in
serious shit.
But that kiss didn't
represent an instant love connection. No, it was undoubtedly the result of not
having had sex for the past few months. He hadn't realized how sex-starved he
was until he'd pulled Eve into his arms.
Her footsteps on the
hardwood floor of the hallway announced her return. She came through the
bathroom door and gave him a handful of screwdrivers of various sizes including
several of the Philhps variety. "Rick and Eunice are gone."
He blinked. "What do
you mean, gone?'
"As
in, not in the kitchen. Your Harley's still parked in the driveway,
though."
"It better be. I have
the keys."
"Hmm."
Eve paused. "They must have headed over to Eunice's house."
"Or
they were both transported into a spaceship for sexual experimentation."
He should have figured on this, knowing his cousin.
"I
think they're at Eunice's house having sex," Eve said.
Probably. The concept made
him uneasy, because Rick was doing what Charlie didn't have the guts to do.
"That's not a given." He picked out a screwdriver and laid the rest
on top of the dryer. Rick wasn't letting geography rule his sex life. Only
Charlie, the uncool one, was doing that.
"I
think it's a given. I—" She was interrupted by the sound of a phone
ringing in the kitchen. "Excuse me a minute."
Charlie
tightened a couple of loose wires while he debated whether he was being a
complete idiot. What kind of guy turned down sex with someone who looked like
Eve? A dope, that's who.
Disgusted
with himself, he closed the top of the washer with a clang. Might as well turn
the thing on and see if it worked. Twisting the knob into position for Permanent
Press, he started the water. So far, so good.
He
listened to the water pouring in and took some satisfaction from this tiny
victory. He might not be man enough to take advantage of a ready-made sexual
situation, but it looked as if he'd managed to fix the washer.
Fixing equipment had always
been his deal. It had started because his dad, the most unhandy guy in the
world, had insisted on trying to repair things, anyway. Charlie had decided at
an early age that if he didn't learn something about electrical appliances, his
dad might burn down the house. Then, to Charlie's surprise, he'd become
fascinated by the subject of electricity.
Eve
walked back into the bathroom, her cordless phone in her hand. She glanced at
the washing machine. "Hey, it works!" Then her eyes widened.
"Did you take out the—"
A
loud thumping noise answered the question. They leaped for the knob at the same
time and collided, which resulted in neither of them getting the washer turned
off.
"I'll
get it!" Eve pushed him aside and turned off the machine. Then she lifted
the lid. "That's not pretty." She clanged the lid shut again.
"I'm
sorry, Eve." Charlie's sense of victory evaporated. The one thing he'd
accomplished had turned out to create more problems than it solved.
"It doesn't
matter."
He
sighed. "It does matter. I'd better take a look." Expecting
something gross, he lifted the lid. Instead he became intrigued by what he
found. "Hey, the candy's floating to the top. Did you know candy
floats?"
"Nope.
It wasn't floating when I looked." She braced her forearms on the top of
the machine and leaned down to get a better view. "What do you know? I
would think it's too dense to float."
"Yeah,
me, too." The chocolate bobbed around in what looked like a pool of
industrial waste. He rested his arms next to hers and hunkered down so their
heads were at the same level.
Her
shoulder touched his in a friendly way. "I didn't want any of that stuff
in the first place, so it doesn't bother me if it's trashed."
When
they stood side by side, their bodies touching at several points, Charlie
couldn't bring himself to care, either. Every time she shifted her weight she
created a soft friction that reminded him of how good she'd felt in his arms.
Friendly was evolving into something much hotter.
"I'm
not surprised that the subscription
serious shit.
But that kiss didn't
represent an instant love connection. No, it was undoubtedly the result of not
having had sex for the past few months. He hadn't realized how sex-starved he
was until he'd pulled Eve into his arms.
Her footsteps on the
hardwood floor of the hallway announced her return. She came through the
bathroom door and gave him a handful of screwdrivers of various sizes including
several of the Philhps variety. "Rick and Eunice are gone."
He blinked. "What do
you mean, gone?'
"As
in, not in the kitchen. Your Harley's still parked in the driveway,
though."
"It better be. I have
the keys."
"Hmm."
Eve paused. "They must have headed over to Eunice's house."
"Or
they were both transported into a spaceship for sexual experimentation."
He should have figured on this, knowing his cousin.
"I
think they're at Eunice's house having sex," Eve said.
Probably. The concept made
him uneasy, because Rick was doing what Charlie didn't have the guts to do.
"That's not a given." He picked out a screwdriver and laid the rest
on top of the dryer. Rick wasn't letting geography rule his sex life. Only
Charlie, the uncool one, was doing that.
"I
think it's a given. I—" She was interrupted by the sound of a phone
ringing in the kitchen. "Excuse me a minute."
Charlie
tightened a couple of loose wires while he debated whether he was being a
complete idiot. What kind of guy turned down sex with someone who looked like
Eve? A dope, that's who.
Disgusted
with himself, he closed the top of the washer with a clang. Might as well turn
the thing on and see if it worked. Twisting the knob into position for Permanent
Press, he started the water. So far, so good.
He
listened to the water pouring in and took some satisfaction from this tiny
victory. He might not be man enough to take advantage of a ready-made sexual
situation, but it looked as if he'd managed to fix the washer.
Fixing equipment had always
been his deal. It had started because his dad, the most unhandy guy in the
world, had insisted on trying to repair things, anyway. Charlie had decided at
an early age that if he didn't learn something about electrical appliances, his
dad might burn down the house. Then, to Charlie's surprise, he'd become
fascinated by the subject of electricity.
Eve
walked back into the bathroom, her cordless phone in her hand. She glanced at
the washing machine. "Hey, it works!" Then her eyes widened.
"Did you take out the—"
A
loud thumping noise answered the question. They leaped for the knob at the same
time and collided, which resulted in neither of them getting the washer turned
off.
"I'll
get it!" Eve pushed him aside and turned off the machine. Then she lifted
the lid. "That's not pretty." She clanged the lid shut again.
"I'm
sorry, Eve." Charlie's sense of victory evaporated. The one thing he'd
accomplished had turned out to create more problems than it solved.
"It doesn't
matter."
He
sighed. "It does matter. I'd better take a look." Expecting
something gross, he lifted the lid. Instead he became intrigued by what he
found. "Hey, the candy's floating to the top. Did you know candy
floats?"
"Nope.
It wasn't floating when I looked." She braced her forearms on the top of
the machine and leaned down to get a better view. "What do you know? I
would think it's too dense to float."
"Yeah,
me, too." The chocolate bobbed around in what looked like a pool of
industrial waste. He rested his arms next to hers and hunkered down so their
heads were at the same level.
Her
shoulder touched his in a friendly way. "I didn't want any of that stuff
in the first place, so it doesn't bother me if it's trashed."
When
they stood side by side, their bodies touching at several points, Charlie
couldn't bring himself to care, either. Every time she shifted her weight she
created a soft friction that reminded him of how good she'd felt in his arms.
Friendly was evolving into something much hotter.
"I'm
not surprised that the subscription
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