11. Asher

11

ASHER

“ L ennon?” True to her word, the door is unlocked. I shake my head. I’d have preferred she locked it, but beggars can’t be choosers, and as much as I want to make a demand, the last damn thing I want to do is make her uncomfortable.

“In the kitchen!” I’ve been in this house many times when her aunt lived here. Plus, her bungalow isn’t big. You can stand in the foyer and see the living room to the left, dining room to the right, and the open doorway leads to the kitchen. As much as I want to make a detour, more than ready to see where Lennon lays her head down at night, I don’t.

“Smells good even with the beeping noise carrying on,” I tell her as I walk to where she’s standing in front of the stove. She’s out of her scrubs and is wearing an oversized tee, one shoulder bared, and a pair of cotton shorts rolled at the waist. The shirt has some kind of tuck going on, showing off her waist.

“Yeah, it’s hard to sit still. I figured the least I could do to thank you is feed you dinner.” I set my tool bag on the floor, settle in beside her, and watch as she goes about cooking. There’s some kind of chicken being sautéed in one pot, noodles boiling in the other, and she’s chopping vegetables on the cutting board.

“You didn’t have to go to all this trouble.” I say, she pauses to look up at me.

“And you didn’t have to pause your evening to help me out.” A soft smile plays on her lips.

“Fair enough. How about I go figure out what the deal is, and if I can’t, I’ve got a friend who knows a thing or two about a thing or two.” I’m not bragging that I’m part of that situation or that we own a company together. As far as Lennon knows, I’m a firefighter. We’ll figure out the rest as we get further along.

“I guess I should show you where it’s coming from,” she offers.

“Taking a guess it’s through that door,” I reply, bending down to pick up my tool bag. The noise is only getting worse with every minute I stand watching Lennon do her thing.

“I’m not going to tell you how long it took me to locate the source of the beeping. Clearly, I’m losing my hearing, but now that I’ve found it, I’m ready to grab a hammer and bang on it until it dies.” While there’s laughter in her voice, I can tell she’s dead serious. I make a mental note not to piss her off. Lennon Sinclair can handle herself, that’s for damn sure.

“The option might still be there. Time will tell. ”

She reaches for me.

She fucking reaches for me.

“Thank you. I’m a little out of my element doing a lot of things on my own and, well, I really appreciate you helping me.” A hunger like no other slams inside of me when her slim fingers wrap around my wrist, holding them there and gently squeezing me. I’m fighting the soul-consuming need to slide her hand up my chest, bury my fingers in her hair, and finally get a taste of the woman who’s kept me up morning, noon, and night thinking about her. What I would do to her, what I will do to her, and after the news my friends delivered, I’ve got doubt lingering in the back of my mind about slowing things down.

“Day or night, you need me, I’m there, no matter what it is.” My hand cups her hip. I wait for her to pull away, but Lennon doesn’t move from me. In fact, judging by the way her hip cocks outward, giving me some of her weight, I’d say she’s doing the complete opposite. My thumb sweeps along her abdomen. I can feel the flesh pebble and see the deep inhale of her breath, and I watch as her body comes alive.

“Okay.” Her voice is barely above a whisper.

“Making it hard, gorgeous. Making it damn hard.” I lick my lips then pull my lower lip in with my teeth. Lennon’s eyes close, and when her head tilts upward, I can see her pulse beating rapidly.

“Making what hard?” she asks.

“Not taking your mouth, Lennon.” I squeeze her hip and drop my lips to her forehead, breathing in her sweet peach scent, then walk toward the room where the noise is coming from. I don’t wait for a response. She got a small sense of what I’m after, and as hard as it is, I’m going to leave the ball in her court for the time being.

The door is lightly cracked, yet it still takes a moment to get the door open with the way it’s swollen. Maybe I’ll come over and trim it down for her to help with opening and closing it. I can’t imagine she’ll want to keep the door cracked to air condition the outside world. The beeping gets louder. There’s no need to annoy both me and Lennon, so I shut the door behind me, put my tool bag on the closed washer lid, and head for the step stool.

“Damn, she was not playing around.” I take a look at the smoke detector hanging by two wires. A couple of cuts, some wire nuts, and it should turn off. Not sure what she’ll need to have done afterwards, but I want Jagger to come over to do a trace of the wire. This kind of shit happens in flip houses or people trying to cut corners. The last thing I want is Lennon in a house that can go up in flames.

I step down, grab my cutters and the nuts. A few minutes later, everything is buttoned up. I’d prefer to turn the breaker off until the problem is fully resolved, but who the hell knows what that’ll be attached to?

“Wow, that didn’t take long.” I look down at Lennon. She’s got a hip propped on the now open door and her legs crossed at the ankle. That isn’t what’s got my attention; it’s her tits. She’s got her arms tucked beneath them, and they’re doing nothing to conceal how much of a handful they’ll be in my hands.

“Nah, not too bad.” I twist the last of the wires together and keep them out of the way. No way am I pushing them into the attic space .

“Perfect timing. Dinner is ready. Did you maybe want to stay and eat with me?” She drags her eyes away from mine. I don’t answer fast enough. She tacks on, “Or I can pack it in a to-go container for you.”

“I’m staying, Lennon.”

“Oh, you don’t have to. I know how busy men can be. My ex-husband barely ate with me the last six months of me living with him. He was always busy, and my sister was already out of the house living on her own. I’d sometimes have her over, or she’d invite me to her place.” I watch her body language as she purges everything. “As bad as it sounds, I’ve gotten used to eating alone. So, please don’t feel obligated to stay.” She takes a deep breath, head tipping back, and stares at the ceiling. “I’m not sure why I just told you all that. God, that sounds even worse coming out of my mouth than playing it through my head.”

I’m off the step stool, drop my tools in the bag, and move toward her. My arms wrap around her body, pulling her into the comfort of my arms while she continues to let more out. I rub up and down her back, and she fists the sides of my shirt, burrowing into my chest, and says, “My therapist is going to have a field day during our next session. Of course, the one time I let my guard down, it’s to the hot neighbor. I’m probably blowing this. Momma Catherine will for sure tell me I’m still amazing. Same goes for Poppa Russell. But me, it’ll take me some time to lick my wounds before I can talk to you face to face again.” Lennon ends her outburst on a long sigh. She’s not crying, or at least not enough to soak my shirt. I find it kind of cute the way she rambled on and on, even talking about being unable to look me in the eye. I’ll prove her wrong.

“Lennon, gorgeous, look at me.” I’m trying to get her attention. She shakes her head and sinks into me even more. I do the next best thing, sliding my hand up her spine until I meet the back of her neck. Her thick raven hair is hanging loosely, no longer tied up in a ponytail, and I use it to pull her face upward until her warm chocolate eyes are locked on mine. “Anytime you want company for dinner, I’m here. Might be late some nights, might be at your place, might be at mine. Might not be able to happen at all. But if I’m not at the station or on a call, I’ll be pleased as fuck to share a meal with you.”

“Asher.” Her eyes shutter. My hand tightens its hold in her hair, testing the limits to see what she likes. When her soft breath flutters, there’s no more holding back. It’s fucking impossible. She trusted me with her truth, a clear vulnerability, and now she’s worried I’ll judge her.

“Hush. Gonna kiss you now. Let you know my intentions plain as day. One look, gorgeous, one fucking look. Saw you hugging a guy, figured my luck was shit. Then Russell tells me you’re here on your own, and I let every damn thought of you run wild. I see you’ve got some lingering doubts from that dickhole who was your husband. Lennon, we all got shit in our past. You work though that with your therapist and with me. Sound good?”

She nods. That’s not enough for me. “Need the words, Lennon.”

“Sounds good. I’m sorry I just pulled a Minnie, my sister, and dumped all over you.” I smile, liking the way she let that shield down and gave me that.

“Any time, gorgeous, any time.” I massage her lower back, and I’m sure she can feel my cock trying to bust out from behind the zipper. “Now, gotta ask about your wiring. The company you called, are they the ones who installed it?”

“Yeah, warranty and all.”

“Shit’s faulty. You give me the date and time, I’ll be here with my buddy Jagger to figure a few things out. He owns the majority of Jagged Edge Builders. A few of us help where we can. It might be an easy fix, simple as that. It might not. You opposed to us being here?” I’m changing the subject on her, hoping to take her mind off the heaviness, except what I’m telling her isn’t great news, either.

“Oh god, I’ve been afraid of that since I called them earlier. Are you sure you don’t mind being here?”

“Wouldn’t have offered it if I minded.”

“You might be saving my bacon, then. The electrician is supposed to be here at five thirty. I get off work at five, which means I’ll have to book it, and I don’t know if I’ll make it when traffic starts to get thick in the downtown area.” She is rambling again. Fuck, but I like that.

“That’ll work. Leave a key with me, and I’ll get it all taken care of. Now, you mentioned dinner. Feel like going swimming after?” I’d offer to watch a movie with her, but if I get her any place that could put her horizontal, and she gives me the slightest hint of wanting that thrill, I’ll be buried deep inside her, fucking my cock into her all damn night.

“I’d really like that.” This time when her gaze drifts to my lips, I press a kiss to her mouth, unable to hold back any longer. Her tongue slides along the seam of mine, and I nip at the plush pillowy soft lower lip.

“Gonna want more of that, Lennon. A whole lot more.” Her eyes, her lips, her flush cheeks are filled with desire.

“Yes, please.” I’m greeted with a smile when she looks at me, and I respond with one of my own before guiding her to the kitchen.

“Gonna take care of the door, too.”

“Don’t bother. I’m going to replace it after I have a few weeks’ worth of paychecks.” I don’t bother responding. When she’s at work, I’ll get it taken care of. Jagger wouldn’t let me rest if I didn’t. I follow her lead, help her set plates out for our dinner, and then take my place in front of her and dig in.