The Love I Need

Chapter 35

"Were you a good girl?"

I jump when I hear Theo's baritone voice right behind me and spin around to look up at him. "Fuck, Theo!"

He takes a step back to give me some room and holds up his hands in an unthreatening gesture. "Sorry. I thought you would have heard me come in."

"I didn't!" I state the obvious with a glare while reaching up to brush some sawdust out of his hair.

"Sorry," he apologizes again. A small smirk crosses his face while I continue to tousle his hair about. "How about I go shower before you make a complete mess of my kitchen floor?"

"I'm making the mess? You're the one coming home like you just got back from a rave where the glitter was made of wood."

He laughs and steps toward me to brush some of the sawdust off of his head and into my hair. "Here, have some man glitter."

"Stop it!" I attempt to shove him back and his laughter stops immediately.

"Sorry." He steps further away from me this time. "I didn't mean to get in your space like that."

I feel bad for my overreaction and step to the side to gesture to the pot on the stove. "It's okay. I just didn't want sawdust in the food. Are you hungry?"

His tense expression slightly eases but there's still an awkward heaviness between us. "Tell me this isn't the first thing you're eating today. It's already almost eight, Milia."

I roll my eyes at him and turn back to the large pot of chicken parmesan pasta to give it a stir. "It's not. I ate some other things."

"Like what?" he asks in an unconvinced tone.

"Some cheese, some chicken... A piece of onion. That's three food groups, Theodore."

"So... you munched on some of the ingredients while you were cooking?"

I glance back at him to find his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face. "What's with all the questions? Go shower, Woody."

He continues to scowl at me but I'm almost certain I see a hint of amusement in his eyes.

I raise an eyebrow and take a step in his direction. "Do you need help?"

His scowl changes to a look of confusion. "Help?"

My hands grip the bottom of his shirt and I give it a small upward tug. "Getting ready to shower. You seem to be having difficulties."

He starts to chuckle but the sound is quickly replaced by a sharp intake of air when my fingers brush against his lower stomach, just above his belt buckle.

And fuck, it's a nice stomach. It's not as flat and defined as the men I've been with but I can feel the muscles beneath his skin when he tenses at my touch. My fingers move to toy with the hair peeking out from the waistband of his boxers and jeans and without meaning to, I voice my thoughts. "Damn. Are you hairy everywhere?"

"Um, no," Theo mumbles quietly, then tries to correct himself, "Well, I mean, yes? I guess so, but, uh, no..." He stops talking to grip my hands, ceasing my little exploration. "Yes," his voice comes out strong and clear now that he's moved my hands from his body, "I'm basically hairy everywhere. And no, I do not need help getting ready to shower."

I grin up at him but the scowl on his face stays in place.

"Keep your hands to yourself, Milia," he scolds as he takes his own advice and releases my hands.

My grin falls as embarrassment replaces my amusement. What the hell am I doing? You can't just start undressing a guy in his kitchen, Emilia!

But then Theo leans down to speak directly in my ear, his warm breath creating a delicious shiver through my spine. "I thought I told you to be a good girl, Princess. I did say that, didn't I?"