Rhys made a show of gulping and pulling out his shirt. “You have your thighs—I have my Colin Farrell-slash-Sons of Anarchy fantasies.”
“Well, if you’re gonna stroke my ego…”
“I can stroke whatever you want me to,” he said, then flashed bright red. “So-sorry. Didn’t mean to be so forward.”
The timer in the kitchen went off, sparing him further embarrassment.
I rubbed his knee, then stood. “Maybe I like forward.”
His chest expanded rapidly and he looked up at me through his thick fringe of pale brown lashes, pure sex in his expressive blue eyes. I’d almost deleted the dating app in Meadow & Vine as he’d walked away, but that little voice inside my head had told me to not be so hasty.
The way he graciously accepted my apology and then flirted with me in our subsequent messages verified that I’d made the right decision. That had nothing, though, on the chemistry sparking between us in person.
Stepping into the kitchen, wishing I had his hands on me, I pulled the massive steak from the oven.
“Oh my god, that’s beautiful,” he said, coming up behind me, fitting his hands to my hips. “Look at the crust on that thing.”
I shivered, shifting my hips into his strong grip as I scooped the hot butter over the top. “I made some assumptions about how you liked your steak. Please tell me you’re not about to break my heart and demand well done.”
He rested his chin on my shoulder. “Absolutely not. I don’t like cold fat on well-marbled pieces, but other than that I like a juicy steak.”
“That’s what I was aiming for.” I nuzzled the side of his face with mine, loving how his enormous body enveloped me.
We stood there a few minutes, swaying as I unnecessarily spooned more butter onto the steak.
“I was just gonna keep it simple tonight. Steak and a salad,” I finally said, gesturing with my chin over at the bowl on the counter.
“Damn, that’s gorgeous. What do you have in it?”
I allowed myself a prideful smile. “Gorgonzola, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, a spring mix, and my own balsamic vinaigrette recipe. Oh, and avocados. I haven’t put them in and can keep them out if you’d prefer.”
“I love avocados. I love everything you just mentioned, actually.”
I leaned back until my shoulders hit his broad chest, then let out a satisfied sigh. He shifted his arms across my torso and I allowed my head to fall back on his shoulder.
“You’re a fucking mountain, you know that?”
“Here’s hoping you like mountains,” he replied, his lips close to my ear.
“You read my profile. You know I do.”
“So, even though I don’t have your six pack,” he said, flattening his palm along my abs, “you’re okay with all of this?”
I angled my hips side to side, grazing his crotch. “More than okay. Entirely turned on by it, if I’m being honest.”
He stayed at my back while I plated the massive hunk of meat.
“I need to let it rest before I cut into it.”
“Mmhmm. And how long do you need to let it rest?”
“At least ten minutes, maybe a little more.”
Running his nose along the outer edge of my ear, he asked, “I wonder what we could get up to for ten minutes?”
Surprised by his boldness, I pushed us away from the counter and turned, gripping his massive arms.
“Rhys? Are you trying to seduce me?”
