Summer to Winter

Chapter Eighteen

They were turning the corner to Syden's street as Henry's stomach growled loudly. "Oh, I guess I'm hungry again." He laughed. "Do you want to go out and grab some dinner?"

"We are all still a little wet and cold... I have a better idea. Do you want to come in? We can blow dry the rest of the wetness off Kal with Eric's ShopVac. You can get a fire started while I make dinner and we can all watch a movie?" As soon as she said it, her heart fluttered. WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU? Stop being so impulsive! Why in the world would this handsome man want to hang out with you at home? Syden would kick her own stupid butt if she could. Idiot...

Sy had been enjoying her time with Henry. She hadn't been alone with a man that wasn't Eric in years. She had been on a series of truly terrible blind dates but had never felt as comfortable with them as she did with Henry. There was always a lingering doubt in the back of her head that there was no way this gorgeous man would ever be interested in someone mousey like her. That may have been why she was so free and uninhibited with him. There was no pressure to try to impress him since there would never be a chance in a million years that he would every look at her than more than a friend. She didn't care if he heard her sing off-key or saw her chubby legs in yoga pants. There was a lot of familiarity with him, which may have been why she slipped up and invited him to stay for dinner and movie. It's what she and Eric usually did.

"That sounds wonderful." What did he just say? Syden turned her head to hide the shocked look on her face.

"Cool! Let's get this boy dry!" She opened the back hatch and he was still lying down, the look on his face saying, 'You humans need to pick me up, I'm a tired boy.'

Henry laughed, "I think he's tired. Good job."

Kal begrudgingly jumped out and gave himself a large, slow shake out. "Okay, boyfriend, lets get you to the backyard." Syden walked to the side gate and let them into the yard and towards the workshop behind the garage. She pulled out the ShopVac and started unplugging and re-plugging hoses. Why is he staring at me? I'm pretty sure I'm doing this right... It HAS been a while since I blew Emma dry, but... no... this is right... right? Ugh

"Okay Kal, c'mon over..." She straddled Kal between her legs and started blowing out the fur on his butt.

"Do you want help?" He asked, noticing that she didn't really need it.

"Nah! Why don't you start grabbing wood from the shop and bringing it to the back door? I don't think we will need too much tonight." She continued to blow dry.

Kal stood still the entire time. It was a combination of exhaustion and Sy's soothing voice telling him that he was good boy as she quickly got him dry. By the time she was done, Henry had piled enough wood by the back door to last a few days. She laughed, "Think that will be enough?"

They went inside, Kal immediately took his spot on the couch and fell asleep. "Do you want a shower to warm up? You can borrow something from Eric while I dry your clothes." She waved him up the stairs.

Henry followed her into Eric's room, "Is he going to be ok with this?"

She went to the back of his closet and came back with a pair of sweatpants and a tee. "Of course! Besides, he won't be home for months. I usually steal his sweats and tees while he's gone and clean it all before he gets back anyway." She handed them to him and walked into the bathroom. "The towels are clean, just bring all of your wet clothes and the towels down when you're done. I'll start dinner."

She was already putting the salmon and veggies in the oven when he walked down the stairs. He looked over at Kal, "Has he even moved from that spot since we got here?"

She looked up, "I don't think so... I may have broken your dog. Was he expensive? Will I need to replace him?" As he laughed, she turned back to the oven and set the timer. "Go ahead and toss that stuff in the washer, I'm going to rinse off really quick. I should be done before the timer goes off. Pick a movie while you wait!"

She ran upstairs and jumped in her own shower. Alone with her thoughts, self-doubt plagued her again. What the hell are you doing? You are setting yourself up for heartbreak, you idiot. She turned the heat up on the water and held her head under the shower head as if it could drown those words out of her brain. She got dressed in another pair of joggers and tee that she stole from Eric and went down to check on dinner. When she came down the stairs, she saw that he had already started the fire and the Lilo & Stitch logo was already on the tv screen.

He looked up as she made the last few steps down, "I thought you could give me my homework tonight."

This man is going to be the death of me. I can already feel it. As she smiled, the timer went off and broke her daydream. "Dinner is ready!" She ran over to the oven and pulled out the tray. The kitchen was filled with the delicious smell of lemon pepper salmon and grilled vegetables. She set the tray down on the stove and picked up the wet clothes she had hastily put on the counter when the timer dinged. "Let me get these started and we can eat."

She walked back to the living room and it was already darkened. Since Kal had claimed the couch and didn't leave much space for the two humans, Henry moved the coffee table that was in front of it and pilled pillows and blankets on the floor. He walked over with two plates of food, "You made dinner, so I thought the least I could do is serve it to you. What do you want to drink?"

She sat down and he handed her both plates. "I'll take a glass of wine. Whatever you pick is fine." How was she going to survive the next six months with this man? She could be in a world of trouble if he continued to be this charming to her.

She heard him pop a cork and pouring wine into the glasses behind her as she pulled a blanket over her lap. "I hope this is okay... Kal wasn't budging from the couch, so I thought we could have a picnic."

"We've never done it before, but I kind of like it." She smiled, "Thank you." She looked up as he handed her a glass of white wine and saw his beautiful blue eyes staring deep into her soul. Or at least it felt like it. She quickly looked down and took a sip of her glass.

He plopped down next to her, "Can we share?" pointing to the blanket.

She nodded quietly as he scooted closer and pulled some of it over him. She could feel the heat coming off his legs onto her cold feet. It took all of her willpower not to tuck them under him to get warm.

He took a fork full of rice and salmon and groaned "oh my god, this is so good."

The sound of his voice, low and husky, almost made her drop her fork and made her feel something down below that hasn't been active in longer than she wanted to admit. "I'm glad you like it." She choked out.

"Your boyfriend must LOVE when you cook for him. This is seriously chef level good."

She didn't know howto answer him. It was the second time that day that he had dropped the wordboyfriend in a sentence. Plus, Tim never appreciated her cooking the way Henryobviously is at this moment. She decided to chance it and be honest, "Number 1,I don't have a boyfriend... haven't had one for years. Number 2, When I did... Hedidn't really appreciate anything I did. I honestly think he found meembarrassing." She quickly shoved a large bite of food in her mouth to keep her from saying anything else.