Page 37 of On Her Terms
I stretch my arms out. “I’m a bit sore actually. I’ve used muscles I haven’t used in ages.” I fish the keys from my bag and hand them to him. We walk back to the car, toss our bags into the trunk and he opens my door for me. Another yawn pulls at me, and after I buckle myself in, I close my eyes. All the sex, fresh mountain air and late nights have been getting to me. By the time I open my eyes again, Luca is shutting off the ignition.
“Where are we?” I ask and blink my eyes open.
“You slept the whole way back.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” He shifts in his seat, rests his arm on the back of my seat and gently brushes his thumb over my cheek. “Feel better?”
I stretch out. “I didn’t realize how tired I was.”
“Tonight, I’ll let you sleep.”
“But I thought you had a surprise,” I say. I might be tired, but I want to enjoy every possible mome
nt with this man. I’ll sleep when I return home. But the thoughts of returning to New York bring a knot to my gut. How the hell am I going to deal with Granddad and get out of this situation without hurting him?
“I do,” he says and opens his door. He comes around my side of the car and holds his hand out to me. I graciously accept it and let him pull me from my seat. We snatch our bags from the trunk and make our way inside the chalet. I go still when I see a counter full of food and grocery bags.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“Special delivery.”
“What are you up to?”
“I’m making us dinner, and then if you’re up to it, I thought you might want to try your hand at baking an apple pie.” He points to the fire extinguisher in the hall. “I’m prepared for the worst.”
I laugh and hit him in the gut. “Not funny.”
“A little funny?”
“Okay, maybe a little.”
He pulls a chair out from the island. “Sit.”
“Bossy,” I say, but sit down anyway. He reaches into the fridge, grabs a bottle of wine, and pours us each a glass. I take a sip.
“Mmm,” I murmur and twirl the liquid in my stemware. “Although if I drink any more on an empty stomach, I can’t be held accountable for my actions,” I say, tossing his words back at him as the wine warms me all over.
He pours another splash into my cup and wags his brow at me. “Drink up?”
“Why, do you plan to take advantage of me?”
He goes perfectly still, the smile falling from his face. “Tonight, I’m letting you sleep, remember?”
“I remember,” I say. Here I thought his surprise had something to do with sex, yet he’s cooking a meal for me. I wish I wasn’t so touched by the gesture.
He pulls food from a brown paper bag. “What are you making?” I ask as I look over the ingredients.
“My mother’s famous carbonara.”
“Mmm. Yum. Is there anything I can do to help?”
“I’ve got this. But if you want to peel apples for the pie, you can.” He gestures to the bag on the counter. I ordered pie crust from Hauser’s. All we have to do is roll it out. It’s too much work to make it from scratch here.”
He pulls a box of pasta from the bag. “What, you’re not making the noodles from scratch?” I ask, feigning shock as I relax in my chair, contentment falling over me.
“Hey, be nice to the people who cook for you. You don’t know what they can do to your food.” I laugh at him. “My mother always used to say that.”