Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 77611 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77611 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
“No. This is brioche. For our dinner. I’d appreciate the help.”
“No problem.” It’s nice to be appreciated. And needed.
It’s probably nice to be kneaded too.
The act of it is comforting. The press and stretch of the ingredients beneath my fingertips and knuckles. The sprinkling of flour to make it easier to handle and less sticky. We work in silence for long, satisfying minutes, Michael on the pastry puffs, and me on dinner duty.
I don’t feel the need to fill it with music or trivia. I’m in the zone, looking at all that snow piled up to the base of the window. The sight actually relaxes me. I have nowhere to go right now. Nothing to hurry to or worry about. Nowhere to be but here with Michael in this kitchen. I could get used to this. And to the M&M sisters, who are weaving between my feet and rubbing themselves affectionately against me before leaving to chase each other around the living room.
“They like you,” he says behind me. “I think that’s ready to rest now.”
“Oh, okay.” I stop kneading and take my hands to the sink to wash them off. “I like them too. It’s biologically impossible for me not to. They’re just too cute.”
“You seem to know a lot about the Finns.”
“On the subject of cute things?” I glance at him over my shoulder with a smirk.
“No,” he says adamantly. “But I met you at their pub, and you know about Seamus and Kate.”
“I do know more about the family than I want to. I could probably write a book, but one of their exes attempted a tell-all once and Ken, Brady and some columnist named JD almost destroyed her for it. Speaking of wills, that was her reasoning. She was worried her parents would disinherit her if they realized she’d signed away her rights to little Zachary and made a few bad decisions as a result.”
Michael frowns. “Are we still talking about Finns or is this an episode of the show I haven’t seen?”
I laugh, because it could totally be in that show. “It’s real. They live very exciting lives, those Finns.”
“And you know about it because…?”
“Bex. Her boss knows everything about them, which means she does too. It also means I get all the best gossip. And she trusts I won’t tell anyone, because I know what Tanaka could do to me.”
His frown disappears. “Right. Those satellites.”
“Those damn satellites.”
After wrapping the dough and setting it to the side to proof, he leans against the counter, close enough for me to feel the heat of him. “If you’re willing to risk it, it occurs to me I could use a class on what to expect tomorrow. Feel like teaching me what you know?”
“An investigator wants intel on his brother-in-law’s family?” I raise my eyebrows in feigned shock. “I thought we’d already established that I suck at spying.”
“Not a sly spy. Just a guy that hates to lie,” he repeats verbatim.
I can’t resist tossing my arms over his neck and pressing a quick kiss to his lips. “I find it stupidly arousing when you do that.”
“Do what?”
“Remember things I’ve said. Even silly rhymes in the middle of snowy rescues.”
He pulls me closer, sliding his arms around me. “I remember everything about you, Win.”
My heart flops around like a beached fish gasping for air. I’ve got no armor when it comes to Michael Demir. No protection against his tender assaults. And like the newly needy clinger I’ve become, I can’t help but ask, “Does that mean when this weekend is over and you fly off to Italy or Paris with the M&Ms, you won’t forget about me?”
Ugh. Who am I right now?
His hold on me tightens. “It means you’re unforgettable.” He kisses me. “Irresistible.” Another kiss. “And you make me insatiable.”
“I’m really digging the vocabulary.” I tilt my head to the side when he starts to kiss my neck, willing him to forget my question in return for sexual favors. “Fine. I’ll let you interrogate me to learn what I know about the Finns. Are you finished with the puffs already? And how long does that dough need to rest?”
He lifts his mouth and starts to smile. “I’m taking a break. We have plenty of time for me to get my answers.”
“I was hoping you were going to say that.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Bex: Good morning. You know what I love? Snow. It’s the best. And orgasms.
Me: ?!?
Connor: Wtf
Bex: That’s what I’m imagining Winnie is thinking right now. Lol
Connor:
Me: *eyeroll* The last time we spoke, you were with Val and an entire band of guys in a hotel. I was expecting an orgy confession.
Bex: Sorry to disappoint you. Unlike your new boyfriend, who you must be having fun with or else you’d have been on the phone with me all day yesterday instead of this continued radio silence.