My eyes fly open again before I can follow this train of thought. What am I going to do next? Picture her fully nude, with her panties down around her ankles, showing me that glistening sweetness? Fuck! With a low groan, I heave myself away from the door and drag myself over to my bed before collapsing, still fully dressed. I’m in deep shit already, and yet Hadley’s visit has just begun.
4
HADLEY
“Seems like you’re not so bad at housekeeping,” Uncle Frank growls, his lips twitching for a brief second before falling into a straight line again. I think that was his version of a smile, but I’m not sure because we just met this morning, so I don’t have much to go by.
I blush as I set a steaming tray of lasagna down in the center of the table while he takes a seat in his chair.
“It’s nothing,” I murmur. “Just a recipe I found online.”
But secretly, I hope my uncle likes it because I saw how exhausted he was when he came up the porch steps this morning. The man is godawful handsome, but it looked like he hadn’t gotten a single wink the entire night. His black hair stood on-end, and there were deep smile lines bracketing his mouth. Now, things are looking better. He got up after a few hours of rest, and then disappeared out onto the farm to take care of a number of chores.
“Renfrew Acres won’t run itself,” he said with a half-smile before clomping down the porch steps. But now, he’s back for dinner and I’m shaken by how handsome and manly my uncle looks. Frank was adopted by my grandparents, so I know there’s no biological connection, but still, he’s my uncle and I shouldn’t notice these things.
Still, what woman can ignore the huge, solid build with wide shoulders, a massive chest, and thick thighs? His black hair is combed back neatly now, and he’s since showered and changed into a plaid shirt. A male musk drifts from his form, smelling woody, piney, and very masculine all at once. But I shouldn’t be noticing, and a blush covers my cheeks as I turn away to reach for the potatoes.
After all, what am I doing? Can you be arrested for having these illicit thoughts about a member of your own family? Yet, I can’t help imagine what it must be like beneath this bear of a man. Would he crush a woman into the mattress with his superior weight? Would he be rough, tender, or both all at once? My gaze slips to the bulge at his crotch, and it’s big. I’ve been with a lot of men, so I can eyeball these things, and oh god, he’s packing for sure.
But now, it’s time for dinner and I put a lid on my thoughts.
“I hope you like three-cheese lasagna,” I murmur while standing to put a large slice onto Frank’s plate. “I found some oregano and parsley too, so I added that even though it wasn’t in the recipe.”
He nods, savoring the aroma of tangy tomato.
“It smells amazing, Hadley,” he growls. “I’m sure this will hit the spot.”
I beam and smile because oddly, I’ve been productive since arriving in Parson. After Frank locked himself in his room for a nap, I unpacked my things. But that only took about twenty minutes, so after that, I was at a loss. But I didn’t want to be bored either, so I busied myself with doing chores. Who would have thought? Hadley Renfrew actually did laundry voluntarily, in addition to dishes, sweeping, and dusting. Then, after Frank left the house, I decided to make dinner, and the meal preparation was strangely comforting, not to mention very productive. I guess there was a domestic goddess inside, just waiting to make an appearance.
But now, we eat in silence for a few minutes. I don’t have much of an appetite, but the lasagne is good, and Frank certainly seems to be enjoying it. He’s scarfing down the food like there’s no tomorrow, and then he wipes his mouth and looks at me.
“So tell me. What did you get up to today?”
The simple question causes my heart to thud in my chest, and my cheeks tint pink as I smile shyly.
“I just tried to keep busy the best I could. You know, I’m so used to the va-va-voom life of Manhattan that at first, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. There’s no SoulCycle or yoga class around here,” I jest.
Frank nods ruefully.
“That, there is not,” he agrees.
“But I don’t mind,” I add quickly. “I cleaned up a bit, and reorganized a few things. I hope you don’t mind that I changed where the pots and pans are stored.”
Frank looks a little surprised.
“You did?”
I nod.
“Yeah, it’s too hard to reach them on the top shelf, so I put them in the cabinet below the counter next to the sink. That’s the only way a girl like me can get easy access,” I explain. “But I’m not trying to overstep or anything,” I babble quickly. “This is your house, of course, and they should go wherever you think is appropriate. In fact, I can put them back if you want.”