You were sure that Sylus placed his most used cookware in the highest cabinets just to make it difficult for you to grab. To be fair, most of your adventures in his kitchen resulted in burnt ingredients, hand cuts, or just plain bad food. You were determined, however, to surprise him with a decent home cooked meal. Three times this week you had practiced cooking baked scallops in your own kitchen. It was Sylus' favorite dish and also the bane of your existence.

The first two times you made it at home, it was completely inedible. The third time it actually tasted decent, but there was still room for improvement. You were sure you would get it right this time, especially with the state of the art cooking appliances in Sylus' kitchen.

None of that mattered, however, when you couldn't even get a baking dish down from the cabinets. Since Sylus was so tall there was no step ladder in sight. You stared up at the stack of baking dishes and silently cursed your parents for passing on their lack of height to you.

There was no other option as you were the only person in Sylus' residence. Just as you began your climb onto the counter you heard a throat clear behind you.

"What's going on here?" The deep timbre of his voice never failed to send a chill down your spine.

You slid off the counter and turned to face Sylus. "Why are you back so early? I thought you were going to be out most of the night."

"Last time I checked," Sylus began to walk towards you, "this is my home. I don't think I'm required to announce when I'm coming and going."

The closer he got to you, the deeper the blush grew on your cheeks. He hadn't even said anything flirtatious or suggestive. Just his presence flustered you and he knew it.

"Of course you don't. But now you've ruined your surprise."

This made him quirk an eyebrow, "My surprise?"

Sylus was now right in front of you. You stood with your back to the counter and peered up at him. 'Damn tall people.'

"I was going to cook you dinner." You reached behind you to grab the recipe sheet and hand it to him. "Baked scallops. Your favorite."

His grin was wide, filled with unadulterated joy. These were your favorite smiles to get from him. Though he never said it, you were pretty sure you were the only one who got to see them.

Sylus looked over the recipe sheet and tapped you on the head with it before placing it back on the counter. "That's very thoughtful of you, kitten, but you don't have to do that."

You narrowed your eyes at him and crossed your arms across your chest. "I know you're saying that because you don't think I can cook something edible."

"Can you blame me, sweetie?" He gently placed his hands on either side of your face and brushed his thumbs across your cheeks. "The few times you've tried to cook with me, it didn't really end well."

You swatted his hands away. "I'm aware of that. But I've been practicing."

"You've been practicing?"

"Yes, you can drop the skeptical tone." You pulled your phone out of your pocket and scrolled through your photos. When your last try had turned out decent, you decided to snap a photo. It certainly wasn't restaurant quality presentation, but you can tell that the scallops are well cooked. You showed the picture to Sylus.

He looked at the photo and then back at you. "That's not bad. I guess I'm willing to risk it. How long until it's ready?"

"I haven't even started." You pointed up the the high cabinet where the baking dishes were stored. "You keep your dishes way too high up."

This made Sylus chuckle, "I have to keep fragile items out of harms way. Would you like some assistance?"

"Yes, actually, I would like that."

His large hands grabbed your shoulders and turned your around. Before you could ask what his intentions were, he grabbed you by the waist and lifted you up.

"What are you doing?" you shouted.

You could hear the smile in his voice when he replied, "Put your feet on the counter, kitten."

You did what you were told and Sylus' hand rested on your ass, presumably to hold you in place.

The contact burned into your skin through the fabric of your shorts. "Somehow I feel like you have ulterior motives. You could've just grabbed it yourself."

"Where's the fun in that?" His hand gave a gentle squeeze.

You tried to compose yourself as you grabbed the baking dish from the cabinet. "You can let me down now."

"Lean back and I'll grab you." Sylus stretched his arms out and you slowly lowered yourself down to be cradled by him. He gently placed your feet on the ground and leaned into your neck, placing soft kisses across the length of it.

It was completely unfair how easy it was for him to make you melt. You knew you had an effect on him has well, but he was able to keep it together more masterfully than you. Just once you wanted to see him flustered.

You gently pushed on his shoulders, removing his lips from their exploration of your neck. "Maybe you should keep your baking pans in a lower cabinet."

"I'm sorry, kitten. Sometimes I forget I'm not the only one using these spaces anymore." Sylus ran his hands up and down your arms. "And the person sharing them with me has such a small reach."

The smug grin on his face told you he was intentionally pushing your buttons. "I'm not that short. You're just freakishly tall."

"Freakishly?" He raised an eyebrow. "No need to be hostile. I'm always happy to lend you my extra inches to reach the places you can't."

You couldn't keep your eyes from widening. The way he quirked his head when he noticed your expression made you wonder if he realized exactly what he just said. Sylus was no stranger to innuendo but he usually shot for something classier and less obvious. This wasn't exactly his style. Then again, he was hardly naive and much more skilled at keeping his composure than you. Perhaps it was intentional after all and he was feigning ignorance.

Well, two could play at that game. You couldn't let this opportunity pass you by. Usually when Sylus said something suggestive you would blush and change the subject. Now was the time to be bold if you wanted to get a reaction out of him.

You tucked the baking dish in your hands under one of your arms and ran your free hand behind Sylus's neck, lightly dragging your nails up and down. "If you take me to your bedroom you can show me just how deep your extra inches can reach."

There it was. It was slight but it was unmistakable. Sylus' eyes widened just a bit, his shock at your response momentarily visible to you. He shook it off quickly, however, and dipped his head with a chuckle. "My, my, my. You have gotten bolder, kitten."

You fought the blush rising in your cheeks now that Sylus' composure returned to him and shrugged. "I figured it was a good chance to give you a taste of your own medicine."

"I like it. And you know what?" Sylus grabbed the baking dish tucked under your arm and placed it on the counter behind you. "I think I'll take you up on your offer."

His arms caged you in between him and the counter, his face mere inches from yours. "What do you mean?"

Sylus' voice was a low, hot, whisper against your skin. "Why don't we skip dinner and spend the rest of the evening in my bedroom. That's what you really wanted, right?"

"N-no!" You grabbed the baking dish from behind you and held it up in front of you like a shield. "I worked way too hard to learn this recipe. We are not skipping dinner."

Sylus placed a chaste kiss on your cheek. "Okay, kitten. We won't skip dinner. I would hate for your hard work to go to waste." He backed away from you, eyes still locked on yours. "Besides, scallops are a great aphrodisiac." He grinned at you and began walking out of the kitchen. Over his shoulder he called back, "Let me know when dinner's ready."

You stood in place for a few moments, your face moving from blushing to completely red. You had wanted to be bold, to make him feel this way. With hardly any effort at all Sylus had flipped the script on you. Now you were left wondering if you had started something you hadn't intended. As you began working on dinner you couldn't keep your thoughts from wandering to you and Sylus in his bedroom. You hadn't planned anything for desert but perhaps you'd have some after all.