by Vivien Vale
Granted, I know she loves to cook, and I’ve witnessed her in the kitchen working her magic, but…
Rose can’t be in the kitchen cooking because Rose is in here with me.
She’s still sleeping soundly beside me. I watch as her chest peacefully rises and falls with each breath.
If she’s in the bedroom with me, then who the hell is in my kitchen cooking right now?
I have to get to the bottom of this. I roll over in the bed and plant my bare feet on the cool hardwood floors.
I carefully retrieve my arm from under Rose’s head. It tingles with numbness from falling asleep under her.
I shake it out once I climb out of the bed, careful with my movements to make sure she doesn’t stir or wake up.
I walk over to the other side of my bedroom and pull out a pair of boxers from my drawer, pulling them over my exposed cock. I’m guessing that whoever is in my kitchen won’t be interested in seeing my morning wood in all its glory.
I shuffle across the room and place my hand on the door knob. As soon as I pull it open, I gasp with shock at who’s standing on the other side of the door.
Instinctively, I wince with embarrassment and flash a glance back at Rose in the bed. Thankfully, she’s covered up with the comforter. Her petite little body is small and swallowed whole by the huge sheets on top of her.
I look back at my mother and stare in surprise.
“Mom…” I laugh nervously and scratch my bed head. “What are you…um…what are you doing here?”
My mom has a bright, beaming ray-of-sunshine type of smile plastered across her heavily made-up face.
I continue to stare at her, wondering when she’s going to give me a reasonable explanation for her presence outside of my bedroom door when I’m only wearing a pair of boxers and there’s a naked girl sleeping in my bed.
I’m trying to swallow my panic, but as I gulp hard and attempt the impression of a delighted grin at seeing her, I’m visibly sweating.
“Oh, darling,” my mom grazes my bare chest with her fingertips, “I just thought I’d give you guys a treat this morning.”
I gulp and turn around, giving my secret away by continually glancing at Rose. “Um…us?” I say with a skull full of anxiety as I push her out the door and gently close it shut behind me.
“Of course, sweetie.” My mom’s laugh tickles the air as if I’m an idiot to assume she’s unaware of what’s going on here. “I wanted to do something nice for you and your lady friend.”
Lady friend? What the hell is my mom doing here, trying to kill me with humiliation? I may be an adult now, but I have limits when it comes to my mother invading my personal space and sniffing out a female…companion in my apartment.
Before I have a chance to protest any of this ridiculousness, my mom quickly skirts back down the hallway in the direction from which she came…the kitchen.
She must need to check on the bacon to make sure it’s not burning in the pan or something. For a moment or two, I can’t move a single muscle. In theory, I should be chasing after her, begging her to go home.
Maybe I can take the credit for breakfast, and I’ll get a special dessert treat of my own from Rose?
No, I can’t own up to all that cooking. Rose wouldn’t believe me for an instant.
Instead, I’m frozen in place, unable to move, and paralyzed by the shock of the events that are unfolding.
I’m a little lost, struggling to determine how my mom got into my penthouse in the first place, until I remember one monumental detail.
I had given my mother a key a while back―you know, when I was single and not looking at the prospect of a serious relationship.
Hearing my own voice ring through my head, I did the unimaginable: I told my mother she was welcome anytime.
Shit. What the hell have I done?
Honestly, remembering back, this isn’t the first time my mom has stopped by for a ‘friendly’ type of visit.
She likes to show up unannounced sometimes, whenever she feels like it or has leisure time. I suppose I should feel grateful that she cares enough about me to stop by, but enough is enough.
Why am I so surprised to see her here this morning you ask, as if I should be used to it? Well, to be honest, all the other times she’s done this, I haven’t had a naked girl in my bed.
I’m not interested in getting smothered by an overbearing mother, and I certainly don’t want Rose to have to endure that torture, either.
On the other hand…
Rose comes from a big family as well. Perhaps she’ll take it all in stride and find the whole ordeal comical.
Well, that’s what I’m hoping for, at least.
I take a deep breath and lean against the wall in my hallway, needing a few seconds to compose myself.
Okay, I think I’m calm enough to go back to bed and face my fears. I need to wake Rose up and give her a little fair warning of the over-indulgent and over-the-top mother figure who is probably whistling a tune and dancing through my kitchen with a spatula in hand.
I close the door behind me and lock it―you know, for good measure and all. If my mom has no reservations about helping herself to free reign of my house, then she probably wouldn’t have any inhibitions about waltzing herself directly into my private bedroom suite.
I stand over Rose for a few seconds, watching her sleep. She looks so content, so beautiful.
Her hair spills across the pillow in long flowing locks that resemble feathers. I hate to disturb her from her peaceful slumber, but the inevitable is calling―in the form of my mother setting a table for breakfast in the nook just outside the kitchen.
Gently, I graze a hand over her head, trailing my fingertips through her hair until they become intertwined with the wispy, delicate strands.
She stirs, but doesn’t rouse quite yet. Sighing contentedly, she rolls over in the bed―but her eyes don’t open.
“Rose?” I lightly tug at her shoulder. “Rose?”
“Mmm?” She grins in her sleep. “Daniel, is that you?”
“It’s me,” I tell her, not whispering any longer because I want to get this over with.
She opens her eyes and blinks, furrowing her brow in confusion. Then, she reaches up for me and gives me a sexy little smile.
“What are you doing out of bed and all the way up there?” she whispers seductively and licks her lips.
Damn, she’s sultry, and her beckoning is really swaying me here.
There’s nothing I love more in this world than a horny woman who’s just woken up from a tender sleep.
Something about her smell, her taste, and the softness of her skin entices me as she glows with radiance under the sheets.
My sheets.
I really fucking love seeing her in my bed. I could get used to that.
I squeeze my eyes shut and shake my head, trying to distract myself with the thought of my mother rifling through my kitchen for gadgets.
“Daniel?”
I open my eyes at the sound of Rose’s alarmed voice. She props herself up on her elbows and stares at me with guarded caution.
“What is it? Why aren’t you coming back to bed? What time is it?”
Her voice sounds suspicious and frantic, so I ease myself slowly to a sitting position beside her on the bed. I take her hands in mine, cupping them together to cradle them.
“There’s nothing wrong,” I reassure her and give her a warm, genuine smile.
Rose’s shoulders sag in visible relief. “Okay.” She grins and bites her lip again, moving her legs in the bed. “Is it early still?”
“That depends.” I laugh nervously. “Is ten o’clock in the morning too early to have breakfast?”
Rose giggles, giving me an inspecting glance. “What is up with you today?”
I heave a dramatic sigh and decide to just rip off the Band-Aid, right then and there.
“Well…” I chuckle. “I have a confession to make.”
Rose pretends to be freaked out. “Oh,
god. Not another confession.”
I playfully give her a little nudge, to which she responds with a fit of giggles, withering around in the sheets and squealing with delight as if I’m tickling her to death.
“Shh…” I hold her down.
She brushes the hair off her face and glances around with suspicion.
“What’s going on, Daniel?” This time, her voice is firmer than before, demanding.
“Okay, look,” I say, with a gesture to the bedroom door. “My mom is here, and she’s cooked us breakfast.”
The look on her face is exactly how I feel: Oh, shit.
Yeah, fucking tell me about it.
Chapter 29
Rose
Okay, now he has my attention―but not quite in the best way possible. I jolt up in bed, sitting up in a lurch. I expel a nervous laugh, a sound almost unrecognizable to my ears.
“Um…what?” I ask, needing confirmation that I’m not still dreaming. I’m trying not to freak out, but I’m shocked for sure.
I feel sorry for Daniel. He looks downright freaked out, and his face is stark white like the sheets underneath me.
“I’m so sorry…” He trails off.
I exhale sharply and brush the hair off my cheek, giving him a smile and a reassuring nod.
“It’s okay…really.”
“Wow.” Daniel looks amazed.
“Wow what?” I laugh and scratch my elbow, feeling awkward and waiting for instructions on what I should do next.
Daniel shakes his head and disbelief and glances at my knees with a smile. “Nothing, it’s just…wow…you are completely fucking amazing.”
I stroke his cheek. “What makes you say that?”
“I just told you my mom let herself in and is helping herself to my kitchen to prepare a full on feast for us, and you aren’t even upset.” Daniel glances at me as if I’m his new hero.
I just laugh, taking it all in stride. “Well, you didn’t exactly tell me that she let herself in.”
Daniel feigns sheepishness and rubs the thick hair on his head. “Did I forget to mention that?” he jokes.
“Oh, stop it.” I laugh and tease him by tossing the pillow behind my back at him.
Inside my head, though, the fact that his mother has a key and traipses around whenever she pleases is slightly unnerving, but I choose to keep that information to myself because Daniel looks stressed out enough as it is right now.
“So…” he grins as if he’s getting ready to ask a huge favor for which he’ll be forever in my debt.
“Just go ahead and spit it out.” I sigh, appeasing him with a roll of my eyes.
Daniel pats my knee. “You are so fucking great.”
“So, let me guess, we need to go and eat what she’s cooked for us?” I grin with a twinkle in my eye.
“Pretty much, yeah,” Daniel says.
“Looks like there’s more than one pussy in this room,” I tease him with a wink.
“Oh, now you’re going to get it for that one, missy.” Daniel picks me up by the hips and throws me back down playfully, holding me down as he tickles me, making me giggle and shriek.
“Stop it,” I demand and thrash around, laughing.
He finally lets me go, and we’re both panting―and hungry. I can smell bacon seeping under the door, the scent wafting down the hall from the kitchen.
I throw the blankets off my naked body and pull a modest pink t-shirt over my head and the same jeans I wore the night before.
“Are you ready to get this over with?” Daniel casts me a grin as he jumps into a pair of shorts and throws a black t-shirt over his head that reads ‘Brooklyn Nets’.
“Not quite yet.” I laugh as if he’s insane. “I need to brush my teeth and brush my hair, not to mention blot on some foundation.”
“You don’t have to do all that.” Daniel waves his hand dismissively. “It’s just Mom.”
I clear my throat and raise an eyebrow at him. “Um, are you kidding?”
“What?” He laughs, adorably clueless.
“Correction,” I tell him. “She’s your mom, not mine. I need to look presentable for her.”
Daniel strolls over to my side and wraps his arms around my waist. We sway back and forth as if we’re at a junior prom dance or something, grinning at each other with giddy expressions.
“I think you’re already gorgeous,” he whispers as he tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear.
“Thanks, but I’m still not convinced I don’t need to at least run a comb through my hair,” I tell him and swat him away.
I run to the bathroom to get mildly presentable and then follow Daniel to his kitchen where my heart beats with frantic anxiety.
When we get to the kitchen, Daniel’s mother is wearing a floral print apron (where it came from, I have no fucking idea), and she’s pouring orange juice into tall glasses that sit on the kitchen table.
“Wow, Mom, you really went all out this time,” Daniel says.
This time? So, does that mean this happens often?
I plant a polite smile on my face and wait for introductions. Once we get that over with, his mom beams at us, instructing me and Daniel to sit down and enjoy the lavish spread she’s presenting.
“Everything looks delicious,” I tell her.
Daniel’s mom has been grinning ear-to-ear ever since we walked in the room. Normally, I would find this sort of behavior unnatural and fake, but there’s nothing about Daniel’s mom that seems like she’s faking it right now. She seems lighthearted and genuinely fun.
No wonder he gave her a key with unlimited access to his life.
I bite into the most decadently fluffy mountain of pancakes that I’ve ever seen in my life. They literally melt in my mouth, and I groan with approval.
“Oh, my goodness,” I swallow the amazing bite and dab my mouth with the napkin in my lap. “These are phenomenal.”
“Truly outstanding, Mom.” Daniel smiles and raises his glass for me to do a toast with him.
“Seriously,” I say and cut into a piece of sausage, dipping it into a pond of syrup on my plate. “Can you do this for me every day?” I joke and glance at Daniel who tosses me a flirtatious wink.
“Sweetie, you just sit back and relax, eat to your heart’s content, and I’ll take care of everything.” She pats my shoulder with amusement.
“Thank you,” I say and continue to dive in, gobbling the food down just as she’s instructing.
“So…” she begins. “What’s your name?”
She means no harm by the question. I know she’s just making polite and friendly conversation. Even still, I involuntarily tense up and toss a subtle glance at Daniel who coaxes me along with a nod.
“Um…” I clear my throat and wipe my mouth on the napkin again. “I’m Rose.” I smile up at her with a mouthful of food, feeling embarrassed.
“Rose,” his mom says as she closes the fridge behind us and walks back over to the table. “I like that name. Very classic. A beauty, just like you.”
I blush at her compliment and bow my head. “Thank you.”
“How did you two meet each other? What’s the story there?” She looks between us, and I imagine that the question is up for grabs.
I’ll let Daniel cover this one.
“Mom,” he says and casually points the fork in his hand in my direction. “You remember Rose.”
His mom glances at me with a furrowed brow, investigating me while she tries to rack her memory. “I do?”
“Yeah…” he says. “Well, you remember me telling you about her, anyway.” He laughs and takes a bite of egg. “She’s the one I met at the tea shop.”
He told her about me? I feel my chest swell, knowing that he’s been talking about me to his mother.
“Oh right.” She flicks her forehead as if she’s a scatterbrain.
“How long have you two been together?” She eyes me, and I know this one is directed at me, so I have no choice but to answer.
I shift uncomfortably
in my seat, but try to make the act as subtle as possible. “Um…one month.”
Regardless of all the answers, his mom seems positively delighted. “Well,” she states and sits down next to me, “I have to say it’s such a pleasure to meet you, Rose. I just hate that it’s under these circumstances.”
She gives her son a lecturing glance, and he shrugs with a grin.
“It’s lovely to meet you, too,” I say shyly and look down at my plate which is now swimming in syrup.
“I do genuinely apologize,” she says again and places a heartfelt hand to her chest. “I show up unannounced sometimes, and that gets on Daniel’s nerves.”
“It’s really fine.” I dismiss her apology politely with a wave of my hand.
“I usually try to drop by when I most suspect that Daniel won’t have anyone with him,” she explains. “Ah, well.” She claps her hands together and makes me jump. “I thought I’d make the best of a sticky situation,” she laughs.
“No pun intended, eh, Ma?” Daniel chuckles and points his knife to his plate that’s also drowning in syrup.
“Oh, you kids just eat and don’t fuss over me.” She waves a hand at all the food and stands up again to clear some of the empty dishes off the table.
I eat as much as I can, under the circumstances, because let’s face it…I’m nervous as hell.
This isn’t exactly the way I wanted to meet Daniel’s mother. I haven’t even showered yet. Internally, I struggle with self-doubt.
What if his mom is just being polite? What if she really thinks I’m a whore and I should leave her son alone?
It’s an answer I want to know but have no true way to ask.
Once we finish eating, Daniel stretches and yawns, rubbing his full belly. He has all but recovered from the awkwardness.
I just roll my eyes. It’s a typical male thing to do. As soon as their mommies come around with food, they become different people.
They’re all the same, but I just brush it off in my head. He’s perfect in so many other ways, and besides, he’s just…well, normal, actually. It’s nice to see that.
Daniel brings his plate to the kitchen along with mine. “Thank you for that amazing breakfast, Mom,” he tells her gratefully and plants a kiss on her forehead. “You outdid yourself this time.”