Free Pretend With Me (Midnight Society #1) by Jemma Grey Page A

mind that he wouldn’t
mind, and even if he did, I’m sure that I wouldn’t care.
By the time I was done, my belly was practically
screaming to be fed. I opened the cupboards and fridge,
and found they were filled with every type of food I could
imagine.
This was perfect - I loved cooking, as long as there
wasn't anyone around to bug or direct me. I was too
hungry for anything extravagant, so I settled for a butter
and cheese pasta. In a rush I got out all the ingredients and
got to work, munching on cheese bits.
While the pasta was cooking, I dug out Daren's iPod
and connected it to the dock, turning up the volume as
loud as it could go. Soon the entire house was pulsing with
music, and against every painful thing in my life I found
myself singing and dancing to the songs.
I had just finished straining the macaroni and was
mixing in the cheese and butter when I felt someone lay a
hand on my shoulder. Instantly, panic flooded me and I
spun around, using the wooden spoon as my weapon.
“Holy fuck,” I breathed out when I saw Eric standing
in the kitchen, staring at me sheepishly. Every part of me
was shaking, my heart hammered away in my chest, and
my pulse was going crazy in my veins. Then mixing in with
the fear I felt pure anger at him, but moments later I really
saw Eric and all the annoyance drained away. He was
covered in my mixture of melted cheese and butter. It was
splattered on his face and arms, staining his t-shirt and I
couldn't help but grin at the sight before me.
“Oh, so you think this is funny?” he asked pointing to
himself as he took a step closer to me.
“No,” I shook my head but my grin grew wider and
Eric took another step, completely closing the distance
between us. This close I could smell him, and as usual his
scent fogged up my head, making my brain go blank.
“Nope, not funny at all,” I giggled staring up at his face as
I raised the hand I was holding the spoon with and then
swiped the messy, cheesy, buttery end on his face.
“Oh, now you're going to get it,” he smirked and
grabbed both my shoulders, keeping me in place as he
wiped his face all over mine, messing me up. In fits of
screams and giggles, I smacked him with the dirty spoon
and then dashed off. He was instantly behind me, laughing
joyously. I found that I, too, was giggling uncontrollably.
I ran into one of the rooms laughing, then toppled
down on the bed. Eric was instantly at the door sending a
devilish smile at me. He jumped on the bed rolling on top
of me and began tickling me. I was suddenly laughing
uncontrollably. I couldn’t remember the last time I had
laughed like this. He only stopped when I said in between
breaths that I couldn’t breathe, which was kind of true. He
rolled and I was abruptly on top of him now.
“Jen,” he blinked, linking our fingers at the sides of his
head. “Not that I... mind, but why are you in my clothes,”
he smiled.
“Couldn’t find my own,” I frowned, looking
everywhere but his face. I was waiting for him to start
demanding that I get out of them. I waited a full minute
before I let my eyes wander to his face. He was smiling like
a circus clown on stage and I was instantly confused.
“What?”
“Nothing,” his smile grew bigger. “It’s just... I was
expecting something else.”
“You mean like 'if you have a problem with it, take it to
your overpaid shrink'?” I asked smiling back now. In one
movement Eric sat up on the bed, carrying both my weight
and his own without using his hands. Now I was on his
lap, facing him. Already I could feel the air around us
changing into something that was charged. My mouth
went dry and my breathing became uneven. My pulse was
racing, and at any second I felt as though my heart was
going to burst out of my chest, but this time it wasn't
because of fear.
He released my hand and wound both of his hands
around my neck and then through my damp hair. God,
that felt so good, it gave me chills running down my spine.
“Yes, something