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It also didn’t help that their parents were quintessential city people. She doubted they would understand or be able to feel the same way about the slower pace. To them, a quiet life in a city where everything and everyone was readily available was what their daughters should strive for. Not starting over in a small Southern town with no family around. And definitely not living in a fixer-upper with a man in the spare room right down the hall. She already didn’t know how to explain her decision to stay in the town, let alone why she agreed to let Aiden move in.

Janae was still rehearsing possible explanations in her head when she heard the now-familiar rumble of Aiden’s truck pulling into the driveway. Her heart did that stupid little jump again, the same flip it did whenever she heard Aiden, or saw him, or thought about him. She glanced at her barely started painting before deciding that maybe inspiration would come from good conversation. She stood up and walked out before remembering she was in paint-spattered overalls. It was hardly the put-together look that she’d had on earlier.

“Stop it,” she muttered to herself as she heard Aiden’s footsteps on the back porch. “He doesn’t care what you look like. He’s not checking for you like that anyway.”

She walked into the kitchen just in time to see him come through the door. The early-evening sun caught his forearm and once again she found herself admiring the swirls of color on his arm. It made her itch to reach out to see if she could feel the difference in marked and unmarked skin. Instead, she walked over to the fridge and took out the meat she’d put there to thaw.

“Hey. Good evening,” Aiden said, his voice warm. When his gaze landed on her, he smiled wide, and instantly it was like all her concerns disappeared.

“Welcome home.” Janae winced internally at how domestic and familiar her words sounded. Was that something regular roommates would say to one another, or would he think she was being more forward than she meant to be? “Did you eat yet? I was going to cook something up really quick. I think my purse needs a break from being used for each meal.”

He shook his head. “Vini brought in lunch, but I left it at work to finish tomorrow. If you give me a sec, I’ll shower and then help.”

Janae waved him off. “Don’t worry about it. The least I can do is make you a meal in the kitchen you created.”

“First of all, it’s the kitchen you conceived. I just helped bring it to life.” Aiden tilted his head. “And second, are you sure? I really don’t mind.”

“Well, I do mind. Go.” She pointed to the hallway leading to their bedrooms and shared bathroom, trying to ignore the warmth that bloomed in her chest. “I’ve got this.”

His grin was blinding, but Aiden nodded and headed back, leaving Janae alone with her unnecessary thoughts.

She put her brain on autopilot as she browned the ground beef and stirred in the sauce. Spaghetti wasn’t fancy, but it would do the trick. And if they had leftovers, she would turn it into chili. It was fall now, so she found herself craving warm comfort meals rather than anything particularly elaborate. She was just straining the noodles when Aiden’s voice came from behind her.

“It sure smells good in here.”

Janae jerked, hissing when hot water splashed on her hand. “Ouch.”

In a flash, Aiden was there, his hand taking the pot away and returning it to the stove before he turned to face her. “Shit, my bad. Are you okay?”

She nodded. “I’m okay. Just got hit with some of the water. It’s fine.”

“Here,” he said, his voice close to her ear. When Aiden took her hand in his, Janae shivered at how warm he was. She watched as he lifted her hand to his face before turning on the water, guiding her fingers to the spray. She winced, expecting it to be cold, but it was lukewarm. “I didn’t mean to scare you. Sorry about that.”

“You didn’t scare me,” she replied. When his gaze met hers, she was startled to realize how close they were. The sun was slowly setting beyond the window, painting the world in a haze of burnt oranges. Aiden’s brown eyes seemed to shift too, somehow becoming deeper, as if she could sink into them and drown in their warmth. She licked her lips, not knowing what else to say, and was rewarded with that same gaze dropping to her mouth.

Is he looking at my lips? The thought seemed impossible and yet Janae wasn’t oblivious. She knew what interest looked like. She just wasn’t expecting to see it now and especially not from him. Aiden had never given her any indication that he was interested. Then again, before moving in together, they hadn’t interacted much as it was. She had always considered him attractive, but with her life being so full with everything else, she had never really stopped to consider that attraction.

“How is it?”

Janae’s own gaze dropped down to Aiden’s mouth as she watched his lips form the words. “How is what?”

Aiden lifted her hand, drawing her attention to the fact that they were still more or less holding hands. Her fingers twitched in his hold, but she didn’t pull away. Truthfully, she didn’t want to. It had been so long since she was this close to someone else and it was a feeling she had missed. She had always wanted that life, to be partnered with someone she could spend slow evenings with, cooking or just talking as the world passed them by. It was what she’d thought she had with her ex-husband until he’d shown her how wrong she was.

“Your hand,” Aiden replied. His thumb rubbed gently over her skin and Janae felt a bolt of arousal shoot from deep in her stomach. “Is it okay? I don’t think we need to go to the clinic or anything.”

“Oh.” Janae looked down at her hand, noting that it looked the same as it always did. It didn’t even hurt anymore. The hot water splashing on it really was more of a surprise than anything. “I’m fine. It doesn’t hurt at all.”

“Are you sure?” he asked, gaze still somewhere near her mouth.

Janae didn’t know what to do with these thoughts, but she knew she needed to create some space between them before she lost what little was left of her mind. She swallowed hard before reluctantly slipping her hand out from his hold. She had to force back a shiver at the sensation of the water gliding over both their skins. Aiden blinked slowly before his eyes met hers. There was fire there, unmistakable and yet somehow surprising. The air seemed to heat a few degrees, and if not for the scent of pasta in the air, Janae may have fallen into whatever was brewing. This felt the same as that night in the kitchen, when they had stood this close in front of this same sink, sharing the chore of washing dishes together. How was it that something so simple could feel so intimate? It was almost unnerving. Even in her marriage, she had never felt that way. It was making her rethink so many things.

“Yeah,” she breathed out. Reluctantly, she turned away and gestured to the stove. “Everything is ready if you’re hungry.”

“I’m always hungry,” Aiden replied, his voice rumbling through her. “And it smells delicious.”

Janae swallowed hard. “It’s just spaghetti,” she said, flustered by his words and how suggestive his voice sounded. It wasn’t his fault, but her mind had already latched on to the way he’d been looking at her, assigning something that she was sure wasn’t actually there. She needed to get her head back on straight. This was Aiden. He was everyone’s friend and an all-around good guy. He wasn’t checking for her like that.

“Yeah,” he said, voice rising slightly in a way that let her know he was smiling. “But it’s your spaghetti. You’re cooking for me and that’s kind of awesome.”