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I skimmed over the significant bulge at his groin. Heat hit my cheeks when I noted he was large everywhere, in every sense of the word.
My gaze slid upward to his trim waist, his untucked tank loose there, but I just knew ridged abs lay beneath it. Then my focus climbed the white-and-dove-gray rungs of his shirt to his thick neck.
Feeling a little light-headed from my journey thus far, I took in his bossy chin, stalling for far too long on his firm lips. My own buzzed as I remembered how his mouth felt moving over mine. His strong nose was next, then his eyes. Reaching them, I dove into the brown depths. They were warm pools, and so inviting.
“Have you eaten yet this morning?” he asked, his voice husky as if he were as affected by my leisurely scan of him as I was.
“I had some coffee.”
“Coffee isn’t breakfast.” That granite jaw of his firmed, though that shouldn’t have been possible.
“I’ll eat something later. At work.” I had a million questions, but I needed to escape and regroup.
“Anything else fill your days besides the gym and work?”
“Rachel’s back. She lives with me. Works with me. Her daughter goes to school at Southside High like we once did.”
“I knew about Rachel. It’s so sad about Daniel, but I’m pleased to receive more than one-word answers from you.” Barry’s lips quirked. “Progress. Finally, you’re opening up to me. If I feed you, I might be able to find out everything that happened while we were apart.”
I wouldn’t tell him everything. I hadn’t told anybody everything, except for Dr. Rhodes and then Teresa. I hadn’t told my sister. Not even my daughter. I didn’t feel like I could share certain details with her, even knowing she’d probably never read the journals.
“What were you thinking just now?” He wedged a finger under my chin and lifted it. His green woodsy scent washed over me. “You got still all of a sudden, and your eyes are sad.”
“Nothing,” I lied. “I wasn’t thinking anything in particular.”
“Not true.”
“How could you possibly know that? I mean ...”Shit.
“Don’t lie to me, Addy.” Barry was angry, but it was controlled. His hands moving to my arms, he gripped them, and his teeth clenched. “We’ve lost so much, the two of us, more than just time. Can we make a pact to be honest with each other, no matter what?”
“No,” I said firmly.
“Why not?”
“There needs to be trust for honesty.”
His fingers flexed on my skin. “That hurts.”
“It hurt when you left,” I said, giving him some honesty he probably didn’t want to hear.
“You told me to go.” His brows crashed together. “So I went.”
“I know,” I mumbled. “But I didn’t think you really would.” My lips trembled as I added, “You were always there for me.”
“I wanted to be there for you, but you wouldn’t let me. I allowed you to dictate most of the terms of our relationship back then, but I won’t do that anymore.”
Barry’s grip on me tightened, but I wasn’t afraid he would hurt me physically. I knew to my bones that he wouldn’t.
Lifting my chin, I said stubbornly, “We don’t have a relationship.”
“We do,” he said, meeting my stubbornness head-on. “And we’re going to pick up where we left off, starting right now. Today.”
Addy
Not wanting to be anywhere but where I was, I sat at a round table for four behind Barry. He stood at his stovetop with a pan in his hand, putting the finishing touches on breakfast while I stared at his amazing ass.
“When did you learn to cook?” I asked, watching him deftly flick his wrist to flip an omelet into the air that looked fluffy and smelled delicious.
