Her finger got busy tracing him again and he lowered his lips to hers, then took another step back and helped her off the sink. Her hand remained a soft pressure on his chest, her hips found his, and he noticed how perfectly they fit together. The thought of making love to her right there against the sink, then in the shower, then in the bedroom, shot another bolt of desire through him. Breathe. He needed to put space between them.
He caressed her cheek before stepping out of the bathroom with Pepper on his heel. He glanced back at Leanna. She held up one finger, then closed the bathroom door. He sat down on a chair and buried his head in his hands. He was hot and bothered, and his brain couldn’t think past Leanna’s scent, the feel of her, the look in her eyes—and the way she read his mind, then reacted without throwing him out. She knew he needed to write. Knew! He’d been with enough women to know that her reaction was not typical. He had to get a grip. He was becoming more enchanted by her every time he saw her.
Pepper whined at his feet, his tail wagging for attention.
“Good dog,” Kurt said.
Pepper barked.
Kurt gave him a stern look, and Pepper lay down beside the chair.
A few minutes later, Leanna came out of the bathroom fresh faced and still clad in her panties and camisole. She straddled his lap and looked him in the eyes. So much for breathing.
“Thank you for bringing me my bike.” Her breath was minty, her smile still a heart slayer.
“You’re welcome.”
“And thank you for helping me with the mess yesterday.” She kissed his cheek.
Do I really have to go write? “I have no doubt that you could have cleaned it up yourself, but you’re welcome.”
She crinkled her nose. “You’ve seen me with a broom.”
He kissed her crinkly nose. “That I have.”
“Since even I know you can’t jog home in your present state, can I make you breakfast?”
There was that honesty again. “Are you as good in the kitchen as you are at kissing?”
She shook her head as she rose to her feet. “But I’m better than I am with a broom.”
Chapter Eight
AS KURT JOGGED out of the development, Bella, Jenna, and Amy burst into Leanna’s kitchen, each still in their sleepwear and carrying a mug of coffee.
“Details. I want every last detail.” Bella sat at the table in her cotton nightie that stopped two inches below her butt.
“He arrived shirtless and with your bike. I saw him.” Jenna tugged at her T-shirt, which was hung up on her enormous braless breasts above a pair of men’s boxer shorts. She looked down and wiggled her boobs into submission, then gave up with a defeated sigh and leaned against the counter. “And I want to know why he brought these.” She tossed a dog’s leash and a box of baking soda onto the counter; then she put the empty bag she’d taken from the basket on the bike beside the contents.
Amy popped two pieces of bread into the toaster. She wore a T-shirt and plaid pajama shorts and looked like a teenager rather than a twenty-seven-year-old woman. “Morning booty call. Nice. I like that. You get all the action and still get a good night’s sleep. But baking soda?”
Leanna laughed as she fingered the leash. “Yesterday he was at the flea market and I had Pepper tied up with rope because I couldn’t find his leash, and the baking soda?” Because he’s thoughtful. “Pepper went kind of crazy, and a couple jars of jam broke. My skirt got splattered, and I guess he’d Googled how to clean the stain on my shorts that I’d left at his house because when he brought them back, they were perfectly clean.”
“Left your clothes at his house?” Bella puckered her lips and made kissing noises.
“You guys are awful. It wasn’t a booty call. How often have you seen me have any type of booty call? I swear, I’m at the point of needing a chimney sweep to clean out the cobwebs.”
“Oh, that’s just sad.” Bella shook her blond hair in front of her eyes and then gathered it in her hand and drew it all away from her face.
“Seriously. Sex is hardly a priority. But it was really thoughtful of him to bring this stuff, don’t you think?” Although, now that she’d kissed Kurt and felt him, really felt him—all of him—against her, thoughts of climbing between the sheets with him were lingering. Taunting.
“Yes. Very thoughtful. So, nothing happened? The guy washes your clothes and brings you stuff to keep stains away, and nothing happened?” Amy pulled her toast from the toaster, grabbed a jar of jam from the fridge, and read the label. “Apricot-lime? Is it okay if I try it?”
Leanna shrugged and set the leash down. “Sure. It’s a new flavor. Go ahead.”
Amy spread it on the toast and took a bite. She narrowed her eyes, and a second later they widened. “Oh my gosh,” she said with a mouthful of toast. “This is amazing.”
“Really? I wasn’t sure anyone would like it.”
“Mm. It’s like a cool summer drink.”
“Can we cut to the chase here? I’m glad you like her new flavor, but I want to hear about Kurt’s bite.” Jenna leaned forward a little. “Oh, and, Amy, make me one? Pretty please?”
“Sure.” Amy popped more toast in the toaster.
“Me too,” Bella added.
“Already on it,” Amy said with a smile.
Leanna thought about kissing Kurt, and she sighed. “All I can say is that the second our lips met, it was like…like, you know that feeling when you’re going up on a roller coaster? Not down when your stomach falls, but that ride up when everything in the world seems possible, when the wind is at your face and you feel like you could just close your eyes and be carried right up to the clouds?” She sighed again. “Kissing Kurt was like that, only about a million times better.”
Bella shook her head. “Whoa.”
“Imagine how good the sex will be,” Jenna added.
“I want a kiss like that.” Amy set a plate in front of the others with toast and jam on it.
“That’s not all.” Leanna covered her face. “I can’t even believe I’m telling you all of this two seconds after he left.”
Bella kicked Jenna under the table. “Told you. Booty call.”
“No, no. Not like that. When he wrapped me in his arms, it was like everything else fell away.”
“Wait. What?” Amy took a bite of toast and tossed one to Pepper, who ate it quickly and then whined for more. “Fell away?”
“The chaos in my head. You know how my mind goes a mile a minute? Well, for those few minutes it calmed.”
“He really is magical.” Bella took a bite of the toast and jam. “This is amazing. It really is like a summer drink, but better. It reminds me of that night last summer when we had the bonfire on the beach. Why didn’t you give me a jar of this?”
“I was afraid you guys wouldn’t like it.”
Bella pointed at her. “There are two things I like to make up my own mind about. Food and men. Don’t tell me what I want to eat or who I want to sleep with. Got it?”
“I know that about men.” Leanna smiled. “You’re definitely a taste tester.”
Bella ripped off a piece of toast and threw it at her. Pepper caught it midair.
“So, no bing, bang, boom? Why did he leave?” Jenna asked.
“He has to write. He’s so focused. I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone more focused than him.”
“I’m focused,” Jenna said.
They all laughed.
“Really? What’s on your agenda today?” Leanna asked.