“Yeah. Cas is the brains of the operation, Mal is the nerd, and I’m the pretty face.” Adrian twisted to face me and winked.
“We could use some graphic design help, if you wanted to take on some freelance work,” Malik said quietly.
“Oh, I’m not sure,” I said, my voice pitching up in surprise.
“No pressure, but it’s an open offer.”
Adrian set wide bowls of noodles on the counter in front of us. “I hope you like spicy food,” he said, handing me a fork. Malik closed his laptop with a snap.
The ramen was covered in a reddish brown sauce with little mushrooms, carrots, green onions, and a perfectly poached egg.
“This looks amazing,” I said, twirling my fork and gathering up a bite. It was as delicious as it looked, and I let out a hum of satisfaction—so much better than takeout.
Adrian grinned. “Look, Cas, Juniper thinks I’m a good cook!”
“Too bad you can only make noodles.”
Arms wrapped around my shoulders as a warm chest pressed to my back. Caspian’s salt and sage scent surrounded me, reminding me of his comfortable bed and the things he’d done to me in that bed. I breathed in deeply, letting his smell soothe me.
After placing a kiss on the top of my head, Caspian sank into the seat beside me and started eating, his eyes on me theentire time. His hand settled on my thigh, and suddenly it was challenging to sit still and eat my ramen.
Adrian kept up a steady stream of chatter, and I did my best to contribute to the conversation, but it was difficult with Caspian undressing me with his eyes as his hand skimmed higher.
“I like you in my clothes,” he murmured, leaning over and placing a kiss on my temple.
I could have melted into a puddle on the floor with the heat of his gaze.
“We have a lot to talk about,” I reminded him. Earlier, we’d been wild with desperation for each other. Now, we needed to figure out the details and how we could make this work.
Caspian whisked away our dishes when I finished eating. “Do you want to go for a walk on the beach?” he asked. “Because if we go up to my room, we won’t be talking.”
A wave of desire rushed through me, and I squeezed my thighs together. “The beach is probably a good choice,” I managed to say. “But I need something more than a big t-shirt to wear.”
His heated gaze raked over me again.
“I’m not sure I’ve got anything that will fit you properly, but your dress is probably dry. It’s not even very sandy since it made it into the shower too.”
“Perfect.”
He helped his brothers wash up the dinner dishes while I ran upstairs and pulled my dress back on. The fabric was a little stiff and damp, but it would work.
Caspian waited for me at the bottom of the stairs. I took his hand and let him lead me out the back door onto the sand. A brilliant sunset of pink and teal spread out before us, and my heart leapt.
“Wow. I could get used to this view every day.”
“Good,” he said, squeezing my hand.
The magic flowing between us had calmed into a warm, comforting hum, as if embracing our bond had soothed it. He lifted my hand to kiss along my knuckles before turning my hand and kissing my wrist.
“Talking,” I reminded him.
His mouth twitched.
“Alright, what do we need to talk about before I can take you back to my bed?” Caspian asked.
“Well, if we are going to be together—”
“If?” he asked, his tone dangerous.
