Free Home for Love (An Adult Contemporary Romance) by Aneesa Price

will soon, I promise,” he stated,
sounding too much like he was enjoying himself.
    Todd unceremoniously plonked her in the
shower and turned the tap on. “I would’ve undressed you, but I didn’t feel like
bearing scratch marks for the rest of the week. So, have the shower, get the
fog out of your brain, and come get some breakfast. I’ve already put clothes
out next to the bath.”
    Peeling off the wet clothes, Bree found
a new target to aim her cursing at. As much as it pained her to admit it
though, the Neanderthal did have a point about the shower. The pounding of the
warm water on her skin, streaming through her hair had a way of washing away
some of the haziness.
    Dressed and feeling better, Bree joined
Todd in the kitchen for breakfast. She didn’t really feel like eating but under
Todd’s eagle-eyed stare, swallowed down little bites until again, he was right,
and she started feeling more human.
    “Looks like the predictions were right,”
Todd threw in, leaning back in his chair while she ate. He’d eaten the
equivalent of a horse for breakfast and his stomach was still as flat as ever.
    Oh! Stomach! Bree had brief visions of
her hand trailing over his flat, hard stomach, teasing the little hairs along
the path to his…Cripes! Was that real or a dream? There was no way to fool
herself, it had been real all right.
    “The storm is over, Bree,” Todd
interrupted her panicked thoughts and steamy memories.
    “Huh?” Bree looked up at him, flinching
at the concern showing in his eyes. “Oh yes, the storm. I’m glad it’s over. I
miss Amber.” Taking their plates to the sink, she turned around and asked him,
“What happened last night, Todd?”
    “We had dinner, played cards, watched a
movie, and you got a bit drunk,” he replied.
    “And that’s all?” Bree quirked a brow in
inquiry.
    “Yep. Why? Did you have some steamy
dreams about me, Bree?” Todd teased.
    “No,” Bree shook her head, “just asking
as I’ve never been drunk before.”
    Todd threw her a lifeline and changed
the topic, “Should we see if the phones are back up?”
    “Oh, yes,” agreed Bree, “I’d love to
hear my,” she stopped and looked at him; considered. “I’d love to hear our
baby’s voice.”
     
    xxx
     
    “So, how are things with you and Todd?”
asked Shelly, her voice and manner all business.
    “Oh, I don’t know,” responded Bree. At
the steely stare leveled at her, she continued quickly, laughing, “Don’t look
at me like that. I’m telling you truthfully. I don’t know.”
    “He’s been a bit odd lately,” added
Bree. “The day after the storm…”
    “When you had a hangover,” Shelly interjected,
grinning broadly.
    “Yes, you dog. And thanks for rubbing it
in,” Bree mockingly slapped her friend’s arm.
    “Oh, I remember a prim and proper miss
who wouldn’t let vile alcohol touch her lips,” Shelly responded. “You bet I’m
rubbing it in for as long as I can. About time you let loose a bit.”
    “Nuh-uh, ain’t gonna happen,” stated
Bree. “That one experience was enough thank you.”
    “We’ll see,” was Shelly’s cryptic
response. “Anyway, you were talking about you and Todd.”
    “Yes,” nodded Bree, “He’s just been a
bit distant since then. At first, I wondered if something had happened between
us. I mean, I had all these steamy images from the night before, but he denies
them.”
    “Steamy images?” asked Shelly, leaning
forward expectantly. “Do pray, tell.”
    “There’s nothing to tell,” Bree grinned
at her direct friend. “Did you not here the part about ‘he denied it’?”
    “Nope,” Shelly shook her head
disappointingly. “I was stuck at ‘steamy images’. You gonna make those images a
reality?”
    “No,” Bree stated, firmly.
    “The lady doth protest too much,”
quipped Shelly.
    “Oh, no,” disagreed Bree. “This lady has
been there, done that, and got the baby. And the only thing that lasted is the
baby. Love like Todd and I had