Don’t get used to it, her subconscious taunted, and she quickly squashed the thought before it could depress her.
She handed him one of the plates and took a slice of the pizza. “Why is it that I’m always eating when I’m around you?”
“I’m just contributing to those extra pounds you need to gain,” he said, reminding her of their conversation this morning and where he preferred those curves—her hips and butt. “And I figured you hadn’t had anything for lunch, so this should hold us through the night so we don’t have to worry about dinner.”
She was so used to not eating on a regular schedule that skipping meals happened all the time. “I’ll definitely have a full belly when I go to work tonight,” she said happily.
He looked at her for a long moment as if he wanted to say something, but instead he glanced away and served himself a few pieces of the savory pie. They both leaned against the counter near one another, content to eat their pizza right there in the kitchen.
After a few bites, she broke the easy silence that had settled between them. “Did you get all your errands done?”
“Yes.” He held his plate with one hand and reached into the front pocket of his jeans with the other. Withdrawing a small wad of bills, he handed it to her. “This is yours.”
Tentatively, she took the money, completely confused. “Mine?” She shook her head and frowned, trying to wrap her mind around how he could have gotten the stolen money back. “Where did you get it?”
“It’s not the money that was missing from your room,” he said, dispelling that notion. “But I did stop by the motel’s office to report the break-in and get you a refund on the rest of your week’s payment since you’re not staying there any longer.”
She stared at him in disbelief. “I’m shocked they gave it back to you.”
He shrugged, as if it weren’t a big deal. “The guy needed a little motivation to hand over the cash, and I gave it to him.”
Setting the money aside, she grinned in amusement, certain she knew what the motivating factor had been. “You flashed your badge and played the big, bad cop, didn’t you?”
He chuckled unapologetically. “I might have.”
“Well, thank you,” she said sincerely. “I appreciate it.” It wasn’t much money in the scheme of things, certainly not as much as had been stolen, but every dollar made a difference to her and her future.
They finished their pizza, and even though she got the impression that other things were on Levi’s mind based on his contemplative expression, he didn’t share whatever had him distracted. She helped him wrap up the leftovers in tin foil and put them in the refrigerator. While he took the cardboard box outside to the trash, she set their plates in the dishwasher and wiped down the area, enjoying the domestic chores.
The plastic sack he’d brought in with him earlier was at the far end of the counter, and she grabbed the bag and reached inside to put away whatever he’d bought. She pulled out a black box of Magnum condoms just as she heard Levi walk back into the kitchen.
She glanced up at him with wide eyes and he gave her a sexy grin.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, humor lacing his tone as he approached her. “Too presumptuous of me?”
After what had happened this morning between them—in bed and in the shower, she didn’t blame him for purchasing the protection. With her staying here under the same roof as him, they both knew that sex was inevitable.
But she raised a brow and couldn’t resist teasing him a bit. “Presumptuous because you bought the condoms or because you got the Magnum size?”
His laugh was low and wicked as he pinned her against the counter purposefully, his eyes blazing with heat and desire as he looked down at her parted lips. “Sweetheart, you had your hand wrapped around my hard dick this morning, and as much of it as you could handle in your mouth. Maybe you need a reminder of what you’re dealing with?”
The question was more like a salacious dare, and her body responded with a rush of moisture between her thighs. “Yeah, maybe I do.”
He dipped his head so his warm breath touched the shell of her ear. “Then let’s get you reacquainted with the length and width of my dick so there’s no doubt in your mind about the size.”
Grabbing her hand, he pressed her palm against the fly of his jeans and curled her fingers around the substantial erection already forming. “And since your hand and mouth are having a hard time remembering the exact dimensions of my cock, let’s see how it measures up in your tight pussy.”
Oh, God. The man’s mouth was so filthy, his words so obscene, and it made her hot and wet as hell. She wanted everything he was offering, except the timing couldn’t be more wrong. “We can’t,” she managed, her disappointment clear in her voice. “I have to leave for work soon.”
The lust in his gaze cooled a few degrees, enough for her to see the uncompromising glint in his eyes as he looked directly into hers. “You’re not going in tonight.”
She stiffened against him. What the heck was he talking about? “Of course I am.”
“No, you’re not,” he reiterated, his expression unflinching. “I made a call to the store manager and told him that you quit.”
She gasped, shock rendering her momentarily speechless as she absorbed what he’d just said. She knew he hated where she worked, but she couldn’t believe he’d do something so rash that directly affected her livelihood. “Levi, I need that job.” Panic immediately settled in, and she tried to move away from him.
He grasped her hips, keeping her right where she was. “Calm down, sweetheart,” he said in a placating tone. “I promise, you have a job. A new one where you’ll be safe and you don’t have to worry about some prick pointing a gun at your head again. You’ll even make more money than you do at the store.”