Free Loving the White Liar by Kate Stewart Page A

until I saw her walking down the hall, the phone at her ear as she said “hi.”
    I looked down at mine.
    Jayden: Hey.
    Me: Hey back.
    Jayden: I’ll pick you up tomorrow around six.
    Me: Okay. How was your day?
    Jayden: Shit. Better now.
    Me: Want to talk about it?
    Jayden: Not really. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?
    Me: Anything I can do?
    Jayden: Nothing that won’t compromise my virtue.
    Me: Wouldn’t want that.
    Jayden: I would love a taste of your mouth.
    Me: I’m just a door knock away.
    Jayden: Don’t tempt me.
    Me: It’s my job.
    Jayden: I have to handle my roommate. See you tomorrow.
    Me: That doesn’t sound good. Hope it gets better. See you then. X
    Jayden: You’re good for me. Night, beautiful.
    I stared at my phone in complete agreement that the same was true for me. And that night as I dressed for bed, I walked into the bathroom, noting my reflection was all teeth and gums. If my mother could measure this smile, I was pretty sure I would get her stamp of approval on Jayden.
     

     
    Standing at the helm of the grocery cart with Jayden in front of me, I was completely undecided on what to cook. I’d offered several times to whip something up, but he insisted on cooking for me again. I kept my amusement to myself over his confusion as it weighed heavy over his features. Staring at his perfect ass in his snug fitting jeans, I imagined for the hundredth time what it would feel like to be beneath him. Today he wore a simple, gray, V-neck t-shirt and I noted the words on the back of his right bicep that read, “In the end the love you take is equal to the love you make.”
    A chest tug alerted me to the fact that I was completely enamored by him. He looked at me then and must have seen something in my expression because he smiled before asking under his breath, “How long would you hold it against me if I called my mother now and asked her a question?”
    “I can’t help?” I pushed out through a laugh.
    “Forget it,” he said, throwing a package of tenderloin he’d been studying for five minutes into the cart.
    “Jay, call her. I don’t care really. I do it all the time.”
    “Cool.” He smiled as he grabbed his phone. I motioned that I would be an aisle over, and he nodded then started the conversation with his mother. I left him to it. Clearly, he had something particular in mind, and who was I to criticize since the last thing he cooked me was now a craving?
    I made a mental note to raid his mother’s recipe box if I was ever in the position to.
    I spent a few minutes picking out things for my apartment when I felt Jayden encase me in his arms, his hands on the cart on top of mine. He began walking us forward, mimicking my steps so we stayed close.
    “Miss me?”
    “That and I really don’t want any other man here seeing your ass in those jeans. You are definitely a woman to be jealous over.” My sighing heart fluttered around in my chest, reminding me how good it felt to be coveted. His smell surrounded me as I leaned into him.
    “I love that line,” I said, turning to the side to kiss his cheek.
    “Monroe original,” he said, slipping his arms around my middle before he squeezed me briefly before letting go.
    Monroe. I chuckled. Great, if I married this guy, my initials would be H. A. M. Hilary Amanda Monroe.
    “What’s so funny?” he asked, his lips still close to my ear.
    “Nothing,” I said, surprised I was even thinking about trivial shit like that. I’d just learned his last name and I was already picking out a china pattern.
    Get a grip, Hilary.
    I felt the loss of him as he busied himself shopping for the rest of his ingredients.
    Back at his apartment, he set up an electric fondue pot on his coffee table and opened a bottle of wine.
    “You like fondue?”
    “God, yes, I love it. But you have to let me help you prep.” He seemed to think about it for a long moment before saying, “I guess that would be okay.”
    “Really, Jayden, that much deliberation on a little