kitchen counter until he heard a slight crack of the wood. Forcing himself to pull his hands away, a long, deep growl rose inside him. The dark noise sounded as though it came from the pit of hell itself. Anger replaced all other emotions.
Grabbing the cheese and two pieces of questionable bread, he put a skillet on the stove to heat. He opened the refrigerator door again, hoping some butter would magically appear. Too bad Kayley’s sister wasn’t here, he’d heard she could conjure anything. A handy skill to have in the extended family tree. Rafe was damn happy Roark had found his mate. Even more so that she was a witch and their love had broken the spell. Now, he was free to pursue Julie.
After he got rid of the damn bounty on her head. The first thing he was going to do after he had her fed and settled, was to pay his former boss a little visit.
He placed the unbuttered bread on the skillet and topped it with the cheese. It would be dry as dust but at least it would be healthy. He would need to go to the grocery tonight or early in the morning so she would have something for breakfast.
Thinking of the trolls and shifters he’d already faced, he knew he couldn’t leave her alone. Roark was on his honeymoon, having delayed it until his new wife could get time off from work. Remington, curse his ornery hide had better get back to him pronto. Listening for the shower to end, he placed the sandwich on the back of the stove to keep warm as he pulled the milk from the fridge, his mind already spinning with plans. Maybe there was a store in town that would deliver.
By the time Julie came back downstairs, Roark had the makeshift meal on the breakfast bar. The kitchen in her house wasn’t even large enough for a small table. Her scent entered the room before she did. He drew in a lungful of the sweet scent before he turned around to face her. She’d piled her hair into a loose knot on top of her head, making him think how much he wanted to press his lips against the soft white skin of her nape. She’d dressed in a pair of knit lounging pants topped with a large, oversized long sleeved t-shirt. She looked so damn small. And vulnerable. Her face was scrubbed clean, reminding him of a child ready to go to bed.
Except there was nothing childlike about her body. Seeing the thrust of her breasts against the material of her shirt, his dick hardened behind the zipper of his jeans. Again. He barely resisted the urge to arrange his equipment into a more comfortable position. Shaken by the depth of his longing for her, he clenched his hands by his sides, fighting the urge to pull her into his arms, sweep away the food and lift her onto the counter so he could ravage her.
“Eat.” The timber of his voice reflected the turmoil churning inside him.
She nudged those adorable glasses up her nose before sitting down. He pushed a plate in front of her. She picked up the sandwich and took a small bite from the corner. “Aren’t you eating?” she asked.
He ignored her question. Even if there had been enough food for the both of them, he wasn’t sure he could have eaten. She was beautiful. So damn beautiful. For a moment he was afraid she wouldn’t eat, then she took another bite and then another.
Silence reigned as Julie ate her sandwich and drank the glass of milk Rafe had poured for her. He looked so different than he had from before. Older, more serious. His charm and wit had been the first thing—okay, so not the first thing, that had been his smoking hot body—that had drawn her to him. She’d lived alone and lonely for so long, the thought of being with someone so full of life had been intoxicating.
She stood, unsure what to do now. As she brushed the crumbs from the counter onto her plate, she thought of her life before Rafe had roared into it. She’d lost her adoptive parents in an automobile accident when she was just out of high school. That event had changed the course of her destiny in more than one way.