Page 98 of Guilty Minds
And stand shocked. My apartment is clean, like spotless clean. I look around and don't recognize my place: there are no more food boxes or cans lying on every surface, no more trash, my cushions are neatly placed on the couch, dishes are done, and the counter is sparkly.
“Hey.” My voice is rough.
She jumps, startled, and turns around. “Oh, hey.”
“Expected someone else?” I smirk.
“No,” she laughs nervously, “just didn’t expect you to wake up so early.”
“It’s eleven.” I deadpan.
“I saw you around town looking for coffee at ungodly hours before.” She rolls her eyes with a hidden smile.
"Yeah, with insomnia, you never know when it hits and when you will wake up." I scratch the scruff on my chin. I probably need to shave. “Why are you up so early?”
"I'm used to waking up early. The diner opens up at six-thirty." That’s right. Normal people have normal patterns.
"You cleaned." Somehow, it sounds like I'm accusing her, and her cheeks turn pink.
"I didn't mean anything by that. I mean, your place is nice."
“My place is a shithole that needed a good cleaning. Thanks for the help here.” I go and kiss her cheek. Her lips form a cute ‘O’.
“Welcome.” She squeaks.
"You didn't have to do that, though."
"Who would do that, though?" Her eyes narrow.
"Touché." I laugh and go to the coffee machine, where a full pot of fresh brew is waiting for me. Did I wake up in heaven?
“Want some breakfast?” She offers, pointing at the stove.
"That would be amazing." I take a seat at the table with my coffee and relax. "You look good this morning. Though limping a little. Why is that?" I don't want to sound smug, but I can't help myself. Last night was off the charts, and Kayla woke something I never thought I had in me.
“Awfully full of yourself, I see.” She narrows her eyes at me, but there is no anger in them, only a twinkle of good humor.
I lean back in the chair. “Well, I’m kind of responsible for that, I guess." But there is no remorse in my voice, only the pleasure of knowing she'll be walking around the whole day, remembering me with every step she takes. Then I stop smiling, reminding myself that Kayla doesn't have much experience, even if she could have fooled me. “Are you really that sore?”
“Yeah.”
I wince. “Fuck, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.”
“You did.” She laughs. So carefree and loud. Just like she did with the fuckface. Like she had never done with me before. Like I’mherpeople. Her face changes; it looks brighter, her eyes sparkle like diamonds in the sun, I swear, and I’m about to spontaneously produce some poetry. “You totally did, especially because of that last time when I was trying to crawl away, but you pulled me back into that never-ending marathon." Fuck, how do I explain to her that my dick has been on hiatus for months, and now it's regaining its appetite for only her, and she's the only one who can feed the fucker.
“Alright, I did mean it, but I didn’t want you to be sore today.” I totally did. She needs to know who was between her legs all night. Me. Only me. But I also hate to see her wincing in pain every time she walks.
"It's a good kind of sore." Her cheeks pinken, her lips turn into a cute bow, and I find myself smiling like a fool.
“Oh, yeah?” I lean my elbow on the table. “How good?”
“Very good.” Her cheeks turn bright red. “Now shut up and eat.” She places one plate in front of me and the other in front of the chair across from me. I grab it and move it next to mine. She watches and carefully sits at the newly assigned place. I casually put my hand on her thigh like it’s the most natural thing in the world and grab my fork with the other.
She stills for a moment, then grabs her own utensils and digs into her food. My plate is overflowing with home fries, bacon, and eggs. I didn't even know I had anything even remotely potato-looking.
“You have a weird obsession with apples. You have all sorts of them, and they take up half of the fridge.”
I chuckle at that. Alex was always busting on me ever since we were kids, telling me that I would turn into a rabbit with my next apple. "I love them; what can I say," I say with a full mouth of food. "What are you doing today?"
