Page 54 of Park Avenue Princess

Chapter 15

Guy

Falling asleep with Lynne in my arms turned a horrific day into a fantastic night. As much as I wanted our bodies joined, our passion last night was still phenomenal. Rediscovering her body, resurrecting that fire between us is only the beginning if I have my say.

As morning breaks, I don’t want to emerge from our cocoon. I want to keep her sheltered from what I know will be difficult tasks ahead. For both of us, actually. Our fathers will have to answer for their crimes and our mothers will also pay the price with devastation.

My mind is still having a hard time wrapping around what we’ve uncovered. And what we have yet to do. But it has to end.

While Lynne continues to purr, snuggled beneath the covers, I carefully move away from her side. Her not even stirring is a testament to her fatigue, and I wish I could accomplish what needs to be done without her; if only to spare her from more heartache.

Since my clothes lay rumpled on the bathroom floor, I wrap a towel around my waist and drape my clothes across a chair in Lynne’s room. Not that the wrinkles are going to mysteriously work themselves out, but, maybe. Padding out into the hallway, I turn toward the kitchen, intent on rustling up some coffee and breakfast for the two of us. But first, I grab my phone out of my jacket pocket and check for anything pertinent. When nothing grabs my attention, I lay it down on the counter, notice the pod coffee maker, and begin to rummage through the cabinets for pods and mugs. Once I’ve found what I want and get the first cup going, I notice the pizza box we’d quickly forgotten upon our arrival last night.

“Well, I did say cold pizza isn’t bad for breakfast.” I chuckle while still looking through her refrigerator, seeing if maybe there’s a better option. Hitting the jackpot with the makings for a killer omelet, I place a pan on the stove to preheat while I begin cracking eggs into a bowl. The first cup of java is ready, so I doctor it with a touch of creamer and take a sip, the warm elixir giving me an instant jolt. I get the machine ready for the second cup and resume my task of whipping the eggs. After I’ve set out all the ingredients and the pan is hot, I pour in the eggs then hunt for a bread item to go with the omelets. I pull what looks like artisan sourdough out of the pantry and place the loaf by a toaster. Just as I flip the eggs, I notice movement, and when I look up, Lynne is leaning against the door jam. Her body is wrapped in a silky robe and a smile is plastered on her beautiful face. Her tousled hair hangs past her shoulders and she looks well-rested.

“Wow. And he cooks,” she teases as she makes her way to my side. She looks in the pan then to the coffee that just finished brewing and gives me another megawatt smile. “This is wonderful. Thank you.” She leans in to kiss me and I gladly give her a good smooch.

“You’re absolutely welcome. Omelets and toast, coming right up.” I nod to the coffee maker. “That’s for you.”

When she doesn’t move from my side, I catch her eying me up and down, smirking at my choice of attire for the morning. I shrug. “It was this or go naked.”

“I’m not opposed to a naked chef in my kitchen.” She moves toward the coffee and throws out, “As long as it’s you every morning.”

I laugh. I’m almost tempted to whip off the towel and parade around in the nude, but that would no doubt cause a distraction we can’t afford today. While I wouldn’t mind morning sex with Lynne, I think last night was an excellent start for us. And considering how much we need to take care of in only a few days, we’ll need every moment we can get.

But the nights… that’s another story if I have my way.

“How about every night?” I ask.

Lynne sets down the coffee mug and smiles. “I’m not opposed to that either.”

We smile at one another and continue our dance around the kitchen with me finishing the omelets and her toasting the bread. Once we sit down to eat, Lynne suddenly jumps up and makes her way toward the door.

“I forgot my phone in my coat last night. I wonder if it’ll even power on.” She disappears for a moment and returns with her phone in her hand, a frown on her face. “Dammit, I bet I need a new one.”

“I’m sorry about that.”

She looks up at me. “Not your fault. I should’ve been more attentive to what I was doing. Just as well. I’ve really needed to upgrade and this gives me a reason to finally do it.” Setting her phone down, she resumes her seat next to me at the counter and we dig in.

“Oh,gawd, this is delicious,” she moans after a bite. “You can definitely make yourself at home in my kitchen any time.”

I simply smile, knowing the conversation I want to have with her will have to wait. Yes, I was completely serious when I told her I’m ready to jump right back in. I’m ready to take that next step and talk about living together. Too soon? Hell, no. I don’t want to waste another day not having her in my life.

“You’re pretty quiet.” Lynne breaks into my thoughts. “Everything okay? Well, considering…”

“Yeah, considering. I’m still processing what we’ve learned and what needs to be done.”

“Same. I wonder how my father’s conversation went with my mother, and if she’ll be up to talking with me today. Without my phone, I’m not sure if he’s already tried to reach me. Guess getting a new phone is my first priority.”

I reach over to grab my phone as she takes another bite. “Use mine to at least call him, tell him you’re getting another phone this morning.”

“Thank you.”

She watches me as I unlock my phone and my screensaver comes into view. I’d made it her photo, the same one I set as her profile picture. When she sees it, she whips her head up to look at me with surprise. I give her a sorry-not-sorry shrug as I explain.

“Uh, yeah, I couldn’t help but take this photo of you when—”

“When we hiked Diamondhead. It was a spectacular day.” She looks at the picture then at me again. “And you still kept it after all these years.”

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