“Nah, I got this. Go ahead,” Kreed said over his shoulder, turning the bacon.
“I’ll do the dishes.” Aaron was beside him, offering him a cup of coffee.
“I don’t mind doing the dishes. I need to wash some clothes today. Anything you need washed, bring it out. I’ll get it started.” Kreed took the offered coffee and brought it to his lips for a long drink. “Thanks, I needed that.”
“No one I know likes cleaning,” Aaron replied, resting a hip against the counter close to Kreed as he took a drink from his mug.
Kreed eyed him as he reached over and began breaking the eggs into a bowl. He didn’t know what it was about this guy, but damn, the kid just drew Kreed in. Absently tossing an egg shell in the sink, Kreed moved, leaning in to kiss Aaron quickly on the lips.
“I’ve been on my own for the last twenty years. I don’t mind doing this. I like to cook, and that requires cleaning afterward,” he said and went back to turning the bacon.
“Yeah, I don’t feel that way at all. I’ll take you up on the laundry.” Aaron left the coffee cup on the counter before leaving him standing there and disappearing from the kitchen. The kid was back by the time the eggs were poured into the skillet with a laundry basket half full of dirty clothes. He’d changed into a loose pair of gray workout shorts.
“Church boys wear lots of clothes,” Aaron teased, dropping the basket on the floor over in a corner of the living room.
“Wanna eat in here or do you need to go work?” Kreed asked, pulling two plates down from the cabinet.
“In here’s good. I sent a message to my team that I’ll be on in about an hour,” Aaron said, going for the drawer that held the silverware.
“What team’s that?” Kreed asked absently, making two plates of food. Aaron seemed to have a group of people he worked with at the NSA, a group of gamer friends, then another group that…well, Kreed didn’t actually understand what they did.
“Just a small group that works together on some things when any of us needs help,” Aaron replied, setting the table. Kreed nodded. Made sense. Still incredibly vague. Admittedly, he wasn’t a techie by any stretch of the imagination, so he had no frame of reference to decipher what the words actually meant.
“Like what kind of things?” Kreed asked and reached for the coffee pot to refresh their cups.
“Nothing really important. Just stuff.” Okay, that was a complete non-answer, and Kreed stopped what he was doing, looked over his shoulder, and waited for an explanation of what ‘just stuff’ really entailed. His chatty partner of the last twelve hours had clammed up. Apparently he’d run up against a topic Aaron didn’t discuss. After last night, Kreed learned that was a short list. Aaron didn’t discuss his family or much about his personal life in general and, now, his online community. Since Kreed had his own list of non-negotiable discussion topics, he let it go.
Kreed refilled their cups then put both plates on the table in their usual spots across from one another. Looking down at the distance between the place settings and still riding high on what had to be some of the best sex he’d ever had and the pleasant mood he still carried from last night, Kreed moved his plate to Aaron’s side of the table. He caught the pleasant hint of surprise on Aaron’s face as he went to grab the OJ from the refrigerator.
“My original plan was to make you breakfast in bed,” Kreed confessed, moving closer to Aaron, running a hand down that still-bare chest, grinning at the blush of embarrassment skating across Aaron’s cheeks. “I really enjoyed last night.”
“Me too. I’m a light sleeper most of the time,” Aaron said. Their food was getting cold, but Kreed enjoyed being in Aaron’s personal space, breathing the kid in.
“Not that light of a sleeper,” Kreed teased, remembering how deeply Aaron slept while wrapped around his body. He’d never slept so near anyone in his life, and he liked the intimacy and closeness of that act. A blush flamed across Aaron’s handsome face at Kreed’s words. He grinned again as Aaron ducked away and moved toward his seat.
“Wait. We didn’t cover this last night. Do you have somebody at home?” Kreed asked when jealousy spiked through him at the unexpected thought. It made sense to ask. Aaron had slept so hard in his arms, like a man accustomed to being held. Shit! How had he never thought to ask that question before now, especially after all the possible relationship planning he’d been doing this morning? Maybe that was why Aaron didn’t talk about his personal life.
“No, not at all. Do you?” Aaron asked, infusing those last words with the same defensiveness he suspected had been in his own question.
“No. I’m single.” The surge of tense jealousy then overwhelming relief was a heady mixture. Kreed moved to his seat next to Aaron and his cocky grin slid in place. He liked the confirmation of Aaron’s possessiveness he’d heard in that tone, because he sure as hell felt it too. “Remember, lived alone for twenty years.”
That seemed to settle things. “Good, I don’t need anyone that might look like you gunning for me.”
That had Kreed barking out a laugh. He grabbed the kid’s head, and pulled Aaron in again, kissing his lips as he picked up his fork to eat. The move clearly surprised Aaron as much as it did him, but Kreed let that go. Whatever. This whole deal had amazed him since the very beginning. He promised himself one day with this guy was what he needed to get all this out of his system then it would be back to business as usual until the case ended. It had to be that way. He waited before taking a bite, watching as the napkin went to Aaron’s lap. For some reason, he loved the little moves that telegraphed Aaron’s exquisite manners. He dropped his napkin to his lap too.