Free Taking Something by Elizabeth Lee

should have been thrilled that she was giving me the time of day. I sucked it up and rubbed up on her for a while. Kissed her and told her she was pretty.
    I finally gave into her advances and let her give me a blowjob. That seemed to appease her need for affection. I know, I know. It was a fucked-up system, seeing as how I was the one who was actually gratified, but when she finished, she curled up next to me like a happy little kitten and fell asleep. I welcomed the silence. I was starting to think the only time I enjoyed being with her was when she was sleeping.

    “Sneaking out again?” Gia smirked. “For breakfast?”
    I took a seat on one of the stools across the island from her and just smiled at her jab. I watched her for moment. She was repeating the same actions as before. Making breakfast for Sadie. Slicing fruit. Buttering toast. Placing it meticulously on a white lacquered tray. What a tedious job.
    I'd made a point to be up and out of the house by the time Gia had arrived. Telling Sadie that I’d wanted to get started on work before our studio session started. The truth? I needed to breathe. I needed some alone time to remind myself why I was doing what I was doing. Neither Sadie nor Gia helped do that. Both of them made my head hurt. Sadie with her neediness and Gia with her get-the-fuck-away-from-me.
    “How about you pour me a cup of coffee, sweet pea?” I finally spoke, breaking the trance her graceful hands had on me and pointing at steaming coffee press between us. She sighed and placed the knife she was holding down on the counter. With her empty hands firmly placed down on the marble, she looked up at me.
    “Look, sweet pea ,” she lipped. “I've got enough people to wait on and one of them actually pays me for it. If you want a cup of coffee, I suggest you get up off your self-entitled ass and pour one.”
    My feet were on the floor and leading me around the counter to the cabinets before I had a chance to realize what I was doing. It must have been the look in her eyes. Or maybe I just felt like not being a jerk. I needed to be on her good side before I asked her the question I'd been thinking about all night.
    “Mugs are in the one next to the fridge,” she told me, picking up her knife to continue her job.
    “Thanks,” I replied, grateful that her civility was quick to return, and grabbed a mug. I moved over next to her. The sweet smell of the fruit coupled with the scent of her shampoo or soap—or maybe it was just her—had my mouth watering. Then she looked over and smiled at me, watching as I poured the coffee. Barely any makeup was on her face and her chocolate hair was flowing down to the middle of her back, un-styled.
    Not my normal type, but something about her had me swallowing hard. And apparently daydreaming, because as I was watching her, I decided I was going to fill my hand with scalding hot coffee instead of the mug it was holding.
    “Son of a bitch!” I seethed.
    Gia reacted quickly, pulling a washcloth from the drawer and soaking it with cool water. She was at my side, placing it on my stinging hand.
    “Let me see,” she said sweetly, her eyes full of concern. She pulled back the rag and lifted my hand up. “I don't think it's going to blister.”
    God, she's beautiful.
    The look of concern on her face. The feel of her hand in mine. I had to remind myself to take a breath. I wanted more than anything to reach out and touch her face. Her warm, caring, concerned face.
    “Thank you,” I said, removing the rag from her hand and placing it back on the burn. She released her hand from mine and I took a step back. There was only one other person who had looked at me the way Gia was and we all know how that ended. I couldn't let myself get wrapped up in the idea that another person could actually care about me. And I sure as hell didn't deserve her compassion. I had been a total dick to her.
    “That's beautiful,” she said, reaching over and trailing her fingers across