Even if they were surrounded, he had a way of making her feel as if she was his soul focus the entire night.
The icing on the cake was the chicken coop set up in a private wooded area, filled with chickens, and crafted with loving detail. This man she thought she’d known from the moment she’d met him in the airport wasn’t at all who she’d thought he was. But did that mean she could open up her life to him? Did that mean she could open up her heart?
Maybe. It was a definite maybe.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Daisy had a white flag up. How could she not? It was much more difficult to hate a person when you knew them, and knew how good their character was. Hudson was a business owner, entrepreneur, and a millionaire. She’d always looked down upon those things, but he was about so much more than money.
He was a brother, a son, an uncle, a nephew, and a friend. His family had a bond unlike anything she’d seen before. She was sure there was some of the usual family bickering, but it wasn’t obvious. She was impressed — to say the least.
On top of getting to know this man, she couldn’t deny how he made her feel. She wanted him in a way she’d never wanted another. Her body had been awakened, and no matter how foolish she told herself she was being, she couldn’t deny what she was feeling.
What did all of that mean?
It meant she was at his house.
He’d made the comment that he rarely got home-cooked meals living the bachelor life, and somehow she’d agreed to make him dinner. She was blaming the alcohol from the night before on her impulsive act.
But she was of sound mind now, and she’d still come to his place with a bag full of groceries, she was still standing in his beautiful kitchen, and she still had no clue why or what to do.
He was running a quick errand, apologizing for the last-minute phone call that had taken him from the place, and she was in a bit of a panic as she looked around his kitchen that was obviously stocked by a bachelor.
He had a few dull knives, pans that had seen much better days, and pots that she wouldn’t want to donate to a secondhand store. She’d assumed everyone had the basic necessities in their kitchen — she’d been wrong.
She’d just have to do the best she could.
After going through every single cupboard in the small kitchen, she managed to find a casserole dish she eyed with suspicion. She wouldn’t bet her small paycheck it wouldn’t explode in the oven. She’d have to make do though. She was glad she’d decided on a fairly simple meal, knowing it was one of gramps’ favorites and didn’t take a lot of time or concentration.
She cooked hamburger on the stove, not daring to step away from the pan, afraid she’d start the house on fire. Then she boiled noodles, created a cheese sauce, and mixed it all together before pouring it in the bakeware and placing it in the oven.
She heard Hudson pull up as she set the timer, and she wasn’t sure where she should stand, or what she should say when he walked in. It was his house, after all. She was simply there because this way she wasn’t having the dinner with her grandfather who seemed to be in love with Hudson.
She was leaning against the counter as he stepped in through the garage door and turned the corner, a smile on his lips, a bag in his hands. He looked sexy as hell in his crisp blue polo, dark blue jeans, and work boots. His smell wafted over to her, more intoxicating than ever. She couldn’t look away from his deep blue eyes. She didn’t even mind how much trouble she was in.
“It smells amazing in here,” he said as he set the bag down and moved to her, making her stomach clench with need and anticipation. “I could get used to this.” The low rumble of his voice did things to her she’d never thought possible.
“I’m not sure how it’ll turn out. You don’t have a lot of kitchen gadgets,” she told him, shocked at how husky her voice was.
“It’ll be great,” he said as he reached up, cupping her cheek with one hand, and gripping her hip with the other. The kiss was exactly what she needed. His lips took hers with hunger