Page 80 of A Wife's Duty

“Wow,” Lucia said. “I came in right on time.”

She walked toward him.

“What are you cooking?”

“Steaks, potato salad, and grilled mushrooms with a cream sauce.”

“Sounds really good.”

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. “How do you like your steak?”

“Cooked.”

He chuckled. He was a cooked guy himself, no hint of rawness. Keeping it on the grill, it started to smoke, and before he turned it, he sprinkled a little more pepper.

“How did you learn to cook?” she asked.

He turned toward her, and then she held her hands up.

“You don’t have to tell me.”

He laughed. He didn’t have to tell her a damn thing, he knew that.

“I picked it up. My dad taught me.”

“Your dad?”

“Yeah, my dad.”

He expected her to start asking more questions, but she surprised him when she stayed silent.

“I wasn’t allowed to go into the kitchen. My dad always said the staff were paid to do jobs like that,” Lucia said.

“Did you want to learn to cook?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess. I mean, left back at the apartments, and even here, I gravitated toward the cooking channel, and I wanted to replicate all the foods.”

He laughed. “They make it look so easy, don’t they?”

“Yeah, they do, but I’m getting the hang of it.”

He looked toward her. She hadn’t put the sweater on, and the ink didn’t look great beneath the wrapping, but he knew it was going to look amazing.

“What?” Lucia asked.

“Nothing. Did you have fun today?”

“You know what, getting stuck by a little needle like what felt like a thousand times, it wasn’t too bad. It was pretty great.” She glanced down at her arm. “I just hope it is going to look great.”

“It will. I trust Cameron. The guy’s a perfectionist.”

“Yeah, and I don’t think you can get an eraser for the skin, can you?”

“You can. But Cameron wouldn’t be the one to do that.”

Lucia laughed. “I think it is time to feed Betty, don’t you?”

She moved past him, and Boone couldn’t help himself. He pulled her into his arms, then took possession of her lips. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for this woman.

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