Thoughtful(16)

I prepared our cups, mine black, hers toffee-colored, while Kiera finally blinked out of her trance and sat down at the table. I stirred her cup, put the spoon in the sink, then walked over to join her. Might as well learn something about my new roommate, aside from the fact that she had absorbing eyes that took in everything around her and an unbelievable smile that probably dropped men to their knees. And a solid relationship with my friend. That might be my favorite thing about her so far.

I set the creamy cup in front of her, and her small smile shifted to a frown. Hmm, maybe she preferred it black. Well, she could have mine. I didn’t care. I’d drink any form of coffee there was. In offer, I told her, “I brought mine black. I can switch you, if you don’t like cream.”

“No, actually I do like it this way.” She gave me a mischievous smile as I sat down. It was charming. “I thought maybe you could read minds or something.”

I had to chuckle at her sense of humor. “I wish,” I said, taking a sip of coffee. That would be a handy superpower. I could have avoided the whole Joey mess. Although, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know what people really thought about me. On second thought, ignorance was bliss.

Kiera raised her cup. “Well, thank you.” She took a sip. Her eyes fluttered closed and a small pleased noise escaped her throat, like she was having a mini-orgasm. Looked like she enjoyed coffee just as much as I did, maybe more. I liked that we had something in common. It was easier to live with people who had similar tastes.

Curiosity overwhelmed me as her expressive eyes reopened. I knew why Denny was here—a new job with pretty amazing potential—but I was still a little mystified as to why Kiera was. All her family and friends were back East. She’d left school and everything she’d ever known to follow a guy she was seeing. Why? I’d never met a woman who would give up everything like that. I knew Denny thought the world of her, and she seemed to think the world of him too, but from all I’d seen in my short life, couples in our age range didn’t stay together long.

Tilting my head, I asked her, “So, Ohio, huh? Buckeyes and fireflies, right?”

That was about all I knew of Ohio. Kiera seemed to be suppressing a laugh, like she realized my knowledge was limited. “Yep, that’s about it.”

“Do you miss it?” I asked, wondering if I’d ever have a girl who would give up her entire life for me. I doubted it. Girls wanted sex from me. Nothing more.

“Well, I miss my parents and my sister, of course. But I don’t know…a place is just a place.” She paused, then sighed. “Besides, it’s not like I won’t ever see it again.”

She gave me a smile laced with sadness, and the green in her eyes darkened to a deep jade. I just didn’t get it. She was clearly suffering from some small amount of homesickness. She missed her family, her friends, her life. The curiosity became too much for me, and even though I knew it would sound incredibly rude, I had to ask what the hell she’d given it all up for. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but why did you come all the way out here?”

She seemed a little annoyed by my question, but she still answered it. “Denny.”

Denny’s name rang with reverence. She really had changed her entire life just for him. To remain together as long as possible, even if it was a futile attempt. Or maybe it wasn’t. The way they looked at each other, the respect they showed one another…I’d never seen a relationship like that before.

“Huh” was all I said in response. There wasn’t much else I could say. Good luck with that seemed a little asshole-ish.

She blurted out her next question while I sipped on my coffee. “Why do you sing like that?” Her cheeks flushed with color, like she hadn’t meant to say what she’d just said. I narrowed my eyes, wondering what she meant. I only knew one way to sing. Open your mouth and let it pour out. Was she saying I sucked? Ouch. That wasn’t something I was used to hearing. Most people liked my voice.

“What do you mean?” I asked slowly, bracing myself for a bad review of my abilities.

She took forever to answer me. I didn’t take that as a good sign. She must have hated it. For some reason that thought really bothered me. I could have sworn there had been a moment last night when she’d understood me. Completely got where I was coming from. It had really freaked me out at the time, but maybe I’d misjudged her expression. Maybe she didn’t get me at all.

Swallowing her sip of coffee, she sputtered, “You were great. But sometimes you were just so…” She paused, and I could sense her apprehension. Her criticism of my performance came out in a whisper: “Sexual.”