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If I don’t fuck her soon, I’m going to become unhinged.
Glad he was following behind her so that she couldn’t see his obvious erection, he watched her hips sway in a pair of ass-hugging jeans as he followed her to the kitchen. Her fresh, alluring scent wafted from her body and he breathed it in like a man deprived of oxygen, hungry for her fragrance. He smelled her everywhere, even his bedroom. Her aroma seemed to cling to every portion of his house, reminding him of her presence. Like he could forget it?
What was it about her that fascinated him so much? It wasn’t as if she tried to make herself irresistible. She wore very little make-up and he had yet to see her in anything except jeans-minus the heart-stopping night that she had appeared in that tight mini and sweater-but he was completely enthralled.
“Why don’t you have a boyfriend?” he asked curiously. “Wouldn’t it have been easier to go to school if you had a man in your life?”
They had reached the kitchen and Kara was pulling lettuce, peppers, and other vegetables from the refrigerator. “Do you want to help cut the vegetables for a salad? I’ll put in some steaks.” She pulled meat from the refrigerator before adding, “Why would I want a boyfriend when I’m going to school?” Giving him a perplexed look, she pulled out a cutting board and handed him a knife from the block.
“Someone to help. Wouldn’t it be easier?” he replied as he washed the vegetables and started cutting awkwardly. Cooking was not one of his best skills.
He almost sliced through his finger as she burst out laughing before answering, “In my experience, boyfriends aren’t exactly helpful.”
She was amused, but Simon could hear a touch of hurt in her voice. “Bad experience?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
She put the steaks in the broiler and bumped him out of the way. She opened the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. Twisting the top off, she handed it to him and shooed him away to the island sitting area. “I’ll cut. You’re likely to amputate a digit or two.”
Simon frowned as he took a seat and watched her profile as she sliced and diced like a professional. “So, what happened?”
She sighed. “I dated Chris for five years. I thought we would end up married. Unfortunately, I came home from work early one day and caught him in bed with the person I thought was my best friend.”
Was the guy totally insane? He had Kara in his bed every night and he wanted someone else? “He was an idiot.”
“It wasn’t meant to be. I’m actually thankful that I wasn’t married to him.”
“It still hurt you.”
She shrugged. “It was a long time ago.”
“Bastard.” Simon couldn’t help himself. He wanted to hurt the asshole.
“What about you?” She glanced toward him as she scraped sliced green peppers into the salad bowl.
“What about me?”
“Girlfriend? I feel like I might be cramping your style. Me living here, I mean.” She didn’t look at him as she started on the tomatoes.
He shrugged. “I’ve never had one.”
She stopped slicing and gaped at him with a look of astonishment. “Seriously?”
Simon didn’t include the one woman who had changed his life forever, at the age of sixteen. He hadn’t spoken her name or talked about her in years. Not to anyone.
“Nope. I’m not exactly a social kind of guy. Sam is the compulsive dater. He’s got the looks for it,” he replied dryly, taking a swig of his beer.
She mumbled something that Simon didn’t quite catch.
“What was that?” he asked, wondering why her face was turning beet red.
“I said that you’re better looking.”
Simon almost dropped his beer, barely catching it before it fell into his lap. “Have you seen Sam?”
She breezed out to the dining room to put the salad on the table, calling out behind her. “Sure. You have pictures of him and Helen everywhere.”