The Contract (The Contract 1)

Her smile was brilliant. “Okay.”

I flopped back on the bed.

What the hell was I doing? That was twice today I had wanted to fuck her thoroughly—the woman I once wanted out of my life. Now, she was all around me. In every aspect of my life. In my bed.

The strangest part? I didn’t mind any of it.“Katharine, syrup is a condiment. Not a food group.”

She looked up from her plate, already shaking her head. “Each hole needs to be filled with syrup, Richard. It’s a rule.”

I snorted as I lifted my mug to my mouth. “You’re drowning the waffle. There’s more syrup than food on your plate.”

“It’s better like this.”

I groaned. “And you add bacon?”

She hummed around her mouthful. “Perfect.”

Jenna chuckled as she cut into her breakfast. “Not a syrup fan, Richard?”

“I added a reasonable amount. I want to taste the waffle, too.”

Katharine held out a forkful in my direction. “Try it.”

“No.”

“Please?”

I speared a piece of my far dryer waffle. “Then you try mine.”

We fed each other pieces of breakfast. Hers was dripping in syrup and butter, way sweeter than I was used to. I grimaced. “That is god-awful.”

She grinned. “Better than yours.” Looking down, she cursed. “Darn it, I got syrup on my shirt. Excuse me.”

She hurried out of the kitchen. I waited until she had disappeared and grabbed the bottle of syrup, adding more to my waffle.

Jenna giggled. “The two of you are so sweet. Have you never eaten waffles together?”

I had to think fast. “No, Katharine always made pancakes. I bought her the waffle iron for a wedding gift.”

Jenna gaped at me “You gave her a waffle iron for a wedding gift?”

“She wanted one!”

“Good Lord, Richard, you have a lot to learn about romance.”

“She got me.”

Jenna picked up her coffee mug. “Hmmph. Maybe the waffle iron was the better gift.”

I glared. “When are you going home?”

She smirked. “Adrian will be here soon.”

“Good.”

She pushed on my arm with a playful wink. “I interrupted your make-up session last night. Sorry. The thunder caught me off guard.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Of course not. Katharine is always that, ah, disheveled.”

I smirked. She had looked rather rumpled when she left the bedroom last night.

I winked at Jenna. “We have the rest of the day to make out. I mean up. Or both.”

She rolled her eyes, muttering about men and one-track minds.

I kept eating my now syrup-laden waffle.I came out of the den, looking for Katharine. Jenna had left mid-afternoon, and I had gotten busy with some work, then had a call from Graham. I heard noises down the hall and went to investigate. The door to the smallest bedroom was open. I used the room for storage now. At one time, it held a bed, and I used it for my female guests and the after dinner activities, since I didn’t ever take them upstairs. I had gotten rid of the bed when Katharine moved in—all that remained were boxes and files.

I leaned on the doorframe, watching her for a few moments, an indulgent smile tugging on my lips. “What are you doing?”

She indicated a few framed pictures. “You have some nice prints in here.”

“I wasn’t sure where to put those.”

“They’d look great in the front room.” She lifted some photographs from the box she’d been sorting. “These are lovely shots—shame to see them packed away.”

I held out my hand, and she placed the stack of photos in it.

I shuffled through the pictures, feeling somewhat embarrassed. “I took these.”

“You did?”

“Yeah. I went through a phase where I tried my hand at photography. It didn’t last long.” I handed them back to her. “I wasn’t any good.”

“I think they’re great.”

“Help yourself.”

“Do you have the negatives?”

I shook my head. “All digital. One of those boxes has my camera and all the SD cards inside.”

“Okay.”

“Listen, Graham called. He wants me to go with him out of town to see a client. I think he’s feeling guilty Adrian went the last two times.”

“When are you going?”

“Tomorrow.”

“How long?”

“That’s the thing. I’ll be gone until Thursday, which means I’ll miss Tuesday with Penny.”

She grinned impishly. “Not a problem—I can miss yoga. I’m not that good at it.”

“Tell her I’ll come see her Friday for lunch. I’ll bring her favorite cheeseburgers.”

“She’ll love that.”

“What will you do while I’m gone?”

“Work on the living room.”

“You have painters coming right? No ladders?” She did an amazing job in her room, but the living room was too big a job for her alone. The thought of Katharine on such a tall ladder made me nervous—especially if I was going to be out of town.

“I have professionals coming in, Richard. It’ll be finished in two days. You’ll miss all the fun.”

“What a shame.”

She stood up, brushing off her pants. “I’ll help you pack. I need to change the bedding and move my things back.”