meal.”
“I would like that,” Kai’s smile could have over heated her, all the way to four-hundred degrees in two seconds flat.
“Okay.”
Shit.
She had a kitchen full of baking supplies but nothing to actually cook. What had possessed her to invite him for dinner?
We did that because he’s hot as hell — her hormones seemed to yell at her.
“How do you feel about appetizers for dinner?”
“Love it. Put me to work, chef.”
And just like that, Ember melted faster than chocolate in a saucepan.
Ember was surprised by how well she and Kai worked together. She had gotten a glimpse of it at the sound stage, where she had taught him how to bake and frost cupcakes. But in her kitchen, as she grilled up bacon and roasted up some rosemary and thyme potatoes, it was pretty obvious that they were just in sync.
Her kitchen was tiny. Not at all an ample space for someone like her who spent most of her time there. By all accounts, it should have been awkward to share the space with Kai.
It wasn’t.
They moved around each other with ease. They brushed up against each other, but only on purpose. Her hand grazed his. He cupped her ass to nudge her to the side to get to the cutlery drawer. She rubbed his muscular back to wordless announce she was carrying a hot pan.
Cooking with Kai in her small kitchen was like a sexy dance.
By the time they settled at the table with their frissé salad, bruschettas, and potatoes, Ember was hornier than she was hungry. Their dinner was a strange mix of appetizers, but each was more delicious than the last. She could barely enjoy them because she knew for a fact that Kai’s kisses were the most delectable thing in her apartment.
And she counted the coffee cake that was sitting on its cake stand on the counter.
He was that good of a kisser.
“How did you get into security?” she asked after taking a sip of soda.
“It’s just what my family does. We have a natural knack to protect. It’s pretty much a biological need for us to protect what is ours. My grandfather and father just took it and created a job that fit their strengths.”
“Do you like it?”
Kai pushed a piece of bacon around his salad plate. “I like it enough. We got the F&D contract a little while ago. It was a big change from what we used to do. It means good things for the company. The contract brings in a lot of money for my parents’ retirement and my brother’s growing family.”
“That doesn’t sound like it’s a passion of yours.”
He shrugged, popping the bacon into his mouth. “It’s fine. I’m not a fan of the network’s bullshit politics. Or dealing with the types of people who work on the lot. There are many self-important people who drop “do you have any idea who I am” every time they roll up to the gate. They think the rules don’t apply to them because they’re on TV.”
“Yeah, I can see that. I love my sister, but she has been in the limelight since she was 14 years old. She’s not a snob, but she has grown up with preferential treatment. She’s not a bad person, but she does expect to be treated with kid gloves. I think, in her head, it’s just how the world works — through no fault of her own. My parents tried really hard to continue giving her a normal childhood when she was cast on The Town. But she had to drop out of school and get a bunch of tutors instead. She studied her ass off when she wasn’t filming. She got her GED when she was sixteen, and she took a few college correspondence classes. But the whole experience just changed her.”
“Was it hard, growing up with a famous sister?”
Ember considered the question. “Not so much for me, no. I was already doing my own thing by then. It had more of an impact on Cinder. She looked up to Sparx, and she really wanted to be famous like her. Of course, Cinder can’t act to save her life. Even when she tried to lie to our parents to get out of trouble, she was always caught.” The memories made her chuckle. “She’s famous, too, but as herself. Not as a character.”
Kai’s watchful eyes studied her face carefully. “Is that why you want to be on the show? To be famous like your sisters?”
“God, no! I’m terrified of