“Two hours left over from yesterday and three for last night,” Garrett said, washing his hair before he dropped his head beneath the spray of hot water again.
“I believe we already discussed your two-hour fine after you stole my lunch,” she said, making his lips twitch.
“You knew better than to leave your food unprotected for more than thirty seconds around me,” Garrett said, reaching for the bottle of conditioner.
“Three hours,” Kristen countered.
“Five.”
“Two,” came the immediate response that had his lips twitching.
“Five.”
“Goddamn it!” came the frustrated growl seconds before the pillow hit the shower door as the adorable woman, that he’d missed more than anything, stormed out of the room, leaving him unable to help but smile as he mentally prepared himself for the day of glaring ahead.
CHAPTER 13
“Ican feel you glaring,” the incredibly handsome man who was screwing with her emotions drawled, not bothering to look up from whatever he was working on.
“I only put that muffin down for ten seconds so that I could grab a napkin, you greedy son of a bitch!” Kristen bit out, intensifying her glare, uncaring that she was pulling out the big guns prematurely. Not when the bastard devoured the muffin that she’d spent ten minutes waiting in line for.
After another long night and a questionable amount of caffeine, she came back only to find Garrett waiting for her so that they could make a run into town to grab breakfast. When she’d tried to decline, mostly because she wasn’t sure that she would be able to resist the overwhelming urge to shove him in front of oncoming traffic, he took the decision out of her hand and cashed in one of the hours that she owed him.
Knowing that she didn’t have a choice, she grudgingly went with him only to have the large bastard steal her muffin. She knew the risks when she decided to put it down, but she’d somehow convinced herself that she’d have the muffin back in her hand before he noticed the move.
She’d been wrong.
The muffin barely had a chance to touch her plate when the large bastard, who’d devoured two apple fritters, a half-dozen donuts, and three coffee rolls, somehow managed to devour it before she knew what was happening. She forgot just how quick the bastard was when it came to stealing her food, but more importantly, she forgot to order a backup muffin just in case.
“You knew better,” Garrett murmured absently, making another note while she sat there, slowly nodding as she narrowed her eyes on the bastard, swearing then and there that one day, she would make the bastard pay for all the times he stole her food.
After thirty more seconds of glaring, mostly because she wanted to ensure the bastard lived in fear, Kristen grumbled to herself as she shifted her attention back to her computer, and after one last glance in his direction to make sure that he wasn’t watching her, she reached for her bag.
With a bored sigh, Kristen casually dropped the bag next to her on the couch before she focused her attention back on her laptop. After a few minutes and a quick glance to her right, she threw her left arm over the back of the couch and shifted to get comfortable while she scrolled through the chapter she’d just finished, looking for any mistakes.
While she scrolled, she slowly reached down and, after another glance in Garrett’s direction, she unzipped the bag and slid her hand inside.
A few seconds later, she found what she was looking for.
Making sure to appear innocent, her gaze once again flickered to her right as she reached inside the Ziplock bag filled with the homemade chocolate chip cookies that she’d made last night and helped herself to one. After one last glance towards the man lost in whatever it was that he was doing, Kristen quicklypulled her hand free and took a bite before dropping her hand out of sight.
Every few minutes, her gaze would flicker to her right to make sure that Garrett was still distracted before she took another bite. It reminded her of all those times when she was forced to hide her snacks to keep them safe. In all those years, he never figured it out, Kristen thought, unable to help but smile as she finished off her cookie and reached into her bag for another one and-
Found herself frowning in confusion when she couldn’t find the cookies.
Wondering if the bag settled on the bottom, Kristen frantically searched her bag only to go still when she heard it, the unmistakable sound of a satisfied sigh. Telling herself that she was hearing things, Kristen froze mid-search to look to her right only to find the large bastard devouring her cookies.
She looked from the man, who was really going out of his way to piss her off today, back to her bag and found herself wondering how he’d managed to steal her cookies without her knowing. She-
“Six hours,” he said, making her frown in confusion.
“You cashed in an hour this morning so we’re down to four,” Kristen pointed out.
“Think of it as a snack fine,” Garrett said, keeping his gaze locked on her as he popped another cookie in his mouth.
“We didn’t discuss that,” Kristen said, never taking her eyes off the large bastard as she pulled her hand back just far enough so that she could slide it inside the interior pocket, grabbed the candy bar that she had hidden there and pulled it free, watching the way that his eyes narrowed on the move.
“We’re discussing it now,” Garrett bit out, a muscle in his jaw clenching as he shoved another cookie in his mouth, his gazenever leaving the candy bar in her hand as she took her time opening it.
