“Ouch.”
The lopsided grin on his face showed that her sarcasm hadn’t affected him one little bit, so why had she felt even slightly guilty about hurting his feelings? He was a corporate monster with a rampant libido. But her brief glimpse of him revealed that his hair did look really good, all choppy and tousled, jet black and damp from the shower. Soft, bronzed, inked skin. And he smelled of black pepper and ginseng. And hell, he was still only dressed with a towel around his hips…
She swallowed hard and looked out the window again, crossing her arms tightly over her chest, aware that her nipples had stiffened with obvious interest at the mere sight of him. “And my sister is supposed to be putting in a few hours in lieu of rent.”
His fingers started massaging the knotted muscles above her collarbones and a treacherous bolt of hot lust pleasured its way to the apex of her thighs. “I’m sorry if what I said in the kitchen offended you,” he said quietly, and her eyelids fluttered shut as he kissed her shoulders with the lightest touch, like a butterfly’s wing. “I didn’t mean it to sound like that. I would just love to make that asshole Stanley squirm for hurting you.”
“It’s not your battle. And I don’t give a damn about Stanley anymore if it makes a difference. I just don’t want to have to see him again, that’s all, and it’s not going to be easy. We were together a long time and have a lot of mutual acquaintances.”
“How long?”
“Seven years.”
“Hell, being together that long is practically married.”
“Just as well we weren’t, huh? Divorcing someone is a lot messier than dumping them.”
His fingers stilled. “Do you still have feelings for him?”
She shrugged and felt his hands fall away. “Truthfully? I’m not sure what I feel. Hurt? Cheated? Humiliated? I’m getting used to not having him around. I’ve allowed myself to get angry a few times, angry at how he ended things, angry at how he treated me over those seven years. Furious that I let him do it…so I guess that means I don’t love him anymore.” Matt watched her silently, leaning back against the end of the single bed, his hands gripping the brass work behind his back so that his torso formed a perfect triangle. “I don’t think I ever really loved him, or him me. Looking back, everything was kind of toxic. Too much, too young, too fast.”
“Sounds familiar.” The gap between his dark eyebrows narrowed as he studied her. She wondered what he was thinking, and what had happened to him to make him say that. But she wasn’t going to ask, didn’t want to start an emotional journey down an exciting-looking road that led nowhere. Another dead end.
“Anyway, that’s enough of me being miserable and self-indulgent. What’s done is done.” She forced a bright smile. “I think she could use some breakfast.”
He tickled the cat’s back. “I’ve fixed something especially for you, Princess Aspen.”
“We can call her Princess if you’d like,” Piper said before her rational brain could engage and stop her. “Seeing as you’re paying the veterinary bill,” she added quickly, and hoped her cheeks wouldn’t betray her by going tomato red. “Although, maybe I should pick it up, now that I think about it.”
“I said I’d pay the bill even if she is your cat,” he said with an enigmatic smile. A smile that was also conciliatory, even pitiful maybe, not surprising as she’d just come off so needy. “But I might just call her Princess anyway.”
“I’m sure she won’t mind one little bit.”
He looked awkwardly from side to side. “Your clothes are dry. Where do you want me to put them? I’ll start breakfast while you’re getting ready.”
“I’ll get them if you tell me where they are.”
He sighed. “It really isn’t a problem. I’ll put them in the bedroom, so if you want a shower—”
“Thank you, I will.” She rubbed at the corner of her eye. The fatigue and the stress of the last few days were taking their toll. She glanced at the towel around his hips again and felt a flash of shame as he caught her doing it. “Give me a holler when you’re dressed and out,” she added quickly.
It was a relief putting her own clothes back on; she couldn’t cope with wearing his clothes any longer. His sweatpants slithered down over her hips whenever she walked down the stairs, for goodness’ sake. When she stepped into the kitchen, she saw Matt crouching over Aspen, stroking her and cooing as she scooped up her breakfast like a backhoe loader.
“You’re spoiling her,” she said. “She’ll think she really is a princess at this rate.”
“It’s just a little chicken breast,” he said quietly and ran his large hand down her narrow back. “She still seemed hungry after her canned salmon.”
Piper giggled. “Double breakfast? If she’s sick, you can clean it up.”
“She won’t be sick. She’s eating for at least two.”
“I wonder how many babies she’s got in there? Maybe they’ll be able to tell us when she has her operation.”
“Maybe.” He stood up and stretched. “She made the funniest noise while she was eating earlier.”
“Like she was saying nom nom?”
“I’ve never heard a cat do that before.”
“Yep, she’s definitely an odd creature.” Piper kneeled down to pet her. “Makes a barking noise sometimes, too.”
“For real?” He poured hot coffee into two cups. “Are you hungry? There’s toast, eggs, bacon, and cereal.”
“I’m still stuffed from dinner,” she said as she accepted the cup of steaming liquid. “And I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m eager to get out of here and back to real life again.”
“I looked around outside and I think we can make it to the main highway if we take it nice and slow, but I’m not letting you out of my sight until I know you’re completely safe.”
“I’m a big girl these days,” she said with a frown. “Been on the planet twenty-six years, I think I can look after myself.”
“Your car is buried somewhere in the snow and needs rescuing. You’ll get a fine if you just abandon it, and I’m sure you want your wheels back so it can get fixed. Also, your furnace won’t have repaired itself overnight unless you have very special mechanic fairies in downtown Passion Creek. And getting big fat Princess into a pet carrier and down to the vet’s is a two-person job. Agree?”