He blinked. “Energy shots?”
“Spicy or not?” I asked, gesturing to the salsa.
He looked confused, but shrugged. “Spicy.”
I slid his bowl across before turning to Kieran and Wilder. Of course, the beta stood back, letting Kieran go first.
“No steak for me,” Kieran said. The way he looked at me, like he was peeling away my defenses, had me swallowing hard and forcing myself to focus.
I prepared his bowl, going down the line and letting him pick what he wanted. When he had the bowl in hand, he spoke, low and rumbling.
“Thanks, princess. I could get used to this.”
“Good.” Because, honestly, I loved this.
“She’s a caretaker at heart. Just give her a chance and she’ll have you on a diet that’s both delicious and makes you feel amazing. I think that was half the reason I got my positionon the Wardens,” Conrad confirmed with complete honesty and conviction.
“In that case, sign me up for one too,” Wilder said.
“Anything you don’t want in it?” I questioned.
He made a face. “Olives.”
“Noted,” I said. “I’ll make sure to keep that out of future dishes, too.”
Before I made his bowl, I leaned over, writing down a note. He eyed it curiously.
“Just making a note so I don’t give you any accidentally.”
Lennon piped up next. “Can you write down that if you give me fish, I’ll die?”
“You’re allergic?” I asked, but he just shook his head. “No, but I will vomit.”
“And I’m the dramatic one,” Mason said.
“Fair enough.” I wrote it down, too.
I finished Wilder’s bowl, sliding it across before glancing at the others. “Any other requests? I’m going to cook, you may as well like what I’m making.”
It was weird, this urge I had to take care of them, to make sure they actually liked my food. Their opinions mattered to me.
Once they were all happily eating, I pulled out the blender and got to work, starting on a mix of electrolytes and natural ingredients that would at least perk them up. They weren’t full smoothies, more like energy shots. I pulled out the small bottles I’d bought for this, filling each of them before calling out Lennon’s name.
He looked up, and I tossed it to him. He snatched it out of the air without thinking, shaking the liquid inside and watching it mix, like he was inspecting it.
“What’s in it?”
“Do you have allergies?” I cocked an eyebrow at him.
He shook his head and narrowed his eyes. “No.”
“Then don’t worry about it. Just drink it.”
“Hit me with one for solidarity,” Conrad said, holding up his hand.
I tossed him one, and then one by one, their hands went up. My chest warmed as I pitched them over, not even bothering to hide my smile.
Even if they hated the drinks, they gave me a chance. They trusted me to make something that could help them.
