"Sure."
We move around each other in the kitchen, but it's different than the last couple of weeks. Where before we were in sync, now we're awkward, careful not to get too close. I can feel the tension building between us, and I hate it. Hate that I've made things weird because I can't get my head straight.
She's cracking eggs into a bowl when she finally speaks. "Did I do something wrong?"
My head snaps up. "What?"
"Last night. When I kissed you." She's not looking at me, focused intently on the eggs. "Did I overstep? Make you uncomfortable? Because you've barely looked at me since you woke up, and I just—I need to know if I made you angry."
"No." The word comes out more forcefully than I intend, and I set my coffee down. "Paisley, no. You didn't do anything wrong."
"Then what's going on?" She does look at me now, and there's vulnerability in her eyes that makes my breath hitch. "Talk to me, Chase."
I run a hand through my hair, trying to find the words. There's no good way to say this, no way that doesn't make me sound like a complete idiot. But she deserves the truth.
"I pleasured myself last night," I say bluntly, thinking it sounds better than jacking off. "Thinking about you."
Her eyes go wide, the whisk in her hand freezes mid-stir. "You... what?"
"I couldn't stop thinking about kissing you. About you. And my body responded in a way it hasn't in a very long time." I force myself to hold her gaze. "I feel guilty as hell about it, and I didn't know how to face you this morning. That's why I've been acting weird. Not because you did anything wrong, but because I don't know how to handle what I'm feeling."
The silence that follows is deafening. I watch as shock gives way to understanding, and then—surprisingly—something that looks like pleasure. A smile tugs at the corner of her mouth.
"You were thinking about me?" she asks, and there's a note of wonder in her voice.
"Yes."
"And your body... responded."
"Yes."
The smile breaks free, full and genuine, and it transforms her face. "That's... actually kind of hot."
I blink. "Hot?"
"Yeah." She sets the bowl down and moves closer, stopping just out of reach. "Chase, you don't have to feel guilty about wanting me. Or about what you did last night. I'm not offended. I'm flattered."
"You are?"
"Very." Her cheeks are pink now, but she doesn't look away. "For the record, I had some thoughts of my own last night. About you. About us."
Heat pools low in my gut at her words, at the implication. "Paisley?—"
"I'm just saying, you're not alone in this. Whatever this is." She reaches out, her fingers brushing mine. "We're both feeling it."
I turn my hand over, threading our fingers together. Her palm is warm against mine, and I realize this is the first time we've held hands. It's such a simple touch, and one I've missed. There wasn't a moment where I thought to myself that I miss holding hands with another person, but now that our skin is touching, I have.
"We should probably finish breakfast before we starve," I say, not letting go of her hand.
She laughs, the sound echoing through the room. "Probably."
Together we make the meal, just like we have been for the past few weeks. The awkwardness from earlier is gone. Instead, there's an invisible string between us, a simmering tension that makes every accidental touch send a ribbon of arousal down to my cock. When we sit down to eat, I make sure to sit close enough that our knees brush under the table. I need to touch her, even if we're not touching in a sexual manner. Grinning over at her, I take a bite of my eggs, and then put my head down to just enjoy the moment.
After breakfast, I set up my laptop on the coffee table. "I've got to input some birthing records for the state," I explain, as I boot up the laptop. "It's what I do in the winter, instead of checking on breeding operations and ranches. It's boring, but it has to be done, and since I'm the one out here with nothing else to do, it falls to me."
"That's fine. I'll just read or something. There were a bunch of books in the room you gave me."
My wife was a big reader, so I'm not surprised. I didn't get rid of anything she had in there. She's got a book in her hand, and she flips through it, before she takes a seat.
