“C’mon, Corrie. There’s three bedrooms. We can co-exist for a few days.”
“Can we?” I ask, doubtful. If he thinks he’s going to get some action, he’s dead wrong.
His gaze darts about the space. “Think about it, Corrie. I can help out. I can cook for you.”
Well, that does sound kind of nice. I hate cooking. That pasta was good but I almost had a complete meltdown making it.
“And do you even know how to work that thing?” he asks, pointing to the old wood stove.
I shake my head and stare down at the pine floor.
“The night is already getting cooler,” he points out. “I could make a nice fire.”
The man makes an excellent point. I do like the idea of having him around at night. Abby and Baxter are fierce and yappy but they’re no guard dogs.
“Well…” I say, still not sure.
His beautiful face lights up and it tugs at me. Damn him… always pulling me back in. It’s been fifty-one days since I last had sex with him, and I’m determined to keep it going. “Okay, we can both stay,” I finally concede, “but we need a few rules.”
He nods obediently. “Sure.”
I bite my lip. “Number one… absolutely no sex.”
“Sure, Corrie.” His smile is impish, and I know he’s already scheming to get me into bed.
“I’m serious.”
He nods again. “Yes, I know.”
“Number two… you can’t be mean to Abby and Baxter.”
His jaw drops. “When am I ever mean to Abby and Baxter?”
“You make fun of them all the time,” I tell him. “You think they don’t understand you, but they do. They’re very smart dogs.”
He stifles a laugh and I already want to throttle him.
“Number three,” I go on. “Do not touch my food.”
He takes a seat at the table and stretches out his long legs. “I’m sure I’ll manage to live without your kale salad and quinoa and frozen Lean Cuisine meals.”
“Number four… I get bathroom priority,” I add.
“This table is gorgeous,” he says. “It wasn’t here before, was it?”
Great… now he’s not even listening to me.
I ponder my list of rules for a minute. I can’t think of anything else, but four rules doesn’t seem quite right. I need five to round everything out. “And finally, rule five… you are not allowed to try to seduce me,” I tell him. “No back rubs, no getting me drunk, no touching my sweet spots… no watchingThe Notebook, and definitely no playing on that guitar,” I add as I glance at his guitar case.
He laughs out loud. Damn, I still love his hearty laugh.
“I’m serious. We haven’t had sex for fifty-one days now, and I want to keep it that way.”
His eyes grow wide. “You’ve been counting?”
Yes, I’ve been counting. I’m pathetic.
“Okay, if you’ll excuse me now, I need to get my pajamas on,” I say, and turn on my heel — this conversation is over. Abby and Baxter follow me eagerly, their little paws clicking in unison against the antique pine floor.
