“Us.You and I.A duo.Does that answer your question?”
“No.”
“The two of us.”
Andrea rolled her eyes at his sarcasm.“I understand that part, what I don’t understand is why both of us have to do it.”Usually one person cooked, not two.
“Just come inside.”
It sounded like a dare, one she didn’t know if she wanted to take.“And if I don’t want to?”
“Well, I can’t make you, but you did agree to eat with me.Please?”He stuck out his bottom lip and gave her a sad puppy dog face that was too adorable.
“Fine, what are we having, and if you say it’s a surprise, I will hit you.”A woman who hated surprises could only take so many in one day, though both hadn’t been bad ones.Not that she would ever admit that to him.
“So bloodthirsty.We are having pizza.”
Again, she was stunned.
“What?Don’t tell me you don’t eat pizza.”
“I do, but I don’t make it.I order it.”She didn’t know the first thing about making pizza.Or was he meaning preheat the oven and pop it in?
“What’s the fun in that?”
“What’s the fun in making it yourself?”she countered.
“Come inside and find out.”
Again, it sounded like a dare.She felt like a fly to the spider.Did she dare go inside?“Fine.”She was not going to chicken out.
Michael opened the door and pushed it wide to allow her entrance.Andrea stepped inside and stopped in the middle of the living room, taking in the space.It was the first time she had ever been here.She had never met Mr.Stone, so she didn’t know what the space used to look like.It was a similar setup to hers and Maya’s.It looked closer to Maya’s with the dated furniture.“Can I get you anything to drink?”Michael asked, sounding far away.
She looked around and saw his head poking out from an entry to the right.It must be the kitchen.
“No, thank you.”Her gaze continued to take in the room.There were markings on the walls from where pictures had hung, but there were no new ones put up.It was only the couch and coffee table and a TV on a stand.Even the TV looked old.Weren’t men supposed to like giant flat screen TVs?Even hers was bigger, and she didn’t want much television.
“Do you like it?”Andrea jumped when Michael’s voice came from right behind her.She hadn’t heard him come into the room.
“Like what?”
“The house.”
“Oh, it’s nice.Doesn’t really speak you though.”
Michael looked around the room and nodded.“No, all the furniture is still the previous owner’s.I’m afraid I haven’t done much other than set up my office.”
“Is the bedroom at least set up?”
“Do you want to go see?”His eyebrows wagged up and down suggestively.
“No.”She looked away, so he didn’t see her blush.“I was just asking since you said nothing but your office has been done.”
“I changed out the mattress, but the rest is the same.Maya told me the previous owner died in there.I didn’t really want to sleep on the mattress after that.”He gave a visible shudder as he headed back into the kitchen.
“Oh yeah, I heard about that.It took a while for anyone to realize he’d died.”Andrea followed him into the kitchen.It looked similar to her kitchen before she’d remodeled it.
“Go ahead and wash your hands.”Michael headed for the fridge and started pulling items out.Cheese, pepperoni, sausage, peppers, and other condiments.
