Page 107 of Tattooed Sweetness

Because the presence of the concentrated load of masculinity that is entering my apartment right now has anything but a dampening effect on the hormone cocktail in my veins.

“Good morning.”

Alas, just the way he says it!Not to mention the way the syllables make the outline of his perfectly cut mouth do a seductive dance. “Morning!” Noticing for myself that the good humor in my voice sounds put-on, I clear my throat and point to theSenseoportion coffee maker. “Would you like a mug?”

“Oh, yes, please.” He smiles at me.

Does he have any idea he can drive women out of their minds by doing that?

Before he can say anything to me, I stand up, insert a coffee pod, and place a cup under the spout of the machine. Out of the corner of my eye, I watch as he sits astride a chair and pulls the newspaper over to him. To avoid drawing his attention to my eyes, which can’t get enough of the curve of his buttocks, I quickly bend down to the under-counter refrigerator of the small kitchen unit and take out the milk.

While the machine presses the coffee into the cup, the milk jug goes roundabout in the microwave. It only takes a few moments, then the milk is foamed and placed over the espresso, creating a pretty leaf pattern.

I take almost childlike pride in my work as I place the cup on the table in front of Philipp.

The look in his eyes hits me right in the stomach.How is it possible that this cool gray can radiate such sensual warmth?

Celine. Get ahold of yourself! Don’t be nuts!

“Thank you.” His gaze still doesn’t leave me out, continuing to fix me as he lifts the cup to his lips and sips from the cappuccino. “Perfect,” he says, setting it down and wiping away the froth. “I don’t know how I ever managed to get going in the morning before you brewed me your magic potion.”

Am I really going beet-red right now?I fear so. The heat in my cheeks is an unmistakable sign to me. Hopefully the foundation will cover the telltale marks nicely. “Well,” I remark as casually as possible and take a seat across from him. A sip of my now only lukewarm latte sobers me abruptly. “After all, before I was forced to move in here, you never had to get up this early…”

That gaze again of his. Coffee cup in his right hand, he slides the open newspaper page over to me with his left. “Is that why you’re apartment-hunting?”

I swallow, not answering.Is it my imagination, or does his voice sound reproachful? Disappointed?

“If you think you’re a burden to me…” Even though that’s certainly not possible, I mean, in a purely biological way, the light gray of his irises turns into an almost purple-tinted stormy sky. “That’s not the case. Definitely not.” Suddenly, his features soften. “I… am glad you live here. Kind, normal company…” He laughs, his teeth reflecting off the spotlights that illuminate the lounge area, which has been pared down to the bare essentials, but is cozy at the same time. “…amidst all the freaks.”

“You’re no freaks,” I contradict. I would have vehemently disagreed with this statement three quarters of a year ago, but fortunately I have proven myself capable of learning and have thrown overboard the silly prejudice I had against people with body modifications. I smile silently.I wasn’t even familiar with the term nine months ago.

“And what…” Philipp mirrors my smirk. “…amuses you this much?”

“That you call mekind,” I fib.

“What’s funny about that?” He tilts his head and purses his lips.

Oh my God! I could kiss him right now!Before I answer, I carefully close my eyes, lifting my lids only when I speak again. “Isn’tkindusually the polite euphemism for annoying?”

Philipp’s mouth twitches treacherously, and he hides it behind the coffee cup. He sips it before setting it down and crossing his arms behind his head. “Annoying?” The tip of his tongue slips out a bit, and he scans my face square inch by square inch.

“Crap.”Has he noticed that I’ve just been uninhibitedly ogling him? But… If he doesn’t want me to do that, he shouldn’t wear any tight-fitting T-shirts with extra-short sleeves that show off the play of his muscles under his almost fully tattooed skin.

Now he raises his eyebrows. “Did you really saycrap? I wouldn’t expect a well-bred young lady like you to say something like that!”

Young lady…I’m tempted to form a gun with the thumb, index and middle fingers of my right hand and just shoot him down for his insolence like I used to do to the annoying boys in my class. Instead, I push the sleeve of my blouse up a bit and deliberately look at my wristwatch.

Philipp immediately goes into alert mode. “Are we running late? Sorry…” He downs the rest of his coffee, stands up, and snatches his inevitable canvas jacket off the back of the seat he hung it on earlier. “We can take off for all I care.”

“Fine.” I grab my briefcase and already have stuck one arm in the sleeve of my short coat when I realize, irritated, that I can’t find the other sleeve hole… because Philipp is holding it up for me as gallantly as clumsily.Isn’t he insanely cute?After some back and forth, I finally get into it and devote my attention to buttoning it up. Not that he’ll subject me to his screening scan again.

The discreet emergency exit lights, mounted just above the slate-look vinyl tiles on the anthracite hallway walls, guide us through the otherwise dark building. We descend the open staircase into the spacious reception area. The bright white light of the LED streetlamps shines through the floor-to-ceiling glass front.

Outside, climbing into the passenger seat of Philipp’s gigantic truck presents me with a bit of a challenge, as it does every morning. The thing is made for people closer to my business partner’s height. I really long for the day when I can drive my dinkycarnoodleagain.

“Did your buddy actually call?” I ask as Philipp lets the Dodge roll out of the parking lot and onto the street.

“Which one?” As exemplary as ever, he lets a motorist roll up from the direction with right of way onto the narrowed bridge over the federal highway.

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