“Really. I never would have guessed that.”
“Okay, now you’re going over the top.” She looked him up and down for a moment as she took a bite of pizza. “And you are forty, I’d guess.”
“Turned thirty-six in November. Thanks for guessing over.” He picked up a pillow and threw it.
She fended it off with her hands. “Hey! Actually, you look nice.” Her face turned red. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what made me say that.”
“Oh, so you take it back, then? I don’t look nice?”
“You’re very nice.” She stared down at the pizza in her lap.
It seemed impossible, but somehow Jennifer’s face turned even redder. “I’ve never tasted anything like that,” Mark said, changing the subject as he swallowed the last of his tea. “I can’t really taste the alcohol. I mean, I taste the hint of brandy, but this is wonderful!”
“More?”
“Absolutely.” He held his glass out. His finger caressed her hand as she took it. They froze for a moment. But it might have just been his imagination.
She turned away from him and took the glasses back into the kitchen with her. Be nice! Be nice, dammit!
A movement from the couch caught his eye, something shifted under the blanket. In what he hoped sounded like a calm voice, he said, “Jennifer, don’t be alarmed, but I think there’s a rat on the couch. Just stay—stay in the kitchen.”
“Hmm? I’m sorry, I didn’t hear what you said.” She walked back into the room.
Mark held a large book in one hand and the corner of the blanket in the other. He yanked on the blanket and whatever had moved inside “thumped” as it hit the floor. He heard an indignant hiss and tossed the blanket aside.
“Sophie!” Looking from the cat to Jennifer, his stomach sank. “When did she come in?”
Jennifer set their drinks back down on the coffee table. Seeming to measure her words carefully she said, “Mark, I think she spent the night here. I mean, I didn’t open the door. She’s been here all morning.”
He sat down on the couch next to the cat. “You mean to tell me she was here all along, and just wasn’t coming when I called her?”
He gave the cat a dirty look as she nibbled on his fingers. “I went out in the cold last night to find Ruth’s cat, I spent all night thinking I’d have to tell Ruth that her cat was gone, and she was here all along?” Sophie bit down, using her claws to dig into his hand with increased vigor. Mark extracted her claws from his now bloody flesh and pulled his hand away.
Jennifer smiled as she sat down next to him. “I plead the fifth. I was asleep and didn’t know about Sophie until this morning. Isn’t she a sweet little cat?”
The sweet cat had resumed attacking Mark, so he picked her up and handed her over to Jennifer. Through gritted teeth he replied, “The sweetest.”
****
They finished their pizza and drinks sitting next to each other on the couch. Jennifer enjoyed the warmth of his body next to hers. It’d been a long time since she’d spent time with such a nice guy. Sexy guy. They talked about their jobs, their families. How neither had any older brothers or sisters to look up to. What it was like being an only child.
Drifting into a comfortable silence, the effects of the alcohol settled in. She leaned back against the couch and collected the bottom hem of the turtleneck into her hand. She said, “I’m warm, how do you feel?”
“Did you put more alcohol in the tea that time around?”
“Mmm-hmm,” came her only reply. She closed her eyes and tipped her head back on the couch. Warmth drugged through her veins. She wiggled in her seat. “I need to get more comfortable.” She rolled up the sleeves and folded her legs Indian-style beneath her.
“Do you feel better?”
His voice sounded close. Warm against her ear. “A bit.”
“Does this help?” His arm slinked behind her. He pulled her in against his body. A lot.
“That’s nice.”
“And how about this?” He ran his hand up the length of her arm. He inched the turtleneck down, exposing her neck.
Tingles ran through her body as she said, “I like that very much.”
His voice sounded dark as he said, “You have a beautiful neck. So soft.” He ran his fingers down the length. “So strong.” And back up again. He laid a whisper-soft kiss just below her ear.
She opened her eyes and looked at him. Leaning forward, she pulled his mouth down to hers. She kissed him lightly at first, rubbed her lips across his. Then she licked his bottom lip and pulled it into her mouth, between her teeth.