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He removed his hand and walked over to the fridge, and Adelia stood.
She circled the counter and came up beside him. “Help yourself to anything. Skylar stocked it up for me.” She tugged the freezer drawer open to show him the contents just as he stepped forward, and it slammed into his kneecap. He leaned over and grabbed his knee, stumbling to the side.
“Oh my gosh!” She shoved the drawer closed and covered her mouth with her hands.
He rubbed at the pain, praying it would pass, as he moved across the room and leaned against the nearest wall.
Adelia looked adorably flustered as she darted about the kitchen. “I don’t know where the first aid kit is.” She opened drawer after drawer.
“Adelia,” he said.
“It’s got to be here. What do we need? Peas!” she cried.
“Peas?”
“Frozen peas!”
“Adelia.” He laughed as she pulled open the freezer drawer again and riffled through.
“Aha!” She lifted a package of frozen peas above her head. “Yes! I found them!”
Oliver’s knee still throbbed, but he was highly amused by her antics.
She jogged across the room and pressed the peas against his knee a little harder than she should’ve.
“Ah!” he cried out in pain.
“I’ve broken you! I’m sorry. I don’t know what to do.” Her face was covered in worry.
He laid his hand on her shoulder. “I’m fine. Not broken. And it’s okay. It was an accident.”
“What a way to welcome you.” She pointed to herself. “Worst hostess ever.”
“Don’t beat yourself up over it. I’ll heal.”
“Well, when you’re done with those, I can cook up some peas with dinner.”
Oliver’s chuckle turned into full-blown laughter that filled the room, which caused Adelia to laugh too.
When their laughter died down, they smiled at each other, and Oliver hobbled over and put the peas back into the freezer. He took a look at what was in the refrigerator and spotted a package of ground turkey.
“Are you hungry? I can whip up some turkey burgers,” he offered.
“I could eat,” she replied. “But I want to help.” She cautiously stepped around him to look at the contents of the fridge. “I’ll make us a salad.”
“Sounds good.” He liked that she said us, which he realized was a ridiculous thought. There was no us.
She moved to the pantry and looked inside. “I think I saw some chips in here.” Her voice was muffled from the wall between them. She emerged with bags of Ruffles and Cool Ranch Doritos and set them on the countertop.
Adelia took the lettuce from the fridge. “So, if you weren’t here tonight, what would you be doing?”
“A few buddies and I go bowling most Thursday nights.” He rolled up his shirt sleeves and noticed her watching his motions, her gaze locked on his forearms until she caught his eye and quickly looked away.
“For … for fun or are you on a league or something?” Her slight stutter and failed attempt to hide her perusal of his arms secretly pleased him.
“Just for fun.”
“You should go. I don’t want to keep you away from your life.”