How You Get 'Em

Chapter Three

A/N: Dedicated to @inanimatezebra who is always on top of updates. Please vote and comment. Enjoy!

Uncomfortable didn't even begin to describe the situation. And to make matters worse, I was being stared down into the ground from a man who sat on the other side of the room, not once removing his icy glare from my face.

When I'd first entered the house, my aunt and cousin were quick to pounce on me, wailing on and on about the recent tragedy and how everything was better now that the whole family was together again. But when the party moved into the expansive living room where other friends of the family whose names I couldn't remember for the life of me were gathered, the atmosphere shifted, and it was all because of one unhappy camper.

If he wasn't such a jerk for no reason, the man would've actually been attractive. With gray-blue eyes and short, wavy light brown hair, he wore a black sweater that brought out the darkness of his pupils, but the permanent scowl on his face told me he wasn't up for introductions, so I sat as far away from him as possible. Though I was a safe distance away from him, I couldn't say the same for other people in the room.

Dash caught on to the hateful looks being cast my way, giving some of his own to the stranger in return. His overprotectiveness toward me would've been okay if his fiancé wasn't currently perched on the armrest of the chair he occupied, but she was, running her fingers through his thick hair. The two made my stomach churn, looking madly in love, but I knew the truth, catching the quick flashes or irritation on Dash's face.

"Lee, sweetheart, would you bring us some plates from the kitchen for the treats you brought us?"

"Of course," Jumping at the excuse to get the hell out of that room, I smiled at my aunt. At least she'd asked politely and respected my preferences, unlike my mother. I'd also hopped on the chance to get a break from my aunt's neighbor, Mrs. Sanders, who'd been talking our ears off nonstop about gardening. The woman was probably just trying to lighten the mood, but good God could she talk.

Walking past Dash and Rachel was the only way to get to the kitchen, and there was no mistaking the burning of his eyes on my body. When I'd passed, he looked torn between helping me or staying seated and getting petted, but he chose the second option, sinking further against the leather recliner while furrowing his eyebrows as my eyes connected with his.

Good boy, stay. I thought, mentally applauding his obedience to my cousin. They were just plates. There was no need for the help he looked itching to give, and just when I'd thought I was free to take a breather in the empty room I'd just entered, another presence crept up from behind, circling around my stance at the granite counter in the center of the space.

As much as I wanted to pretend the man wasn't there by popping chocolate truffles and other candies into my mouth, it was nearly impossible. He stood three feet away on the other side of the kitchen island, continuing to burn holes into my face like he'd done when I'd first arrived. Since he was just going to stand there, the least he could've done was help find a stack of plates and napkins to bring into the next room, but no, giving people dirty looks was apparently more important.

"This stuff is amazing." My manners were forgotten as I bit into a soft and gooey brownie with a caramel filling that oozed onto my tongue, reaching for another with frosting from one of the dessert platters sitting on the counter. It was always those, fruit baskets or casseroles brought to the grieving family, and there was no way I'd be opening the refrigerator to see how many were in there. "Have you tried one?"

Grumpy didn't look to be in the mood for small talk, but to cut the thick tension simmering between us, I attempted to try. He folded his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes down at me, causing me do the same up to him in return. Whatever he was going to say had better be good for me to put a snack like that down during that time of the month when cravings needed to be satisfied.