Page 37 of Her Dom's Secret Past

“Whoa. Wait ’til I tell Justin.”

“What? Why?”

“When was the last time you had a man over to cook for?”

“Never,” I mumbled.

“Exactly. Girlfriend, you’ve got it bad.”

“Oh for goodness sake, Charlie, can’t a woman go on a date?”

“Yes, but you rarely go on dates and now you have a mysterious and, if I may say, extremely sexy hunk of male coming to dinner. You can’t expect me not to share it with the love of my life.”

“Go away. Go and change the window or something.”

“That’s right, send the gay guy to dress the window.”

He turned, waved a hand in the air, and, in averyexaggerated fashion, minced off. I loved him to bits, but sometimes he could be such a bitch.

I had no idea how I made it through the rest of the day. I did leave at four. That way I could buy something on the way home to cook tonight. Charlie was laughing at me as I left and I knew exactly what he was thinking. Anyway, I called in to the local supermarket and picked up two chicken breast quarters and some real maple syrup. I’d decided to make maple-roasted chicken. Although I was a Buddhist and a vegetarian most times, occasionally I did eat meat. The same as I indulged in a glass of wine every now and again. The chicken was easy to prepare, simple to cook, and tasted divine. Plus, I wouldn’t be slaving over the stove. A selection of root vegetables to cook at the same time in the same pan and some nice fresh green beans.Perfect.

For dessert, I’d make CrèmeBrûlée. I’d only have to caramelize the tops at the last minute.

As soon as I got home, I quickly made theBrûléeand peeled the vegetables. Once I’d browned the chicken, I popped the veggies on the bottom and seasoned them. I put the browned meat on top and glazed it liberally with the maple syrup and fresh thyme from my tiny window-sill herb garden. I’d put the chicken in the oven around six-fifteen, and that way the food should be ready by seven.

Organized, I had a shower, overjoyed that I faced the pain and had the laser treatments. Then I stood in my bedroom in my black lace undies, trying to decide what to wear. It was mid-July, wintertime, and rather cold lately. I’d set the air conditioning on low in case things got a little exciting.

That got me thinking again. John and I had done an awful lot of necking, but never actually gone the whole hog. His injuries had prevented him. Now I wondered if things might progress further tonight. Then I remembered he had something serious he needed to tell me.

My mind ran the gamut of emotions. What the hell could it be?

I stopped worrying and in the end I put on a pair of jeans and a button-through top, dabbed some perfume on my wrists, a little eyeshadow, and gave up on trying to tame my hair. My attire was neat without being too casual. Right.

Table next. I quickly laid the table and made sure I had some wine in the fridge. After I checked the clock, my heart did this drop to my toes then raced to my head before settling back where it belong—it was six-twenty. I put the chicken in to cook and then I raced to the bathroom and cleaned my teeth again. Nuts…

I lived in an apartment complex. My two-bedroom unit was on the second floor and I hoped his leg was up to the stairs. The doorbell downstairs went and I buzzed him in. A few moments later, there was a tap at my door. I took a huge breath, slapped a smile on my face, and opened the door.

A huge bunch of flowers greeted me, and then the man himself poked his head around them.

“Hello, beautiful lady, these are for you.”

“Oh thank you. Come in.”

After burying my head in the flowers and taking a deep breath, I looked up. I stood aside for John to enter and led him down the hall into the family room. When I discovered the flowers were already in a vase, I filled it with water and put them on the kitchen counter. My family room, breakfast nook, and kitchen were all one large open-planned room. John waited until I’d put the vase down and came to my side. He reached out and his hands settled in a frame around my face.

“You are very beautiful and I’ve honestly missed you.”

Then he leaned in and kissed me. Oh boy, had I missed those kisses. I closed my eyes and let the sensation of his lips pressing against mine take over. After a second—or maybe it was an hour, he released my mouth. Neither of us spoke, we stared at each other. Inside, I prayed whatever he had to tell me wouldn’t be bad. I wanted him, and not just for sex.

In the short time I’d known him, what I had discovered I truly liked. I’d fallen that deeply in love and it would be impossible to climb out even if I wanted to.

“Come sit down.”

I led him to a long settee and sat beside him.

“This is a nice apartment.”

“Thanks. I bought it a few years back. I’d really love to have a house with a big yard, but at least it’s all mine. One day I hope to get something I actually want to have, but this is handy to the business.”

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