Bare Skin (Skin Deep 5)

Chapter 12

Dani

I finished up feeding Kaden his bottle and burping him before moving the playpen a little bit closer to where I was sitting on the couch. I put him in it to play with his toys so I could eat, eager to taste everything I’d ordered.

What can I say? I’m a Chinese food whore.

I grabbed a pair of chopsticks that Calland had tossed down on the table, slipping them out of the wrapper and breaking them apart before pinching a bite from the carton and bringing it to my mouth.

I moaned again, loving the spicy, savory sauce with the juicy chicken, and the crunch of the cashews. I ate with gusto, alternating from the chicken to the potstickers and the wontons, enjoying every bite.

I knew Calland was watching me; his eyes didn’t seem to leave my face for one second, which meant he hadn’t eaten much of his own food, yet, but I was halfway done.

“Do I have something on my face?” I asked him, reaching for a napkin and wiping my mouth.

He shook his head and finally looked away from me to take a bite of his own food.

“Then why do you keep staring at me instead of eating?”

His answer took my breath away.

“Because watching you eat, when you slide those damn sticks out from between your lips, and then lick them…you make me so fucking hard that I can’t look away.”

“Whuh?” I sputtered, feeling my cheeks flush, even as I felt a rush of moisture flood my core.

“Sorry,” he muttered, tossing down his fork and throwing himself back against the couch cushions.

I turned toward him, my hand finding his thigh and resting on it lightly. “You just, uh, kind of caught me off guard. That was…an honest answer.” I was trying to be diplomatic about it, but at the same time, I wanted to kiss him.

He made me feel desired, a feeling I hadn’t had in a long while, which made it even harder to try to keep my distance from him. It was getting hard to do and, honestly, I didn’t know that I wanted to anymore.

He let out a short, harsh laugh, shaking his head. “I promised to be your friend, to hang out, to be on my best behavior. Maybe not in those exact words, but I’m fucking it up by-”

I laid my finger on his lips, interrupting his words. “Shhh. It’s okay. You’re not fucking anything up.”

Our eyes met and held, and I felt my pulse kick up a notch. And then…I felt myself leaning towards him, his eyes widening slightly as I got closer and closer, until my lips pressed against his softly.

I lingered for just a second before I retreated, moving back to my seat.

Calland sat there watching me, eyes hooded, but I didn’t give him a chance to say anything.

“Just eat, Calland.”

I proceeded to follow my own order, tucking into my food once more, glancing over at him as I took a bite.

He grinned at me, a lazy, slow grin. “Yes, ma’am,” he drawled. “I have no problem following your orders as long as you kiss me like that.” He reached for his food again, tucking back into it with renewed gusto.

I sighed and kept on eating, trying to pretend that that little press of his lips on mine hadn’t curled my toes and made me want to devour him, which is exactly what had happened the first time he kissed me. And the time after that…

***

We were done eating, the evidence of our meal was cleaned up, and Kaden had been given a bath, put in clean pajamas, and had had his bedtime bottle. He was currently asleep on Calland’s chest, and Calland was kicked back on the opposite end of the couch from me, feet propped up on the coffee table, remote in his hand as he flipped through channels.

I was curled up on the other end of the couch, pretending to watch T.V., but really I was watching him. Besides, who could watch T.V. when it was only snippets of shows flashing by at a steady pace?

“Do you ever just watch something?’ I asked, breaking the silence.

He turned his head to look at me, his thumb stilling on the remote. “Yeah, but there’s hardly anything ever on at,” he paused, looking at the clock on the cable box display, “almost ten at night.”

I started, sitting up straight as I realized that we’d probably overstayed our welcome. “Oh my God, Calland, I’m so sorry! I should have driven myself over here so you wouldn’t have to worry about it. I didn’t realize it was so late and I’m sure you have to work tomorrow.”

Calland didn’t move other than to wave a hand at me, brushing me off.

“Don’t wave me off! It’s late and I know you need to sleep so you’re good for work tomorrow, especially since you do…whatever it is you do. What do you do, anyway?”

My curiosity got the better of me, right in the middle of my little tirade.

He answered me, humor evident in his words. “I work construction. I’m a foreman for my brother-in-law’s company. Leah’s husband, Ian.”

“Ahh,” I said, nodding. Then I jumped back into my argument. “But seriously, you have to work tomorrow, so…I think we need to get back to the hotel, then you can come home and get some sleep.”

He didn’t move.

“Calland,” I implored, softly.

“Stay,” he answered, just as soft.

I opened my mouth to protest, but he spoke over me.

“You can sleep in the guest room, and we can move the playpen in there. I won’t bother you, I swear. I’ll take you back to the hotel in the morning, or you can just hang out here all day until I get off work.”

I shook my head no automatically, but he wouldn’t let me answer him.

“Dani. You said you wished you weren’t staying in a hotel. Here’s your chance.” He paused and then gave me a look that could only be described as puppy dog eyes.

It was so adorable. But still.