Whispers in the Dark (2 page)

My face heated, and I shook my head. “Got a lighter? Matches? Anything?”

“How about you come in here, and we’ll see what we can find?”

I nodded. “Okay.”

I stepped forward and through the doorway onto the hardwoods of Tristan’s living room as he closed the door behind me. Boxes were piled up against the walls and in the middle of the floor, a few pieces of furniture mixed in between.

“I called the power company. The storm has knocked out power everywhere, so we’re pretty much stuck like this for a while.”

“Fantastic.” I let out a sigh.

A lantern sitting atop a stack of boxes was responsible for illuminating the dark. It wasn’t much, enough to brighten the space so we could see basic shapes, but it was more than the blackness. At least we weren’t stumbling around.

“So, how long have you been here?”

He started moving things around, clearing off the coffee table and offering me a seat. “I moved in on Sunday, but had work on Monday, so don’t look at the mess.”

“I don’t see anything. Just wondering how I missed that, since you’d have to walk past my door. This place has been vacant for months. I was wondering if they were ever going to get it rented.” I thought back to the weekend and remembered where I was. “Oh, that’s right.”

“What’s right?”

I pointed to my head, then remembered I hadn’t even brushed my hair before I crept down the hall, as well as I what I was wearing.

“Oh, crap.”

He smiled at me, seeming to know what was going on in my brain. “You look cute, don’t worry.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m a hot mess. I was in the middle of a shower when the lights went out.”

He grimaced. “That wouldn’t be fun.” He paused while he thought about it and then chuckled. “Actually, if I was there, it would have been.”

“So sure of yourself?” I raised an eyebrow at him.

He snorted. “Oh, come on, you know you’d want to see me tripping out of the tub in the dark.”

I shook my head and let out a little chuckle. “It’s dark. How am I supposed to laugh my ass off at your stupidity?”

He pursed his lips. “True.”

He turned on a flashlight and looked over the writing on the boxes. “Are you hungry? I was just about to make dinner.” He ripped the tape off of one and began to rummage through it.

“How are you going to do that?” I asked. The power was out. Unless he was hiding a generator in one of those boxes, I suspected cold cuts and bread were on the menu.

“Ah-ha!” He dug further into the box and pulled out a strange metal object in triumph.

I cocked a brow at it and tilted my head. “What is that?”

“It’s a portable camping stove.” He smiled at me. “I don’t have much, but I’ve got some parmesan noodles and some canned chicken. It’s not gourmet or anything, but it’s hot.”

Hot like you
. I swallowed, shifting in place, and wiping my sweating hands on my pants. Why was I getting so worked up by merely being around him? I’d been around hot guys before.

“I could use something hot. My shower didn’t quite defrost me from the chill of the rain.”

He smirked at me, his eyes moving up and down my body. “Oh, baby, I can give you something hot, and warm you up real good.”

My mouth dropped as my eyes widened. “Oh my God! You are such a flirt.”

He shook his head. “No, you’re the flirt here. All your double meanings and coming here soaking wet and flushed.”

“I didn’t come here specifically. I didn’t even know you were on this floor. You didn’t say. And how would you even know I’m flushed when there’s barely enough light to tell if I’m wearing a bra or not?”

“Not.”

“Excuse me?” I ran my hands through my hair.

“Not wearing one. I could tell the moment I saw you…” He exhaled in a rush, and it sounded pained and erotic, and like my pussy’s next meal. Damn, I was screwed…which could be very good if it was in the literal sense. “And you didn’t ever ask what floor I was on.”

“Well, I guess I thought I’d be seeing you another time and could find out then. I didn’t think I’d be bumping into you again so soon.” Or I would’ve put on a damn bra. Preferably one that made my itty-bitties look like they had their own zip code.

“Disappointed?”

It was my turn to look him up and down. Since I’d seen him in the hall, he’d shed his water-logged clothing in favor of a t-shirt and some dry lounge pants that sat low on his hips. “Far from it.”

He smiled at me. “Good answer.” His hand gripped around the lantern handle. “Come on, let’s go make some food.”

I followed him and the trail of light to the next room to empty counters along with more boxes.

“So, what do you do, survival man?” I asked. He chuckled at the name and grabbed a towel, handing it to me as he pointed at my head. “Thanks.” I wrapped it around my hair and began pulling out the rest of the water that was dripping down my back.

“I work on homes. I’m kind of a jack of all trades in construction.”

“That explains the calloused hands,” I said as I leaned against the counter.

“Ah, you noticed that, huh?” He seemed embarrassed, clenching his fists.

“Oh, yeah.” I had to look away as images filled my mind again.

“My ex hated them.”

My gaze snapped back to him. “What kind of brain damage did she have?”

He barked out a laugh and shook his head. “Damn, girl.”

“What?”

“You know
what
. You saying you liked my hands? Is that why you didn’t want to give it back earlier?” he asked while he pulled a few things out of one of the boxes I saw was marked “Kitchen – Food.”

“I may or may not have been thinking about them while I was in the shower,” I said, embarrassment flooding me. He’d hit the nail on the head. “What is wrong with me today?” I rolled my eyes at myself.

His eyes darkened, his tongue peeking out to wet his lips. He cleared his throat as he adjusted his stance. “I said you were going to be trouble.”

“I swear, it’s your fault. I don’t mean to keep saying things, but, I don’t know, you have this aura that whispers in my ear to say all the things my brain normally tries to filter out.”

He stepped toward me, his hand reaching out and resting on my hip. “That’s called attraction, and since we both feel it, it infects the space around us. It’s also the reason you went looking for me sans bra.”

“I don’t even know you, so that can be a very dangerous thing—including the braless exercise.” I drew in a shuddering breath when his fingers found their way under my tank top. He traced small circles on the small space of now exposed skin.

“I don’t do one-night stands. But I do braless, sweet neighbors with a wicked sense of humor who pretend they don’t have a working flashlight in their apartment even though they’re not still unpacking from a move.”

“Is that supposed to make it okay, and make me want to strip right here and now?” I asked. I set the now wet towel down on the counter and shook out my damp locks. Much better.

He leaned in closer. “While that would be nice, what it means is that I’d like to take you out, more than once. Maybe give that dating thing a try, because attraction is not an issue.”

A small moan slipped past my lips as his hand moved further up the curve of my hip. “Oh, sure… You say that now, but what about when my bra makes a reappearance? You think there’s still going to be something here?”

“I’d like to find out,” he said, his lips ghosting mine.

My eyes closed as I leaned forward to press my lips to his, but he wasn’t there. When I opened them, his jaw was set and his breathing heavy.

“We need to lighten things up, because if I kiss you, I’m not going to stop.”

I whimpered. “Just one little teeny tiny one?”

He let out a pained chuckle. “No. Because you won’t be able to stop either.” He stepped back and returned to setting up the camping stove. “So, to change the topic away from beautiful sirens, their unbelievably strong call, and a black-hole apartment that sucks away bras and flashlights, what do you do?”

My eyes narrowed at him. “I’m beginning to think flashlights are code for something else.” He shrugged his shoulders and smirked at me. “Well, to answer your question, I’m a bookkeeper for a dental office. Nothing exciting, but it pays the bills.”

I watched as he hooked up a canister to the stove, then lit a match. Blue flames that flickered yellow at the ends sprouted from the small device, and he placed a small pan he’d filled with water over it, leaving us waiting for it to boil.

“That doesn’t sound very exciting. Then again, I never wanted a desk job.”

“Is that what steered you into construction?”

He shook his head. “No, it all started when I was in high school. My parents bought this house that was built in 1893, and we worked together to restore it. And that is where the unending affair with the love of my life began.”

“Wait. You restore houses?”

He nodded. “Any old building, actually.”

“That’s kind of exciting, and sounds like fun.”

His fingers worked open the package of pasta, and I couldn’t look away. Damn, how I wanted them on me.

“It is. Things were just built better and with so much care back then. Today it’s all cookie cutter homes, but back then, they were all unique with so many beautiful details.”

My eyebrows shot up. “Wow, you really are passionate about it. Is that why you moved into this place?”

“That, and your building owner wants to return the first floor back to the way it looked before the nice eighties renovation.”

I let out a laugh. “Yeah, it really is terrible.”

“I’m really excited about it. I’ve been researching the building’s history, and you wouldn’t believe all the things this place has seen.”

“Are you going to tell me it was a brothel or something?”

His lips twitched as he poured the box of noodles into the now boiling water. “No, but in its early years there was a speakeasy.”

I smirked and placed my hand on my hip, sticking my chest out a bit. “Got anything to drink to go with our gourmet meal, or is this a dry apartment?”

He quirked his brow at me and tried not to laugh. “Why, Miss, I do believe I’ve got some beer in the fridge.”

“Beer? Camp stoves and lanterns? Are you always so prepared?”

“I was a Boy Scout, and that’s the motto.”

He pulled out a can of chicken and drained it before adding it to the pot of noodles. It smelled good, making my stomach growl.

I jumped when I felt something on me. It was Tristan’s hand.

“There, there,” he said in a teasing tone as he patted my stomach. “It’s almost ready.”

If the light hadn’t been so low, I’m sure he would have seen my cheeks flush.

With a warm bowl in one hand and a still cold beer in the other, we moved back to the only available place to sit—the couch. He cleared off some space on the coffee table to set our dishes and the lantern.

I blew on the hot noodles before sticking the fork in my mouth. A moan slipped past as the warmth of the food spread through me.

“This is good,” I said as I took another bite.

“Thanks. It’s great camp food.”

“Do you do a lot of camping?”

His mouth opened to take a bite, but he paused, then blew on the food, as he tried to cool it off. “I like to go out a couple of times a year. Backpacking with a little bit of car camping.”

My brow scrunched. “What’s the difference?”

He smirked. “Let me guess—you’ve never been camping?”

I shook my head. “City girl through and through.”

“Well, maybe I’ll have to show you.”

“Maybe you will.” I gave him a wink.

“Maybe in a few weeks.”

I nodded. “I do warn you—I’m a girly girl.”

He chuckled. “I got that. Don’t worry, I’ll go easy on you the first time. Here’s a hint—wear a sturdy bra.”

“I was kinda hoping for hard, with a little easy mixed in and no special underwear required.”

He groaned. “Girl…” He cleared his throat and shook his head. “We could do some light car camping to give you the experience.”

“I have a feeling there are many things to experience with you.” He let out a groan. I clenched my eyes shut and sighed. “I’m sorry. Just…just ignore me.”

“Trust me, I’m trying, but you’re making it…hard.”

“
Hard
?” My stomach flipped and my thighs clenched at the thought of him being turned on. Wasn’t I thinking I needed something hard about an hour ago?

“Stop. Please. I can’t take much more,” he said with a groan. His jaw was clenched tight, eyes closed.

“Sorry,” I said and hung my head. What the hell was wrong with me?

“I’m trying not to be
that
guy. The one who meets a girl and fucks her. I don’t like shit like that, but damn… Mia, you make me want to break my own rules and drag you to my bed like a caveman.”

I liked that idea, a lot, but refrained from telling him somehow. My mouth hadn’t cooperated thus far, so I was surprised when it stayed shut. Maybe it was because I could see Tristan was a good guy, and he was trying to stay that way. Couldn’t my sudden slutty side appreciate and respect that?

I placed my hand on his and my skin erupted in goose bumps from the tingling that moved between us. “Thanks for being a stand-up guy.”

He relaxed at that and finished up the rest of his bowl. He grabbed my empty one with his and stood, heading into the kitchen.

The sexual tension that had been lingering in the air morphed into an awkward mood, neither of us knowing what to say.

After rinsing off the dishes, he came back over and sat next to me. My eyes met his, and I gave him a smile as he took my hand in his.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

He smirked. “I figured if we aren’t able to fight off what I’m pretty sure is inevitable, I should at least start with first base.”

Guilt continued to roll through me. “I could always go back to my place. After all, the only reason I left was to get a light.”

His brow scrunched and he released my hand as he scooted away. An ache spread through my chest with each inch of space created.

“If that’s what you want. I can help you out with that.”

I didn’t like this turn of events or how he seemed to take my words, so I grabbed his hand and laced our fingers together. “But the company is so much better here.”