Page 41 of Wren's Winter

Wren

Asnuffling sound woke me as the winter sun filtered odd through the window. I opened one eye to see a small caramel fur face inches from mine. Scrambling into a seated position, the dog sat in her spot between me and Adrian. Her head cocked to the side, she glared at me with an expression of, What’s your damage, lady?

From the other side of the bed, Adrian slept hard. The white down comforter partially covered his strong lean body. Blinking the sleep from my eyes, I admire the long lines of him, the way his muscled back led down to a shapely ass. The way that ass held firm under my hands the night before as he thrust inside me. One hand was clutching the pillow under his head, the other lazily draped over my legs. His sleeping face lax, he seemed younger than he was at twenty-eight, twenty-nine? Dear Lord, I wasn’t even sure I knew his age. Why did I think I could have a fling? Yes, the night before was amazing. Mind-numbing, out of this world, flatten me like a pancake and then give me more, phenomenal. But in the white-and-green light of the morning, all these emotions were mixing around in me. Was this powerful lust and nothing more? Or was something else happening?

Quietly, I moved out of bed, grabbing one of Adrian’s discarded shirts off the floor and pulling it on, where it fell to my mid-thigh. That was enough to be decent for a trip downstairs. Tiptoeing down, Maizie followed behind me, her little nails clicking on the hardwood floor.

After a quick freshening up, I saw the towels in his bathroom needed to be refreshed, so I poked around until I found the linen closet. I figured he probably needed the towels washed, so I started a load for him. I picked up the discarded bag off the floor. Then the blankets needed to be folded, so I did that. I saw a few dishes in the sink, so I loaded the dishwasher.

Once I returned the house to a more organized state, I settled on the couch, tucking my knees to my chest. I glanced at my phone, registering today’s affirmation, I use my morning to set goals that bring me closer to achieving my boldest dreams. Easy for Autumn to say.

Maizie jumped up beside me, her butt wedging between me and the back of the couch. My hand drifted down to her back, petting her while I tried to process my emotions.

This was all getting too complicated. In the countless times I had sex with someone before, I never experienced a moment like last night. With both our eyes open, as we joined together, something shifted inside me. It was one thing to sleep with a man, but the way his eyes softened at me. The sensation of him and I had together was wholly new. How could this man I barely knew make me feel this way? I meant what I said the night before. I was with another man for years, and never had he touched me the way Adrian did.

Shaking my head as if I could dislodge the thought, I focused on what the day would bring. He said he wanted to take me somewhere today. I should do what I said I wanted, focus on having fun, and not think about what the future would hold.

The unknown consumed me. In forty-eight hours, I’d be leaving. This wasn’t my home. So, why did I feel so comfortable in his bed? It was a selfish and foolish thing to lie beside Adrian and wish for more. What would happen if I stayed longer?

The floorboard creaked above me, and both Maizie and I glanced over to the stairs to see a shirtless Adrian walk down. Pausing at the foot of the stairs, he ran a hand over his unshaven face. “Hey, ladies.”

Maizie sat up straight, her tail wagging as she looked over at her owner. Sauntering over, he leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to my lips before giving the dog a scratch behind her ears.

“I thought we were doing crepes in bed?” he asked.

“You were sleeping so peacefully. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

He frowned at this but didn’t argue. “Let me get you some coffee. Lots of creamer, right?”

I nodded, turning my body on the couch to watch him work in the kitchen. Skillfully, he moved around the room, multitasking breakfast and getting me coffee with ease. As he set the spoon in the sink, he frowned. “Did you wash my dishes for me?”

Heat bloomed over my face. “I put a few things in the dishwasher. I hope that’s okay.”

With his thumbnail, he scratched at his jaw. “You really don’t need to do that for me. You know I can do my own dishes.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have overstepped.”

Darkness clouded his eyes. “You don’t need to be sorry, but I want to be clear here. I can do all those things for myself. I never want you to feel like you have to take care of me, okay?”

“I did it to be nice.”

“I see that. But I can and will take care of myself and you, if you’d let me.”

Until he said those words, I hadn’t realized how much I had fallen into the role of taking care of a man. With Buck, it was assumed I would be cleaning up after us. I was the dishwasher, the laundress, the cleaner. He always said I did it better, that I knew where things went, that it was easier without him in the way to do it wrong.

“I guess it’s a habit,” I confessed. Tucking my knees closer to my chest, I watched my hand as I pet the back of Maizie’s fur.

“I’m not saying I don’t appreciate it because I do. But don’t do all this because you think I expect it from you. I don’t.”

What do you expect from me?

No, I couldn’t ask that. “It’s no big deal.” I gave him a smile that, hopefully, reached my eyes.

“Come over here.” He motioned me over. Untangling myself from the couch, I set the dog to the side, where she blinked at me, slightly offended by the desertion.

Joining him in the kitchen, he took the half drank coffee from my hands, setting it down on the island behind me.

Running a hand down my arm, he cocked his head to the side. “I could get used to having you here in the mornings.”

---