7- Movie Night
1643 Words
Sawyer
“Trevor, if you wish to attend our Movie Night, you must lend a hand… and refrain from gawking at Chloe." I huff.
Trevor is embarrassed and looks away.
“Don’t be mean, Sawyer.” Chloe implores, blushing.
Those two idiots have been hovering by the fridge and whispering God knows what for the past ten minutes. What choice did I have but to embarrass them?
“I just need your help. Why are you flustered like that?” I retort with a lopsided smile.
“How can we help you, Chef Sawyer?” Stella asks, standing on a kitchen stool and her hands already submerged in the pizza dough.
“Finally! A motivated helper. You are my favorite sous-chef, Stella,” I compliment her, pressing a kiss on her forehead.
“Chloe, grate the cheese. A mix of mozzarella and provolone please.” I instruct, turning to Trevor with a mischievous grin… he swallows hard, expecting the worst.
“Trevor, remove the pits from the black olives and chop the mushrooms.”
I am busy kneading the pizza dough when Stella asks me.
“And me! Me! What do you want me to do?”
God, I want to hug her tight and never let her go. I adore this kid. She is delightful and always enthusiastic about everything.
“You are responsible for the most crucial component of the pizza…Do you know what that is?” I ask, sprinkling flour on her cute nose, making her giggle.
“The dough! The dough!” Stella chants.
We were still laughing and chatting when the doorbell rings. I glance at Chloe, surprised. We were not expecting any company, were we?
Trevor stands up and makes his way to the foyer.
“It must be Ethan. He told me he would join us.”
I glance at Chloe, but she seems as surprised as I am.
“Your baby daddy is getting too comfortable, Miss! He invited his brother without talking with us!”
I do not get a chance to grumble any further, as they both enter the kitchen.
“Good evening ladies… and princess,” Ethan greets, hugging and kissing Stella.
“Uncle E. you can help too.”
Ethan Harrison cooking with us. This is hilarious. Not sure this guy knows how to boil an egg.
“Of course, princess. What do you want me to do?” he asks, looking at Chloe and me.
“Thank you, but we have everything under control,” I reply, a bit too frostily, but I just do not like the guy. The less time I spend with him, the better.
I sprinkle more flour on the counter in front of Stella and I give her a small section of the dough.
“Here you go, my Shooting Star. You know what to do next,” I say to her, adding more flour to her nose.
She chuckles and starts stretching the dough into a circle.
“Stella, do you want me to help you?” Ethan proposes.
“Yes, please. Thank you, Uncle E.”
She does not need his help. We have been cooking pizzas together for ages, and she has always rolled and stretched the pizza dough with her hands on her own. Seems to me that she wants to spend more time with her uncle as well. I feel a twinge in my heart. Great, now I am jealous of the Harrison brother!
I let out a sigh and refocus on my dough. I should be happy for Stella. She now has a large family in her life. I had hoped the Harrisons, including Ethan, would fall in love with Stella, and that's exactly what happened. I just need to learn how to stomach this Harrison man! Perhaps I should start meditating? Or take up boxing to blow off some steam!
As I am absorbed in my work, I suddenly feel something brushing against my hands. What the heck? Why are his hands on mine?
“I thought I could help you... You have been torturing this pizza roll for too long,” he says in a teasing tone.
I can feel the heat rising to my cheeks. What the hell is that? Am I blushing? Yes, I am blushing, and the jerk saw it, as evidenced by the smirk plastered on his face.
Clearing my throat, I try to sound nonchalant in my response.
“Sure, if you want, I will let you handle the dough, and I will focus on the new batch of tomato sauce cooking on the stovetop.”
He doesn't seem happy with my response. What did he expect? Did he think I would fall for his moves? In your dreams, Harrison! The guy has a reputation as a playboy, and I certainly don't need that in my life.
And I definitely do not need two Harrisons in my life! I already have to deal with Trevor, for Stella’s sake, and that's a handful!
“Mummy, Daddy, I finished my pizza, can we go and prepare the living room?”
“What is there to prepare?” Trevor asks, perplexed.
“Movie night, Daddy!” Stella exclaims.
That doesn't seem to help either Trevor or Ethan, as they both look at Chloe and me with confusion written all over their faces.
“We remove the coffee table, put some blankets and pillows on the floor, and sit there to watch our movie,” Chloe explains.
“Alright then, let’s go prepare the living room, princess,” Trevor says as he grabs Chloe’s and Stella’s hands, and they leave the kitchen.
I am busy stirring the sauce when I feel Ethan standing close behind me. Too close to my liking.
“This smells great! Can I taste it?” he asks.
That’s it. I put the wooden spoon down violently on the counter, and turn around to face him.
“What’s your game, Harrison boy?”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t play dumb. Brushing my hand, invading my personal space. What do you want? Got bored with your rich plastic hookups and want to taste the countryside?” I grumble lowly, so as not to alarm Chloe.
“You think I am hitting on you? Me?” he says, feigning innocence.
His theatrical gestures only confirm that he was hitting on me.
“You are a bad actor…”
“Sawy, I was not hitting on you. I just offered my help. Maybe you're attracted to me. Maybe it is you who's interested in me,” he adds in a husky voice.
This man is testing my patience.
“I have been told that I'm a chick magnet… Maybe you have a hard time resisting my charms,” he adds.
This man has a death wish.
He comes closer and leaves no distance between us. I should move or look away. But damn it, I am hypnotized by his black eyes. He lightly grazes my forearm with the tip of his fingers, and I feel like an electric current has gone through me.
He leans closer… What? Is he trying to kiss me? Should I slap him? Why am I not moving? Why am I not afraid? His hand strokes my left cheek...
“Here you go… You had a smudge of flour on your face. I just removed it. You're welcome.”
And just like that, he walks away, leaving me all flushed and flustered, my eyes wide with surprise.
This man played me like a rookie. And his grin confirms that he knows it too! He wants me to know that he won this round.
I take a deep breath, reminding myself that human blood in the kitchen is unsanitary. And that I mustn't ruin Stella’s first movie night with her father.
The timer on the oven jolts me back to reality, and I quickly remove the pizzas from the oven and place them on the trays. I put the two remaining pizzas in the oven and set the timer.
I clean my hands, still ignoring the irritating man who has taken up space in my kitchen. Trustfully, I am irritated with myself for being attracted to him. The man is extremely sexy and it seems everyone falls for his charm. But, I had hoped I was immune to it! Wishful thinking apparently!
As I bend to grab the three pizzas, he volunteers to help, and we make our way to the living room with the three perfectly cooked pizzas.
“Pizza, Pizza!” Stella sings with enthusiasm,
Ethan frowns when he sees Stella sitting on the floor between her parents, and Trevor sporting a lovestruck look on his face as he gazes at Chloe.
“Sawy, can Daddy sit next to me this time? Pleaseee.”
“Of course, sweetheart. I will sit somewhere else. Don’t worry!”
“But you will be alone. I don’t want you to sit alone. Ohhh, Uncle E. can sit next to you and hug you tonight.”
The poor guy almost choked on his beer. The scene is hilarious. I would have gone along with the joke if I did not know that I am attracted to this i***t and he could use that against me! Stupid me.
Thankfully, the oven’s timer interrupts this awkward moment.
“I will go and get the two remaining pizzas.” I propose.
As I walk to the kitchen, I notice Ethan following me with a frown on his face. What does he want now?
He is always frowning; I would even say he is brooding… And suddenly, it hit me!
“Ohhh, now I know why you were so eager to spend Friday night with Stella instead of partying with your friends!” I say with a sly smile, realizing the truth behind his actions.
- Writer
