Page 53 of Nuts

He came into the kitchen and walked up behind me. While I turned on the burner for the rice’s water, he rested his chin on my right shoulder.

Then, I felt his breath against my neck.

Oh God.

“Damn, that smells good,” he whispered.

He rested his hands against my waist and peered over me. I knew his gestures were innocent, but my knees went weak nonetheless. I struggled to keep from collapsing, and reached for the bowl of vegetables with a shaking hand.

“It’ll be done in just a minute,” I murmured.

His chest pressed against my back. “Can I taste it?”

His warm breath against my ear caused goosebumps to rise along my upper arm.

My knees did the wobbly thing. Again.

My interaction with men had been limited to minimal kissing and a mountain of blowjobs that led to nothing else. The intimacy of a gentle touch and whispering in my ear were new to me. My body – and mind – were reacting favorably.

But.

I knew his intention wasn’t sexual.

“Test it?” I muttered.

“Taste it.”

“Sure.”

As I fumbled to grab the spoon, he released my waist with his right hand. His muscular chest pressed against my back. My eyes fell closed momentarily. When I opened them, I gasped at the sight of him reaching into the skillet of hot food.

“It’s hot!”

He plucked a small piece of meat from the pan and raised it to his mouth. “Dear God. That’s good. Kind of spicy. And sweet.”

I heard him lick his fingers. Then, he released my waist.

The air shot from my lungs in an inadvertent choppy exhale, a reminder of the emotion that had built within me.

Being touched by him was an incredible feeling.

I wished I could bottle what I was feeling and open it at any time I liked.

“Anything I can do to help?” he asked.

I was so flustered that I had no idea what I was doing, or what my next step was going to be. I knew I needed to finish preparing the meal, but I gazed at the stove, not really knowing what in the hell was going on.

I’d never been in such a state of confusion, especially from someone simply touching me.

“It’ll be uhhm…I’ll have it ready in just a minute,” I stammered.

I tried to rub the goosebumps from my arm, but didn’t totally succeed. I grinned at the feeling of the irregular skin beneath my palm.

“I’ll wash up,” he said.

Or, you could stand behind me with your hands on my waist.

I let out a sigh. “Okay.”