Chapter 24: God no!
Asher Knight watched his wife curiously with a glint of both amusement and a well hidden arousal. She had just done the most bizzare thing by kissing his wet body but for some reason, now, she couldn't look at him.
Hot damn! Hot damn! Hot damn!
Pepper kept her eyes fixed on the floor. Why did she do that? Good lord! She just kissed Asher's chest in a very seductive way or was it even seductive?
Come on! Pepper, take pride in your sexual prowess!
Pepper yelled at herself in her mind.
What sexual prowess? You are a twenty six year old virgin, you have no sexuality and therefore no prowess…some part of Pepper's mind mocked her.
Asher waited patiently. She can't stare at the floor forever now can she?
After a few more minutes, Asher got tired of waiting.
He used his index finger and he made her look at him.
"Girl, stop flipping out. You kissed my chest…big deal. Now get out or get inside the shower with me. Either way, stop staring at the floor"
Asher didn't mean to sound harsh but he was becoming more and more aware that he was a naked man and she was a desirable woman.
Pepper blinked and looked at him.
She wanted him, right? Even though she couldn't stand him, the sexual tension was very high and he looked capable.
Pepper decided to take a chance. She kissed the other part of his nipple that looked like it was begging her to kiss him and it felt good.
Great!
Pepper decided to become bolder as she went in for the kill. First she took off her top and she kissed his lips briefly. Then she seductively ran her lips across his bare neck and she inhaled. He smelled like lavender or something.
Then Pepper touched the towel around his waist and it fell down….
"Pepper! Pepper! Pepper!" Asher yelled on top of his voice.
Pepper blinked and suddenly, everything was different. Asher still had his towel on him and she was still sitting on the floor.
Wait!
Pepper couldn't believe she had just imagined the whole steamy scene with Asher.
"You zoomed out for a while. Are you okay?" Asher asked her.
"O-of course, why wouldn't I be?" She asked him and looked at him defiantly.
"Because, you are staring at my…" Asher used his hand to gesture towards his manhood.
"No, I am not"
"Yes, you are. You are literally still doing it. I feel so violated by you right now" Asher feigned repulsiveness.
"Dream on" Pepper stood up and walked out.
When Pepper got to the bedroom, she immediately opened the door and walked out into the balcony to receive some fresh air.
It was time like this that she always called June for advice and to vent but with their jobs hanging on the line, she couldn't disturb her about something as frivolous as a sexual moment.
She exhaled and counted to ten before she went into the bedroom to dress up, she didn't even bother about showering again.
When Asher came out of the bathroom, he still had his white towel on but the soap on his hair was gone.
Pepper knew she had to say something but what exactly?
"Asher, I…"
"What are you wearing?" He asked and started drying his hair like nothing happened earlier.
"Do you like my outfit?" Pepper asked him and smiled.
"No. Please tell me we are not going out on a date with you in that outfit. You look like a school teacher and not the every little boy fantasy type but the boring kind" Asher opened her wardrobe and started looking through it.
"What do you know about fashion? You are a homeless man I married to fool my grandparents. If I want an opinion from someone, it wouldn't be you. Your face looks like it needs a trim and your clothes look miserable. If I wanted to…" Pepper wanted to say more but Asher pulled out a black gown from her wardrobe and handed it to her.
"Wear this instead, it will bring out those legs you love hiding" he told her.
Pepper took the gown and she stared at it. It had been a gift from June. She had never had any need to wear it. The dress was so beautiful that any man she went on a date with would be an idiot if he didn't try to smash that afterwards. It was Junie's words, not Pepper.
"I don't hide my legs thank you very much. And my legs aren't the only thing I got going for me" Pepper told him and returned the dress into the wardrobe.
"Suit yourself. Have you called a babysitter?" Asher asked her.
"Why would I need a babysitter?" Pepper asked him.
"Because we have a daughter?" Asher reminded her.
"No, I don't have a freaking daughter…you do. Your daughter…your problem" Pepper insisted.
"You seem to forget what the concept of marriage is all about, darling. If you are claiming me as your husband then Starr automatically becomes yours" Asher took out a t-shirt and black jeans from his side of the wardrobe.
"A - nobody is claiming you. B - nobody is claiming your daughter too. She is solely your problem" Pepper told me.
"Turn around" Asher told her.
"Why?" Pepper demanded.
"Because I am about to take off my towel and we all know how that ended the last time" Asher touched the towel.
Pepper immediately turned around.
"I need some money to pay for some stuff" Asher told her.
"No" Pepper muttered under her breath. "I am not giving you a dime, Asher"
She almost turned around.
"I am still naked!" Asher reminded her.
"Aren't you required by law to cater for all my needs?" Asher asked her.
"You can take the law and you can shove it right up your…"
"Pepper, I am a stay at home Dad. I need money for our daughter's school material and my upkeep too. I am expensive to maintain. I mean look at me! I am perfection"
"Perfection? you wish! You are not a stay at home Dad. You are just a lazy log of wood who is hell bent on destroying my peace of mind" Pepper said and walked out.
"Cool, I will just blackmail you later!" Asher yelled after her.