Page 20 of Comin' in Hot
The cool air from inside the house hits my warm body, making goose bumps break out on my skin, and I gasp. Brody glances over his shoulder at me, still not saying anything as he guides me into the kitchen.
Somehow, inside, I feel more naked than I did outside.
I’m on the balls of my feet, scurrying behind him as he walks with purpose, but all I can focus on is trying to escape.
“You really don’t have to do this. I can totally take care of this myself.”
Again, he says nothing.
I’d say it’s annoying, but I’m distracted by how broad and muscular his back is because his shoulders just tensed before he rolled them back.
We walk into the expansive kitchen, and I look around, a little bit like a tourist. I haven’t been in here yet.
The ornate detail on the backsplash behind the stove has my attention as Brody lets my hand go, leaving me to stand next to the sink.
“Wait here.”
A man of few words. Got it.
I’ll just take the aloe, say thanks, and make my way to my room. Easy.
Which set of stairs should I take, I think to myself, because we passed one coming in, but I see another off the side of the kitchen.
I’m knee-deep in planning an escape route when I hear a crack. My eyes find Brody, who has walked a few feet away to a potted plant on a windowsill. He’s broken off one of the thick stalks.
That’s not a bottle of aloe…
He turns and grabs a knife off the counter before making his way back to where I’m standing.
That’s not a bottle…
I watch as he places the green plant on the counter and uses the knife’s tip to slice it open from end to end. The inside glistens and oozes as he peels it open.
His thick fingers work swiftly, and I’m mesmerized.
We may be standing in silence, but a lot is going on here. A lot of indecent thoughts on my part. Because I have, in fact, fully committed to being indecent.
He runs his two fingers up the middle of the stalk, opening the center wider, and I shiver.
I have to get out of here…
I open my mouth to say just that, but I don’t get a chance, because Brody yet again beats me to the punch.
“Turn around.”
My eyes spring wide open.
“What?”
He looks at me like he doesn’t plan to repeat himself. But he should because there’s no way. He is not putting that on me himself.
My thought is cut off as he spins his finger, directing me to turn around.
I shake my head, then reach out to take the plant from him. But Brody pulls it back and looks at me like I’m crazy.
“You can’t see where you’re putting it.”
He looks annoyed to have said it, and that makes me uncharacteristically argumentative.
