“Damn, man. Really?” It looked like a tasty flower, making the entire plate come to life.
Mac shrugged. “It’s all about presentation.”
“Well, you got that down, dude. Julie will know for damn sure I had nothing to do with this.”
Mac clapped him on the shoulder. “It’s the thought that counts. Go feed your woman.”
His woman. Damn, but he liked the sound of that.
“I’ll be back to help with lunch,” he said.
Tommy paused with the tray. “You don’t have to do that.”
Mac lifted a brow. “So, you’re going to make the lobster bisque yourself?”
Tommy puffed out a breath. “Good point. Okay, I’ll see you in a few hours.”
Chuckling, his friend started to leave.
“Hey, Mac?”
He stopped and looked back at him.
“Thanks. Seriously.”
Mac nodded before leaving.
Tommy made his way to his bedroom. Julie was still curled up under the covers, asleep. Those pills had really knocked her out. He placed the tray on the nightstand and whispered her name.
A light groan was his answer, then her eyes slowly opened.
He smiled at her. “Morning.”
She blinked a couple of times, lifting her head to look around the room. “Oh, yeah.” She sighed.
“Damn, it wasn’t a bad dream.” She squinted at the clock. “Is it really almost ten?”
“Yep. You needed the sleep.”
“And what else am I going to do when I can barely move?” She slowly rolled onto her back. The blanket slipped, giving him an enticing view of her cleavage. She inhaled sharply, grabbing onto the material and clutching it to her chest. “Where’s my shirt?”
He snatched it up off the floor. “It must’ve fallen last night while you were sleeping.”
As she took it from him, she motioned with her finger for him to turn around. Reluctantly, he did. He could hear the swish of the fabric and knew she was in the process of pulling the shirt over her head.
Possibly with her breasts jutted forward, nipples erect, as she arched to tug it down. He breathed out, running a hand over his eyes. God, he needed to get a grip.
“What smells so good?” she asked, and Tommy was thankful to think of something other than her naked breasts.
Turning around, he pointed to the nightstand. “Breakfast.”
She tilted her head up and her eyes grew wide. “You made that?”
“Yeah. Well, no. Mac did. But I put it on the plate.” He gave her a boyish smile.
“Mac was here? Wow. Those pills really did knock me out.” She eased up to recline against the pillows.
“How are you feeling?”
“Actually, not bad. Between all the meds and that cream, the muscles are just a bit sore. Probably should
do some stretches later to work out the rest.”
Inhaling, she pushed the covers back.
Alarm shot through him. “What are you doing?”
She quirked a brow. “I have to pee. Is that okay?”
He bit back a smile and was relieved to see that she was able to get out of the bed on her own. Though her posture was a bit stiff and she was a little on the slow side, she was moving around easily. When she returned, she climbed back into bed. He sat on the edge of the mattress, picked up the tray, and placed it over her lap. Before she could grasp the silverware, he lifted the fork and knife, cut up the food, then offered her the fork. He didn’t even try to give her a bite of it.
Amusement pursed her lips as she studied the food. “You know me so well, don’t you?”
“That one of your turnoffs is a man trying to feed you? Yes. I know this. Which is why I’m not placing that fork anywhere near your mouth.”
His comment hung in the air, and he watched for her reaction, which was immediate. As her entire body stiffened, her gaze shot up from the plate to his, a confused expression twisting her lovely face. He thought the meaning was pretty clear—he had no intentions of turning her off. He wanted to turn her on. But apparently she still had no clue how hot he found her and wasn’t connecting his intentions.
It was high time to change that. If he was really going to prove that he could be with Julie, then he had to be with Julie. Which meant he had to start touching her, kissing her—and hopefully more. The prospect both excited and terrified him at the same time. The whole leaving thing still worried him. A lot. But nothing ventured, nothing gained.
“Tommy—”
The doorbell rang, making Julie blink and lightly shake her head. Tommy let out a silent curse before striding from the room to answer it. Whoever it was better have a fucking damn good reason for being here. He flung open the door.
Brody stood on the other side, a white paper bag that smelled of fresh bagels and two coffees cradled in the crook of his other arm. “I brought Jules breakfast.”
“I’ve already cooked her breakfast.”
“You cooked?”
He didn’t like the surprise in the other man’s voice. “Yeah, I did. And I also have lunch and dinner covered, so you can forget about stopping by with those, too.”
Brody studied him for a moment, then walked past him into the house.
What the fuck!