I'm not her - Kungpao (23.)

“Don't worry about me, as you saw yourself a moment ago, I can take care of myself.” Her breath caught in her throat for a moment when he also got up and slowly walked around the table and over to her.

At that moment, everything around her faded away and she could hear only her heavy breathing and her heart, which was literally going crazy when he stood beside her and, without warning, pulled her into his arms.

“Play with me,” he whispered in a deep, velvety voice that would normally have made Anna's knees go weak. Now she just wanted to pull away from him and demand an explanation, because his behavior was completely baffling to her.

First he almost scolds her or something, and now he's asking her to play some kind of game with him, but why on earth?

Her head was in turmoil and she felt strange, but she obeyed anyway, because she could hear not only tenderness in his voice, but also a slight warning that gave her a clear signal that now was not the time. She sighed quietly and hugged him around the waist, hissing.

“I hope there's an explanation for this later.” Michael didn't say a word, but pulled her closer to him.

“I'll take that to mean the explanation will come later,” she whispered and closed her eyes for a moment. She tried to ignore the damn feeling that was spreading through her body like a hot avalanche.

 

*

 

“I'm going to order some lunch, ladies, but I'm racking my brains trying to think of something tasty.” Anna smiled slightly as she watched Michael glance at Julia, who was back between them and seemed to be in a cheerful mood, which made Anna very happy and made her forget her worries for a moment.

“Isn't it a little early for lunch, Dad?” She also glanced at the girl standing next to her on a chair behind the counter. Her eyes sparkled with pure happiness. She was helping Anna prepare hot drinks by pressing the button on the coffee machine, and Michael then served them.

She was simply invaluable.

“I don't mind eating early if it's pizza.” They said the last word at the same time and high-fived each other. Anna was amazed at how Michael could switch gears so quickly. Just an hour ago, he was almost a grumpy, rowdy guy, but now? He was a partner in crime.

“You guys go ahead and get pizza. I'll have kung pao,” Anna said, holding onto the counter so she could move a little further away to her open laptop, but suddenly she hissed in pain as a sharp stab shot through her hand.

“Damn it!” She cursed quietly, but her swearing wasn't as quiet as she thought. A dark blue gaze disabled her of that notion.

“Kumcho? Is that the noodle dish Dad makes that's really spicy?” Julie asked thoughtfully.

“You can make a non-spicy version,” Anna replied with a smile. She had planned to do something on the computer, but at that moment she had actually forgotten what she wanted to do.

Her brain was completely foggy. The only thing she could perceive was that look, damn it. She stood there by the computer like an idiot.

“Get it together! Yes! Now!” she yelled at herself in her mind, lifting her healthier arm to shut down the infernal machine.

“I'll do it later.” Her voice was rock solid, for which she was grateful to the powers that be.

She looked at Michael: “And you have only yourself to blame!”