Page 101 of Stains of Desire
"No," she cries out.
He holds up his hands. "Okay. You don't have to."
I give her a sympathetic glance.
"Sorry," she quietly says.
"No worries," Andre assures her.
"What were you making?" Naomi asks and picks up the pot.
"Tamales. Dirk likes them," I tease, trying to take her mind off her wound.
Zoe rolls her eyes. "I was just trying to be nice and show him what real food tastes like."
Naomi picks up a towel and mops the water off the floor.
"Tell me your recipe, and I'll make them."
"Okay." Zoe sniffles.
The four of us make the food and put it in the oven to stay warm. The guys arrive back several hours later.
Axel nods at me and goes straight to the sink and washes his hands.
"Everything taken care of?" Andre asks.
Tinker nods. "Done."
"Thanks."
Axel takes the chair next to me. Just being near him recreates the buzz of energy I always feel with him. And I want him to possessively touch me as he usually would. My hand, my leg, my shoulder...anything to acknowledge I'm his.
But he doesn't.
"What happened to your arm?" Dirk sits next to Zoe and puts his hand on her back.
"I burned it when the earthquake happened."
He pulls her closer. "Does it hurt?"
"I'll be fine. I can handle it."
"She didn't want to take any pain meds," Andre says.
Worry fills Dirk's face, but he doesn't seem confused about why she won't take the pills. He doesn't suggest she take it, either. It leads me to believe he knows about her past issues with cocaine.
There's no way she told him if something isn't happening between them.
Dirk strokes her shoulder, and she looks at her thighs. "I have numbing cream in my bag. Come upstairs, Zoe. I need to clean up and then I can put it on."
"Okay."
They leave, and the doorbell rings.
"That should be your passports," Tinker says.
"Already?" Andre asks.
