Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 122550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
“I guess this means you owe me another dinner.”
“But I can’t cook!” she wailed.
Did his lips just twitch? She was sure they had.
“Probably something you should have thought about before you tried to cook.”
She sighed. “I should have ordered some dinner or had Mrs. Yards come over and help me.”
“Who is that?”
“My neighbor across the street. She tried to talk me through making the cheese sauce.”
He winced. “Was that what was on the stove-top?”
“Yeah. It was meant to be.” She shook her head. “Rest in peace, roast lamb and cheese sauce.”
“How about next time I just bring dinner with me?”
“But that’s basically what you did tonight! I’m supposed to be thanking you. So next time, I’m buying dinner. In fact, we could go out to dinner.”
She never went out to dinner. She’d never mastered the art of eating alone in a public place.
Plus, for the last six months, she hadn’t been able to afford to go out. She’d used her entire weekly food budget for the next week to buy dinner tonight.
She’d hoped there would be leftovers, but she guessed it was ramen noodles for the rest of the week.
He shook his head. “Sorry, sweetheart. I can’t let you do that.”
Oh. Because he didn’t want to be seen in public with her? Fair enough.
“If we’re out together, I pay. If we’re eating takeout, I pay. Just like I open doors, carry heavy things, and walk on the side of the footpath closest to the street.”
She blinked at him. She had no idea what to say to that. “Why?”
“Why?” He raised an eyebrow as though unsure why she was asking. “Because I’m a man.”
She waited for the rest of the explanation. “And?”
“I’m a man who doesn’t let a woman pay for things for him. If I’m out with a woman, she’s under my protection. Therefore, she listens to me when it comes to matters of safety. And she allows me to do what I need to do to ensure her safety.”
Wow.
“That’s what being a man means to you?”
“It’s part of it, yes. That is what I need.” It was said simply. As though that was normal.
It wasn’t.
Well, not in her experience.
He liked to keep those around him safe. Jilly had never experienced having someone protect her like that. It sounded . . . amazing. Not that she’d probably ever be out with him to experience that.
She couldn’t ask him out now that she knew he’d insist on paying. It would be like all she wanted was a free meal out of him.
But still . . . there was one problem.
“Then how am I going to say thank you?”
He leaned forward. “By saying ‘thank you.’”
Oh. Yeah. She should have thought of that. But maybe a part of her had hoped that by cooking him dinner tonight, he’d spend some time with her, and you know . . . fall in love?
That wasn’t too much to hope for, right?
No chance of that now.
Actually, there had never been a chance. She’d just been living in la-la land, as usual.
“Thank you,” she said quietly. “For everything.”
“You are welcome. Is there anything else you need to tell me?”
Like what? That she wanted to strip him off and lick every inch of him before sucking him off until he came?
Yeah. There was no way she was telling him that.
“I don’t think so.”
There was a strange look on his face. As though there was something he wanted her to tell him.
But she couldn’t imagine what.
“Everything went okay at work this week? You said your boss kept you back the other night.”
Oh. So that’s what he wanted to know? That was kind of him. She was shocked he’d even remembered.
“Everything is fine. Margaret is just a pain in the butt. But I know how to handle her.”
Mostly by ignoring her and her feelings about her job. Which were rapidly growing dark. Jilly knew she wasn’t happy. But she also knew that she needed this job.
Regent grunted, still not looking all that happy.
“All right. You know you can tell me anything.”
She could? Why would he want to offer that?
“Uh. Sure.”
“Now, where is your stepladder so we can replace these batteries?”
Oh.
“I can do that.”
His gaze narrowed. “That’s not happening. Tell me where the stepladder is. I’ll replace the batteries while you get ready for bed.”
Would you like to join me?
Thank God she didn’t blurt that out. That would’ve been embarrassing.
“You look flushed again. You’re not coming down with anything, are you?”
He asked her that a lot.
Probably because you blush a lot.
Stupid, sexy thoughts.
“No. Nope. I’m fine.”
He gave her a skeptical look before placing a hand over her forehead.
She nearly sighed at the touch. Here he was, trying to feel whether she had a fever and she was melting with arousal.
Idiot.
“Temperature feels all right.” He removed his hand. “Where’s the stepladder?”
Jilly took him to where it was and he drew it out. Was he really going to change the batteries in her smoke alarms himself?