Page 10 of Finding Romance (Romances in the Building #2)

CHAPTER TEN

Piper

“And then I used the tways in the high school cafeteria and we swent sledding,” I slur.

“On the trays?” Kasen confirms.

I nod enthusiastically, holding out my hands to show how large they were.

He laughs. “Did you get caught?”

I shake my head and immediately regret it because everything blurs. “Whoa,” I whisper.

Kasen takes my third glass of whiskey and drinks the rest.

“That’s enough of that, lightweight,” he teases.

I look at the clock on his microwave. “Oh no. I need to chweck on Aunt Cornelia,” I say, knowing that I’m slurring and feeling too tired to care.

“Come here,” Kasen says as he gets off his stool and holds out a hand. I place mine in his.

“You have bwig hands,” I think, but when he laughs, I realize I said that out loud.

“And you have small hands. Now come sit. I’m going to check on her for you.

I’ll be right back,” he promises as he squeezes my hand, and when he releases it, I immediately wish he was holding it again.

I curl up on his oversized leather sofa and pull a soft blanket over me.

It smells like Kasen, all woodsy and clean.

In the warmth of the blanket, I suddenly wish it was Kasen wrapped around me, keeping me warm.

I burrow deeper and start to fall asleep.

My eyelids grow heavy and the last thing I remember is hearing the gurgling of the device in the fish tank that puts air in the water.

* * *

I wake with a start. I’m much warmer than before and the blanket is heavy, like really, really heavy. I go to move but I can’t. My eyes pry open and I immediately close them. Way too much light and my head is pounding. What time is it?

I slowly open my eyes again and look around. And that’s when I find the source of the warmth and my inability to move.

Kasen.

He’s fallen asleep next to me; he’s using my hip as a pillow.

His arms are wrapped around my middle. His breaths come slow and steady.

I take a moment to look at him. He’s gorgeous in a rugged sort of way.

His dark hair is messy and he has a bit of a beard.

The faint scar above his right eye intrigues me.

I wonder when or where he got it. Was it when he was in the Navy?

His hands are large, which I already knew, but they seem bigger now that he’s wrapped around me. I wonder what those hands would feel like if they touched my skin beneath my T-shirt.

I contemplate how I can extricate myself from him, but then his eyelids flutter open. He stares at me for a few seconds. Neither of us speaks.

“I think we fell asleep,” he says groggily as he slowly gets up.

“Yeah. What time is it?” I had come over in the afternoon, we had dinner, I drank way too much, and then I remember him sitting me down here and after that…well, I guess I fell asleep.

“Oh, shit!” I say as I get up with a start. “Aunt Cornelia!” I race to the door but Kasen’s faster and his giant hand holds it shut. “Kasen, I got to go.”

His body is flush with mine, pressing me to the door. I shiver from the contact.

“I already helped her. I went over again this morning. I must have dozed off afterward. She’s fine, Piper. I promise,” he says quietly against the shell of my ear. His hot breath has my skin prickling.

I swallow, giving myself a moment to collect my thoughts. “Oh, uh, thank you,” I manage. I sway a little, feeling light-headed.

“Let’s get you a breakfast sandwich and coffee,” he suggests. “It’ll help with the hangover.”

“I’m not really very hungry,” I reply as waves of nausea come over me. I am never drinking again.

His finger brushes along my arm. “Don’t be such an escape artist. Let me get you breakfast and then we can both get on with our days, OK?”

“Escape artist? I’m hardly escaping. I just need to check on my aunt,” I protest.

“And I’m telling you I just did two hours ago and she’s fine. We can get them breakfast too,” he offers. “Please let me get you breakfast for helping with the tank.”

“You got me dinner,” I retort.

“And that was for helping with the water on the floor,” he states. Damn, he’s good at arguing and I’m too tired to protest.

“Fine,” I say like a petulant child.

Kasen grabs his key and we walk over to the café.

“You two look wrecked,” Cam says with a laugh. “I think we will need some serious coffees today.” She gives me a look and I nod.

“On it.”

“And two breakfast sandwiches, two muffins, and lattes for Cornelia and Margie,” Kasen adds.

I lean on the counter and look back at the apartment building. “Does someone have a black cat?” I ask.

Kasen and Cam both look over.

Kasen groans. “It’s Licorice. She probably wants in the store. She must have escaped Gray’s apartment.”

“He has a cat?”

They nod in unison.

“I’m going to grab it,” I announce as I walk over to the bookshop door where the cat is sitting and waiting.

“Hey, little one You waiting for the store to open?” I ask it.

“Meow!” it replies as it looks up at me with big green eyes.

“You’re very pretty,” I say, leaning down and letting it smell my hand before I scoop it up in my arms. I stroke its soft fur and its eyes drift closed. It starts purring and I smile down at it.

“Oh, there she is. Licorice!” Roxy scolds and I hand the cat to her after she opens the door.

“I swear that cat is going to give up all nine lives before she even reaches nine years old.” She pauses and looks at me. “Long night?”

“You have no idea,” I reply, following her inside while she opens the store. I sit in a big comfy chair by the front windows.

She looks over at the café and back at me. “Kasen, huh?”

I blush. “Oh, no. It’s not like that. I was helping him with his fish tank and then we had dinner, and I drank way too much whiskey and passed out on his sofa,” I explain.

“I mean. Kasen is hot,” Roxy says.

“I suppose so. I just…hadn’t really thought about that,” I lie. She gives me a pointed look.

“Fine, yes, he’s hot.”

She sits down in the chair next to me and Licorice rubs against her legs. “I think he’s interested in you.”

“You do?”

She nods. “Yeah. He keeps glancing over here every three seconds. I’ve never seen him do that. Not that I know him super well yet, but Gray said he thought maybe he liked you. And I agree.”

“You think Kasen likes me?” I ask, pointing to my chest. And since when did I become the focus of gossip? No one ever pays attention to me .

“Yes. Wait. Do you already have a boyfriend?” she asks. “Or a girlfriend?”

I shake my head as my whole face turns red.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” She gives me a sympathetic look.

“It’s not that. I just…I’ve never had a boyfriend,” I whisper as if someone might hear it.

“Like, ever?” she asks with a raised eyebrow.

I shake my head and bite my bottom lip.

“Wow. OK. Well, there’s nothing wrong with that,” she says. “I mean, lots of women haven’t had boyfriends.”

I give her a pointed look. “I hardly think that’s the case. I just…my parents' separation made having friends hard and then I was always in art programs and busy in high school. And in college, I just never got the hang of the dating thing.” Why am I telling her all of this?

“You’ve never dated?” a voice says from the doorway as the bell rings.

It’s Al. Great, just great. Now, everyone can really gossip about me.

Al looks to Roxy. “I think we need to remedy that.”

Wonderful. Now a senior citizen is trying to fix my dry spell. If you’ve never had sex, is it still a dry spell? Could my life get any more embarrassing?

“Remedy what?” Kasen says from behind Al.

Yes, yes my life can get more embarrassing.

“Oh, nothing. Just trying to set our Piper up on a date,” Al announces. I look down at the floor, hoping a hole will open up and swallow me because there is no way I can look Kasen in the eyes ever again.

“A date, huh?” Kasen repeats.

“Yep. She’s never had a proper one. Sounds like she could use some practice,” Roxy says and gives Kasen a look.

“I mean, I’ve been on a few dates,” I interject, not wanting it to seem like I have lived under a rock or something.

“Do you want dating practice?” Kasen asks me and now I’m really hoping a portal to another dimension will open or an alternate universe. Something? Anything?

“Guys, it’s fine. Really. I should be focusing on Aunt Cornelia,” I insist.

“I can take you out,” Kasen offers. I freeze as I start to stand and then slowly realize I look crazy and finish standing.

“It’s OK. You are so busy. You don’t have to do that,” I state.

“I think Kasen would be a great man to take you out on a date so you can practice,” Al says with a big smile.

“What do you say?” Kasen adds.

I’m clearly not escaping this. “Fine. One practice date,” I say because I just want to get this mortification over with.

“Who’s going on a practice date?” Drew says from behind Kasen. For the love of God! Will this embarrassment ever end?

“We are,” Kasen announces as he uses his free hand to point at me.

Drew looks from Kasen to me. “Girl, Kasen is going to ruin you for real dates, but hey, it’s your dating funeral. Cheerio, lads and lasses,” Drew says with a wave as he walks over to the café.

Kasen groans.

“Well, I’m off for my walk. You kids have fun on your date. I can’t wait to hear all about it,” Al says cheerily.

“I gotta open the register. Feel free to eat here,” Roxy suggests as she leaves me standing in front of Kasen who is holding a tray of drinks and a bag of food.

“Come on, let’s go eat and we can plan this pretend date,” Kasen says as he pushes the door open with his perfectly tight ass.

My face remains red the entire elevator ride upstairs. This is definitely going to kill me. How am I supposed to go on a practice date with this man that I have a crush on? I’m so screwed.