Page 31 of Unofficial

“Cooking you a meal and cleaning up while you ignore me to watch baseball. A sport that, for the third time now, I don’t like. I feel like your mother, not your date, Landry.”

“You do?”

“I’m going to go,” she says and sighs. “Have a good night.”

His hand presses against the door as she opens it. “Wait.”

“For what?”

Kissing her, he presses her against the door and cups her face. As annoyed as she may be at him, he does kiss well. Really well. She almost forgets how angry she is. Almost.

“I’m sorry,” he says and moves to kiss her neck. “I thought you liked baseball. I shouldn’t have invited you over for dinner and the game. I’ll keep that in mind for next time.”

“Thank you.”

“Any chance I can convince you to stay? I didn’t get to spend much time with you, and I was kind of looking forward to our make-out session on the couch after dinner. It’s the best dessert.”

His words have a strange effect on her, and she almost says yes. Almost. “You could’ve been making out with me as an appetizer, but you didn’t. I also don’t want to be kissed while you watch the game. It’s either or, Landry, and I think you really, really want to watch the game.”

He pouts. “I would like both.”

“Not gonna happen,” she says and pats his cheek. “Goodnight.”

Walking to her Benz, she sits for a few moments to collect her thoughts. Landry is a good guy. Inconsiderate at times, and sometimes a jerk, but overall, he wants a relationship. One woman to claim as his own, and he can kiss like no one’s business. Maybe they just need a rule about dates on the same night as sporting events he wants to watch.

“And he really needs to start thinking about helping with the dishes, otherwise all he’ll get is frozen meals,” Jess says and drives back to her place.

Chapter Twelve

Sixty days. Landry stuck it out for sixty days, and tonight is the night Jess planned to finally give into the physical desires her body aches for. It hasn't been easy, but she feels like the man really wants something more than just sex.

The only issue she still has is how guarded Landry still comes across. Jess can't really blame him after hearing what happened with Amber, but certain things make her question the longevity of their relationship. In the end, though, she knows she's comfortable with him. Even when he becomes distant and shuts down, she knows he's been hurt just like she has.

"This is great," Landry says as he takes the last bite of the chicken fried steak she made for dinner.

She went all out and made the steak, roasted baby potatoes, and crisp green beans. As much as she liked not having him at her place to avoid giving into temptation, she can’t deny how much easier and better it is to do this at home. Tonight, she's in her element in her own kitchen.

"Thanks," she says with a smile. "I like cooking for people."

"You're pretty damn good at it," he says and winks.

He stays where he is when she starts cleaning up, and part of her bristles at the fact he never asks if she wants help. No attempt to offer. Every time she’s cooked at his place, he just let her decide what to do with the dishes, but it feels like the expectation is for her to take care of everything from cooking to cleaning. It doesn't help that every time it's happened, including tonight, her mind thinks about how Kade never let her clean up if she cooked. He'd make her sit down while he took care of things.

Kade isn't here. He doesn't want you, remember?

It doesn't take long to finish putting everything away, and Landry walks around the counter to pull her close before his lips find hers. "Now, I can give you a proper thank you for dinner."

His kisses make her knees weak, and her annoyance disappears. "You're welcome."

Pulling back, he looks down into her eyes. "Do you want me to leave?"

"You don't know what today is?"

"Saturday?"

Jess smiles. If he's been counting down the days before he can get her into bed, he's doing a fantastic job hiding it. "Today marks sixty days."

He shakes his head. "No, we still have over two weeks to go."

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