Oh. “Well, how about this? My pajama bottoms have Abe’s favorite cartoon character all over them.” Now that was personal. And embarrassing.
Her knife slipped. Luckily onto the cutting board and not her finger. Other than that, Lillie didn’t miss a beat. Sliding the steak into the salad bowl, she mixed the ingredients one more time and, with a professional-looking flip, tossed in the salad dressing. Pulling a half loaf of presliced French bread from the toaster oven, she carried everything over to the table, set out a couple of plates, added silverware and napkins, grabbed a couple of bottles of water and sat down at the table.
“Sit,” she said, indicating the seat across from her—not the one that was perpendicular and might result in their knees bumping. “Eat.”
Jon sat.
But if she thought he was just going to eat, that the conversation was over, she was wrong.
He needed answers.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
SHE COULDN’T STOP thinking about his pajama bottoms. Who was the character?
The thoughts brought another X-rated image to her mind—Jon’s oh-so-manly part pushing at the front fly of thin
cotton pants....
And the knot in her stomach wasn’t leaving a lot of room for her dinner.
Both hands resting on the table on either side of his untouched bowl, Jon said, “I’m sorry that it embarrasses you, but I either need to know what’s going on or I need to get the hell out of Dodge.”
Pushing her salad bowl away, Lillie longed for a glass of the pinot grigio in her fridge.
Get the hell out of Dodge. Jon was a man’s man. No one had ever talked to her like that before.
And it turned her on.
Putting her napkin on her lap, she faced her guest. “I’ll tell you what embarrasses me, but I want your word that it won’t change anything. I still get to help you with Abe.”
“I still get your invaluable assistance with my son’s adjustment issues,” Jon said, nodding.
“And I get my backsplash.”
“We’ve already purchased the tile.” Jon would pick it up in the next day or two.
“So I have your word?”
“Yeah.”
Butterflies swarmed in her stomach. She couldn’t do it. “How can you give me your word when you don’t even know what I’m going to say?”
“Because I know myself. Whatever is going on, as long as you want to help me with my son, I will do whatever it takes to see that Abraham gets the benefit of your services.”
“That kiss was not your fault,” Lillie blurted.
He sat back, his delicious maleness filling her chair. Her kitchen.
“I take full responsibility,” she managed to get out with a fair amount of professional distance.
Crossing his arms, Jon cocked his head. “I kissed you. How can you take responsibility for that?”
Was he laughing at her? His face was straight. Lillie didn’t get flustered anymore. Not since she’d first found out Kirk was having an affair. But she wasn’t entirely sure she could trust herself here.
“I...subconsciously asked for it.”
He tilted his head slightly and studied her. Lillie swore she glimpsed a certain...satisfied?...glint in his eyes.