Page 57 of The House Guest

I burst out laughing. “The fact that you even wanted to cook for me warms my heart.”

Dorian leaned in to kiss my forehead. “So, while you were in the shower, Benjamin came over after he heard the fire alarm. I had to admit I’d been cooking.”

“What did he think?”

“He couldn’t believe it. He busted my balls and said the next time I wanted toplayin the kitchen, I should let him know, and he’d help me make sure I didn’t burn the house down.”

“That’s funny.”

“He asked if you were home, and I told him the dinner was for us. He seemed pretty amused by that, too.”

“Surprised or amused?”

“Oh, not surprised. He seemed to see this coming from a mile away.”

“What isthisexactly?”

“Not sure I have a name for it.” He brought me close and leaned his forehead against mine. “Whatever it is, it feels good, though.”

A moment of pure contentment washed over me. “I agree.”

Dorian kissed my nose before taking my mouth. As he bent me back into a passionate kiss, I realized I would’vebeen fine with skipping dinner and going upstairs for the rest of the night.

While we waited for the pizza to arrive, I helped Dorian clear out the mess he’d made. When I dropped a couple of pieces of asparagus on the floor, the dogs came racing to fetch the scraps. Tallulah and Tess were so comfortable around Dorian now that I hadn’t noticed they’d been quietly sitting in the corner.

We’d just finished our glasses of wine when the pizza arrived. The smoke smell had finally dissipated somewhat.

“We should watch a moviewithour pizza,” I suggested when he returned with the box.

“That sounds fantastic,” he agreed.

We headed downstairs to the basement, Dorian carrying the pizza box and some plates while I’d taken the bottle of wine and glasses. I couldn’t think of a better way to spend the evening than a casual dinner in the coziness of home. Well, if a mansion could be consideredcozy.

“This isn’t the impressive first official date I had in mind,” Dorian noted as we settled in the theater.

“Is this really our first date, or have we been inadvertently dating since our first night together in this very room?”

He smiled. “Something has definitely been growing between us since that night. Every moment with you has made my life better—a feeling I never imagined after everything that’s happened.”

His words touched me as I whispered, “Same.”

Dorian’s eyes lingered on mine for a moment before he switched his attention to the pizza, serving us a couple of slices each while I walked over to the laptop.

I scrolled through the choices. “We never did get to watchPulp Fictiontogether. Wanna watch it now?”

“Sure, yeah.” He poured us each another glass of wine.

We ate in comfortable silence as the movie began.

I looked over at his handsome profile from time to time in the flickering lights of the movie.

During the scene where Mia is talking to Vincent about uncomfortable silences, I turned to Dorian and whispered, “One thing we do very well is enjoy each other’s company without having to make small talk.”

He nodded. “I’m comfortable with you whether we’re talking or not.”

“The only time I wasn’t comfortable around you was when I felt like I had to hide my feelings. That was really hard to control,” I added.

Ignoring the movie, he turned to me. “Control is an illusion. Because if you have to try to control something, are you really in control or are you just putting off the inevitable?” He leaned in. “In fact, I’m feeling prettyout ofcontrol at this moment.”