad little garden. Someone named Janice left it for you?” She raised an eyebrow as I glanced at the little tag on thejar.
“My neighbor,” Isaid.
“Did you screw her?” She looked away as she sipped her juice. “I’m not jealous. Just wondering. It’s good jam.” She turned to put the bread away and I wrapped my arm around her frombehind.
“I didn’t screw her,” I whispered in her ear, then bit her lobe a bit. “Why you so interested in Janice? You into athleticblondes?”
She made that throaty little giggle of hers. “Sometimes.” Then her eyes met mine, and her face fell. “Kidding,” she said. “I didn’t mean Taze… orwhoever.”
Whoever. That meant Piper or Zane, nodoubt.
I released her. “Sorry I brought itup.”
“I don’t have a thing for blonds,Jude.”
I didn’t sayanything.
She stared at me, biting on her plump lip a bit. “You’ve mentioned it a few times. Said stuff about Taze beingblond…”
“HaveI?”
“I don’t have, like, a blond guy fetish orsomething.”
