Touch by Touch (Riggins Brothers #4) - Kaylee Ryan Page 0,14
out, that is until I hear him release a heavy sigh, and his body molds around mine. Oddly enough, it relaxes me too. So much so that I drift off to sleep in his warm embrace.
“I can feel you staring at me, creeper.” I keep my eyes closed, not wanting to see his as he watches me. I can only imagine what he’s thinking. I know what I look like first thing in the morning with my hair all a mess. He’s seeing me in all my glory—sleep lines, messy hair, no makeup, all of it.
“You’re cute when you sleep.”
His words have me peeling one eye open to look at him. “Did aliens abduct you while we slept?” I’m teasing, my tone light, but this isn’t the teasing flirting Conrad I’m used to. This is a serious, soft, and sweet Conrad. Forcing the other eye to open, I take him in. His hair is mussed, and he, too, has sleep lines on his face.
“No.” He smiles, reaching out and tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “No aliens, but I didn’t peg you for a runner?”
“Me? I’m not.”
“Then why did I have to coax you back to bed last night.”
“This isn’t a bed.” It’s the best I’ve got. I can’t tell him that I wanted to be next to him, to feel his body wrapped around mine. That would have us crossing lines that we shouldn’t cross. Sure, it wouldn’t be the end of the world, but I am not doing a single thing to mess with my sister’s wedding. I think she would be happy for me, for us, but it’s not worth the risk. Maybe one day…. What am I saying? No. I’m letting one night and a naked incident cloud my mind. It was just a thing. Two adults falling asleep on the couch. So we cuddled? Big deal.
“Well, it was warm with you lying there with me.”
“I didn’t peg you for a cuddler,” I counter before I can think better of it.
“I’m not.” He gives me a dazzling smile that I’m sure has hearts breaking and panties dropping all over Tennessee.
“Come on, lazybones. I’ve been waiting for you to wake up for almost an hour. Let’s go make some breakfast.” He tosses off the covers and climbs to his feet. Reaching out, he offers me his hand and pulls me to mine as well.
“Are you making breakfast?” I ask him.
“Yep.”
“Huh,” I say, following him up the stairs.
“Huh? What do you mean, huh? I know how to cook. I’m damn good at it if I do say so myself.”
“Your momma raised you right.”
“She did. I remember growing up she used to tell us that our future wives would thank her one day.”
“Smart woman, that Lena Riggins.” I smile as I perch my behind on a stool at the kitchen island. “So, fancy pants, what are we having?”
He opens the fridge and peruses his options. “How about scrambled eggs and bacon, with some toast?”
“Perfect. What can I do to help?”
“Nothing. Just keep me company.”
“I’ll start the coffee.” I slide off the stool and get busy starting the coffee pot. When I go to fill the pot with water, I look outside and gasp. “Oh my gosh. Did you see how much snow is out there?” I ask, staring out the window at the blanket of white that’s covering the ground.
I feel his body as he slides up behind me and looks over my head out the window. “No,” his deep voice says next to my ear. “That’s a lot, and it’s still coming down. Good thing Mom thought ahead and ordered supplies to be delivered.”
“How did she do that anyway?” I ask, hitting Start on the coffee pot.
“She has a service company she uses. They take care of maintaining the place when we’re not here. We used to come up a lot as kids, not so much now that all five of us kids are working at the company. Adult life keeps us from having as much downtime.”
“That’s good that you have someone who helps maintain it. It’s not so good that you don’t get to spend as much time here. I love this place.”
“Yeah, me too,” he says wistfully. “All right.” He claps his hands. “Sit back and watch the master at work.”
I do as he says, taking my seat at the island, and watch as he prepares us breakfast. “Is this snow going to affect the wedding?”