Wake to Dream(60)

But even before they could be joined as husband and wife, Max insisted Alice leave the apartment where she’d lived, leaving everything behind except for her clothes and the possessions that were precious.

Her first night living in the house with Max felt like the first night in her life when she’d been able to take a full breath. Gone were the days of a family that didn’t want her. Gone were the sleepless nights where she worried how she’d be able to afford her rent.

Money was no longer her concern.

She was wanted and cherished.

But there were still secrets inside her she needed to express, secrets that needed to be shared before the first night they spent in the same bed together.

“I’m going to cook dinner for us tonight. It’s been a long day for you with the move and it’s the least I can do to help you get settled.”

Max smiled down at her as he led her into the large kitchen and assisted her into a chair at the kitchen island that broke up the interior space.

Rounding the island, he pulled open the fridge and selected several vegetables and a large slab of meat to place on the counter. A knife set sat on the island nearer to Alice, and after placing the meat on a cutting board near the sink where he stood, Max turned around.

Nodding his chin towards the island, he had an easy grin on his lips when he asked, “Would you mind handing that to me?”

His sparkling blue eyes locked to hers, an arrogant tilt to his full lips that made her shift nervously in her seat. He was beautiful in any situation, but in his home, in the place where he felt most comfortable, he was absolutely divine. Wavy hair, black as a raven’s shimmering feather, hung loosely over one side of his face and concealed his scar. Alice swallowed down a knot in her throat. She was nervous around him suddenly, nervous about what the night might bring. Lost in thought, and mesmerized by the man that stood before her, she blushed when she realized he was waiting for something from her.

“I’m sorry, what?”

He laughed, the sound charming and full of humor. "The cleaver," he explained. “Would you hand it to me, please?”

“Oh!” Lips rounding on the word, she felt her cheeks heat up even more, her arm moving quickly to pick up the heavy utensil and reach over the island to place it in his palm.

Settling back down into her seat she realized there was something about this man that flustered her completely. How she’d be able to keep her senses around him, she wasn’t sure.

It was an entirely new situation for Alice, one where she wasn’t judged or criticized. But there were still things in her life he didn’t know or understand. Her stomach churned with anxiety because she had no choice anymore but to tell him.

Before she could conjure enough bravery to mention the subject, Max glanced at her from over his shoulder. "I hope you like your steak rare. Personally, I prefer when the meat is warm, but tender, easy to slice and chew, the blood running hot and thick against the tongue."

Her smile wavered, dark thoughts a shadow over the enjoyment she should have felt about the evening. “Rare is fine. Just as long as it’s warm and not mooing at me from the table.”

Winking his eye in response to her answer, he turned his back on her again to chop the slab of meat into individual steaks.

“Hey, Max?”

The motion of his hand didn’t stop when she spoke, the rhythmic chopping never paused or faltered when he answered, “Hey, Alice.”

Swallowing down her pride, she squeezed her hands into fists on her lap, her nails cutting ridges into the skin of her palm.

“I need to tell you something.”

The chopping stopped, his head spinning just enough where he could cast a cursory glance at her from over his shoulder. “Cold feet already?”

Soft laughter bubbled up from her lungs. “No, nothing like that. Although,” her voice lowered to a practical whisper, “You might have cold feet after what I have to say to you.”

The cleaver fell heavily on the counter to his side, his entire body turning now so he could give her his full attention.

“I doubt there is anything you can tell me that would cause that to happen. We all have secrets, Alice. Some of us far darker than others.”

Shifting restlessly in her seat, Alice failed to notice the shadows behind his eyes as she clenched and released her hands in her lap, pins and needles shooting along her arms with how hard she curled her fingers.

So focused on her own insecurities, she missed the dark secrets behind his words that should have been the first sign there was more to Max than she knew.

“I assume, and I may be wrong, but I assume you want me to sleep in your bed tonight.”

His eyes were wary, his full lips pulling into a thin line. She wasn’t sure what thoughts were running through his head, or if she’d just invited herself to a place where he hadn’t yet intended for her to go. However, it was a subject that needed attention, regardless. Max had every right to know.

Forcing herself to speak clearly, she finally blurted out, “I have certain issues that I’ve had since I was a young child. Issues that, for the most part, are the reason I don’t speak to my family much anymore.”

Stepping forward, he rested his forearms on the kitchen island, his eyes level with hers when he said, “You have my undivided attention.”

Her eyes closed and she breathed in a steadying breath to ready herself for a conversation that revealed something about herself that only her family, and a psychologist who treated her as a child, had known.