I gasp because I know where this is leading. “No way.”
He smiles, winking a sparkling eye. “Oh way.”
“But how? You’re only a few years out of culinary school.”
“That’s true but I’ve been working in a Michelin-star restaurant for six years. That helps.”
I throw my arms around him and kiss his cheek. “I’m so happy for you.”
Wyatt taps my shoulder and I unwrap from Knox. “Um, hi. Since you said this involves all of us, do you want to clue us in to your little short-cut language you have going on?”
Oh, that’s true. How does this involve them?
Knox smiles at my confused face, then turns to Wyatt. “Meet the new consultant for Buccola and Dramberry International. You just won me.”
Oh no. Lillie is going to blow a gasket. “Uh, okay. That’s…awesome.”
Wyatt slaps the back of Knox’s neck. “You should have led with that, man. This should be interesting.”
Knox raises an inquisitive brow.
I just shrug and lie back in the seat, patting his leg.
*
“We better go to bed because we have to get up early.” I sit on the side of the bed, pulling off my shoes. I’m still giddy from winning but I’m so tired. Wyatt and I agreed we’d tell Mama we won together tomorrow afternoon once we land, since it’s after midnight in Austin.
Knox is in the bathroom and when the toilet flushes, I shake my head. We’re already an old married couple. Spending almost every waking moment trying to get inside the head of your opponent for four years will do that to a couple, I guess. I probably know Knox better than I know myself although I’m feeling closer to me these days.
He turns on the shower and comes into the room completely naked, and surprisingly my attention is drawn to his tattoo of all things. Clearly, I’m past tired if I’ve overlooked the incredibly hot body attached to it. It reminds me of his aunt’s house and the paintings. He says, “Do you want to take a shower?”
“Uh, yeah. You don’t even want to know what I’m covered in.”
He laughs. “Probably not. But I meant with me.”
I nod and stand, a smile on my face. I’ll never not want to take a shower with Knox, even if it’s only a shower.
I shrug out of the rest of my clothes and throw them into my suitcase. Everything’s packed except my jeans and sweater for tomorrow’s airplane trip back. When I slip into the shower, the hot water unlocks my tense muscles and I nearly slump to the tiled floor. Knox is there as always, ready to hold me up whenever I need it. I vow to myself to be that person for him too.
We soap each other up, and when I get to his chest, I take special care to really take in the painting there. “Are you sad when you see your aunt and she looks so much like your mother?”
The corners of his mouth drag down for a moment, but then he shakes his head. “No. It’s nice to be around her because she has mannerisms like Mom, and although I was young, those are the things I remember most about her. Second to that is the cooking, which my aunt can’t do to save her life.” He chuckles and uses the washcloth in his hand to wash my neck then shoulders, slowly working his way down.
“You look so much like your mom, more so even than Weston and Declan, although anyone could tell you’re brothers. But your hair is so different. I’m curious where you got your black hair.”
“Height and hair color came by way of the Everhearts.”
“But your father’s hair is brown, not even really dark brown.”
He nods and bends to wash my legs and feet. “Yeah, but my grandmother’s family was from Wales. They all have the midnight-black hair, but somehow it skipped my dad’s generation. Neither he nor my uncles have it.” He stands back up and rinses the cloth under the shower spray.
“Wow, genetics are really something. Well whatever happened, you got all the really good genes.” I smile and reach up to kiss him, our slick bodies sliding against each other in the small shower. Suddenly I’m not feeling quite as tired as before as our kiss becomes more urgent.
We fall into the bed and I’m not sure if we’re facing up or down because we’re all lips and hands and tingles. Sex with Knox is like a hike through a forest of redwoods. He worships my body and takes his time, but we have places to go early in the morning and we were up until late last night. “I’m ready. Let’s go.”
The warmth of his laugh tickles my ear, and I dig my fingers into his hair, still wet from the shower.
He tears a foil packet open and with the bathroom light filtering through into the room, I can see every crinkle next to his eyes when Knox enters me, reflecting a type of painful pleasure. When we move against each other, his face relaxes but his crystalline topaz eyes light on fire.
I clench around him, the thousands of tiny nerve endings inside me reaching for him, bringing him closer, capturing everything he’s giving me, and never wanting to let it go. My release doesn’t take long and when I come, I only call his name.
Pâté de Campagne
3/4 cup cognac
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup onion, chopped fine
2 1/2 pounds ground pork
1/2 pound chicken liver, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, pressed
2 1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup whipping cream
Bacon slices (enough to line 9x5x3-inch pan)
Coarse sea salt
Preheat to 350 degrees. In a saucepan, boil cognac until reduced
