Page 31 of Revealing Mark

“Then maybe you should listen to him.”

“Enough, Mark. You’re starting with another lecture. Besides, I’m not taking dating advice from the guy who wouldn’t know a relationship if it hit him over the head.”

“You’re lucky to have people who care about you.” There wasa faraway look in his eye, like his thoughts had taken him elsewhere.

“But that doesn’t mean they get to tell me what to do.” I settled my hands on my hips.

My head throbbed. I rubbed my temple. I’d developed a slight headache from lack of food and sleep. It was late afternoon already and, other than the apple, I hadn’t eaten much.

“You ready to eat something?” He raised a challenging eyebrow.

“Yes,” I relented. There was no point in starving myself.

He went into the kitchen and I followed. He took some menus out of the drawer and put them on the counter.

“You choose and I’ll order.”

Feeling more ravenous, I sifted through the take-out menus and settled on pizza.

“Your usual?” he asked.

I nodded. That was the difference between us. I knew very little about him and he knew so much—including all the little inconsequential details, like how I drank my coffee and what type of pizza I liked. Was there something more to it or was that just how he was, noticing all the small things other people overlooked?

He placed the order while I watched. Every now and then he would shove a hand through his hair as he leaned against the counter. It lifted his shirt and I got a glimpse of his taut stomach. I swallowed. I didn’t have to imagine how it would feel because just the day before I had run my hands lightly over those same muscles.

He caught me staring and I felt the heat of embarrassment burn my cheeks. Nothing like lusting after someone who wasn’t going to do anything about it. That’s when I decided to leave the room to give myself some much-needed space from him.

Besides, I had to finish picking out the pictures for Marshall and send them to his mom. I took a seat on the sofa, pulling mylaptop onto my lap so I could finish going through the photos. I rubbed my eyes before stifling a yawn. When I heard Mark enter the room, I ignored him, determined to finish my work.

The muscles in my neck ached and I rubbed it while I sent the last of the photos to Mrs. Corbin. I sighed before shutting my laptop and moved it to the coffee table. Mark walked in with the pizzas and plates.

The delicious smell hit my nostrils and my stomach growled in response. I shifted to the edge of the sofa as Mark took the seat beside me and opened the pizza boxes. He handed me a plate.

“Thanks,” I murmured when our hands touched briefly, sending a shiver of awareness through me. It was like a touch of static electricity.

When he left to get us some sodas from the kitchen, I took a deep breath and released it to calm the effect he had on me. When he set down my favorite soda beside my plate of pizza, I frowned. “Am I that predictable?”

“I notice the little things. It’s what makes me good at my job.”

The pizza was divine, and I sighed when I took my first mouthful, closing my eyes briefly as I savored the taste.

“Good?” he asked.

I nodded, finishing the mouthful to take another bite.

If I believed things were awkward when I was just harboring feelings for him, it was a lot worse now that he knew about it. This was going to be tough being around him while knowing we had no chance of making it past the kiss we had shared in the kitchen. My toes curled at the memory. My cheeks flushed and I tried to think of anything else but the irresistible guy eating pizza beside me.

I finished two slices of pizza and I was stuffed. I wiped my mouth and hands with a napkin.

“That was awesome,” I said, filling the silence between us.

He nodded, finishing off the pizza he was eating.

His phone started to ring, and I watched as he stood to fish it out of his jeans. He frowned when he saw the caller ID. “I’ve got to take this.”

I nodded before he strode in the direction of the study.

I should have taken that chance to catch up on my emails but I was too curious about who the phone call was from.To keep myself busy, I moved the pizza back to the kitchen and threw away the empty cans.