Chapter 10
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The timer sounds. I slip my heat resistant gloves on and open the oven door. Careful not to burn myself, I lean in and pull the tray of freshly baked oatmeal cookies out. They’re a perfect golden shade. The sweet smell fills the kitchen. It’s a smell I miss wafting through the house for no reason other than I feel like baking. I wonder if the scent made its way down to the basement.
Chance is making good on his offer from a few nights ago to work with Timmy, teaching him some new moves. He brought a couple of mats over for us to hold onto and laid them down on the basement floor. It’s way too cold to work outside. And this way they’re here when Chance has the opportunity to sneak over.
They’ve been going at it non-stop for the last forty-five minutes. I don’t know how much longer they’ll be working, but with each passing minute, my face gets hotter and my heart beats faster because I know I’m that much closer to sneaking a few minutes with Chance.
“Go hit the shower,” Chance’s voice carries into the kitchen. I look down trying to hide the smile drawing my lips up.
He’s on his way in. I’m squeeing on the inside, giddy as a million dollar lottery winner. I look for some way to busy my nervous hands, and transfer the cookies into a plastic container. This way I don’t look like I’m waiting with baited breath to talk to him, even though that’s exactly what I’m doing.
“Those smell delicious. Almost as good as you.” Chance whispers into my ear. His warm breath tickles as he cages me in from behind by gripping the counter on either side of me.
He’s not touching me. Not with his hands, but his words and the heat of his body caress me. Stroke something inside me. Stoke the embers of a very dull flame that he’s bringing back to life. A warm shiver races up my spine.
“Want one?” I turn around, with a cookie in hand, not prepared for how close he is. I can feel his strength, his energy just from our proximity. We’re much closer than we’ve ever been. Face to face. Chest to chest. Even when I thought he might kiss me for the first time, more air and space existed between us.
“I’d love one,” he says, his voice smooth and confident, his green eyes are pinned on mine as he takes my wrist and leads my hand to his mouth so I could feed him the sweet treat.
“Chance!” I scold with a smile. “Timmy’s in the other room.”
“He’s in the shower. I hear the water running.” Chance takes a bite and moves the cookie into his other hand. “This is delicious,” he says, still gripping my wrist, and slipping the tips of my fingers into his mouth. “It’s soft, and sweet.” He adds circling his skilled tongue around my fingers. “The perfect consistency.” Still holding my hand to his mouth, he closes his eyes as he sucks on my fingertips giving them a final massage with his tongue before releasing his grip on me. “Best damn cookie I ever had.”
I can’t speak. I’m too focused on the low burning fire throughout my body, most especially in the sea between my legs where it seems to have settled. Baking these cookies is the best damn thing I could’ve done with my free time this morning.
Mike always liked when I surprised him with a tray of warm, home baked cookies. These were his favorite. They’re everyone’s favorite. I didn’t make them today out of some sort of allegiance to my husband. Not out of guilt or because I wanted to keep Mike’s memory close at hand. I baked them to do something nice for Chance. Just for Chance.
“You good?” He asks.
My lips curl at the corners as I nod in response. “Never better.’
“Never? I don’t believe you, but I like the sound of that.”
There’s been a change in me since the accident. A big one. It’s like I woke that night and found I’ve been living in a cave of darkness. I stayed there, trapped, only I couldn’t see it until Chance peeked his head in and found me. He reached in and pulled me from the cold and darkness.
I’m ready to start living again. It’s an effort, but I’m willing to give it a go. Even just in small doses. I’m not hiding anymore. I like the excitement Chance riles up in me. The way my heart beats and thrums with thoughts of him. How my whole body responds to the little things he does.
The last few days I’ve made a point of going inside the school to meet Timmy at the end of practice. Chance and I don’t speak in public, don’t say more than hello and share a caudal smile, but this way I get to see him and catch the heat in his eyes when they land on me.
The nights though, that’s where the fun has been. I spend all day looking forward to the dirty words that fly across the screen when I’m alone in bed. Usually around ten o’clock, the texts start up. I make a point to say goodnight to my son and sit in my room, lights dim, with nothing but a bra and underwear on.
I feel pretty and sexy, and it’s easier to talk to Chance this way. Easier for me to flirt over text messages. I’m vulnerable but don’t feel completely exposed. The interactions are light and playful, and I don’t have to worry about getting mind fucked by staring in his green eyes.
At least the cookies give me an excuse to keep him here for a few extra minutes during day light hours while I’m fully dressed, and doing something productive. It’s a success. I wanted face to face time where we could speak without any jealous mothers or overly hormonal pre-teen boys adding their fifty shades of perverseness to our interaction.
Here I have only to worry about one set of spying eyes. Timmy’s.
“Hey, Mom.” Timmy bounds into the kitchen. “I just got a text from Kyle, he invited the team to a sleepover tonight.”
“I don’t know, buddy. I mean I don’t really know him or his parents. I’d have to speak to them to make sure it’s really okay and that there’s going to be parental supervision.”
“Yeah, he said his mother will answer any questions. His parents are going to be there and it’s just going to be the team. Please mom, we don’t have anything planned. And I heard Mr. Carter talking to Kyle’s mom yesterday. He said something like this will help us bond as a team we’ll all do better individually, too.”
I feel a spike in my stomach. A quick sharp jab I have no right to feel.
I keep my eyes off Chance, wondering what really prompted this. “I don’t know, honey. I need some time to think about it.”
“Fine.” Timmy storms back off in the direction of his bedroom.
I turn my pointed stare on Chance, sure he manipulated the situation. I’m just not sure why. “You’re the one responsible for the imminent sleepover tonight?”
Chance’s eyes smolder as they lock on mine. “What can I say? I threw the suggestion out, and Mrs. Coggins ate it up.”
Mrs. Coggins? Mrs. Elaina Coggins who wants to find and follow Chance in a back alley and jump him five ways to Sunday! My stomach roils. I don’t like this feeling. It’s foreign, and I haven’t felt it in years.
“You didn’t just throw it out there, you did it on purpose. You knew she’d take the bait,” I say with a sarcastic smirk, hoping to get a clue as to what game he’s playing.
“I want alone time with you, and I don’t know how to get it.” He ignores my implications. “I don’t think you’re about to leave Timmy home alone, and I get it. I’ll never ask you to compromise your motherly duties.” He slips his arm around my waist, reaches for my hand, and pulls me up against his body. Chance crushes me against his broad chest as he spins us around in a silent dance. “Come out with me tonight. We’ll do whatever you want.”
“Stop! What if Timmy sees?” I push at his chest which goes against every instinct and desire I have at the moment.
“Say yes and I’ll stop.” The strength of Chance’s strong thigh makes its way between my legs as he bends me backwards in a dip. I grip onto his shoulders and hold on tight to the lean muscle beneath my fingers.
“I never said I wouldn’t.”
“You never said you would,” he says, keeping me down in the compromised position and using the strength of his arms to hold me in place.
“Chance!” I slide my hands up his shoulders and clasp them behind his neck.
“You want up, you know what you need to say. It’s just one little word. Just say yes. It’s that simple. That easy. Or else I’ll have to keep you like this and Timmy will have a lot of questions.”
“You can’t keep me like this forever,” I tease.
“Long enough. You’re very light, so I can hold you in this position for a long time, Kim. Besides, it’s not like I mind being this close to you. Having your undivided attention on me. Feeling the heat and desire build between your legs.”
Using his strategically placed thigh, he moves it back and forth, increasing the pressure and sensation. Making me want to feel more there. He rubs mercilessly against my already aching pussy and it’s hard for me to say anything, least of all no. He pulls everything out of his bag of tricks to wear me down, and it’s working.
“You’ll have a good time. I promise.”
“Fine! Yes! You win. I’ll go out with you tonight!”
“By the way, saying yes doesn’t mean I win. It means we both win.”
*
I take a deep breath before pulling the black pencil across the length of my bottom lid. My hair is in a diagonal twist that starts on the left side of my head and ends over my right shoulder. I stand in front of the full length mirror, turning side to side to see myself from different angles. Pleased with my reflection I head to the living room to wait for my date.
My date!
I still can’t believe Chance asked me out on an actual date.
Asked, that’s funny. More like he bullied. Not that I mind the kind of pressure he applied. Or that I said yes. I wanted to say yes, he just gave me a guilt free excuse to. I have mixed emotions about the whole thing, but I want to see where tonight goes. I’m ready to start living again, and I can’t think of a better way to jump-start this new phase of my life than a date with Chance Carter.
The doorbell rings. I bounce up and down in place before moving to the door. It’s hard to find the balance between being excited and not giving a shit. I want to appear somewhere in the middle. It’s hard though, because on the other side of my front door is a man that sends my body into hyper drive. The only man I have a serious interest in getting to know intimately.
On the other side of the door stands all the unknowns. My fears and excitement rolled up into one large, hot, sexy ball of the forbidden and unknown. By the end of the night, I’m hoping to have a taste of the fruit that will lead me straight out of garden of ignorance.