And I want to know more.
I pour the mixture into the pan and the eggs hiss as they hit the heat. Casting a glance over my shoulder, my eyes latch onto hers. She looks startled. Caught. I bite back a smile and return my attention to the eggs.
Looks like she’s wondering about me, too.
“Do you cook a lot?” she asks.
“I try to do it as much as possible. My grandmother taught me before she passed. She believed food was how you showed people you cared.” I use a spatula to loosen the eggs from the sides of the pan so they don’t stick. “My dad thought it was beneath a Molloy man to work in the kitchen. So naturally, I made sure to get really good at it.”
“Naturally.” There's something warm in her voice that makes the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. “Spite as motivation. I respect that.”
“It's underrated.”
Reaper wanders in from wherever he was sleeping and immediately makes a beeline for Adriana. She sighs but reaches down to pat his head before he even starts begging.
“He's getting pretty bold,” I say, turning back to the sizzling pan.
“I think you mean spoiled.” But she scratches behind his ear, anyway. “Don't you have your own human to bother?” she murmurs to him.
Reaper's tail wags. He doesn’t make a move or even look at his own human.
“Such a traitor,” I mutter.
“You keep saying that. I don't think he cares,” Adriana says as she continues to stroke his ears.
I smile. And just like that, another layer falls away.
A couple of minutes later, I place a plate in front of Adriana. Scrambled eggs with vegetables, a little cheese, and some chives. “Breakfast is served.”
She looks at it then at me. “Wow, this is... actually impressive.”
“There’s more to me than meets the eye. You just said so yourself.” I wink at her. “Don't sound so surprised that I can actually be the guy who makes the most incredible eggs you’ve ever tasted.”
“Easy, there. Let’s not go that far.” She forks some of the eggs, and when they hit her mouth, her eyes fly open wide. “Oh my God,” she moans. “They totally are.”
“I guess we just keep surprising each other, huh?”
She scoops up another forkful and I can’t lie. The moaning has an effect. It’s hard for me not to gloat.
“Yeah,” she says after swallowing. “It's becoming a problem.”
“I told you. I like to keep people on their toes." I grin and rinse out the pan. “And being a kick-ass chef is a good tool to have in my arsenal.”
"Ooh. Arrogant."
I turn away from the sink. “Accurate.”
She almost smiles, but catches herself before she digs back into the plate of eggs. It’s like she doesn’t want me to see I’m affecting her, but the fact that she keeps trying to hide it makes it even more noticeable. I’ll keep that to myself, though. For now.
I put the pan in the drying rack and place my own plate of eggs across from her at the island. We sit in comfortable silence for a few minutes while we eat. Reaper lies at her feet like he's known her his whole life. Morning light streams through the floor-to-ceiling windows as the city comes to life outside.
It feels weirdly domestic.
I wonder if she feels it, too.
“So, I've been thinking about the meeting with the capos,” she says finally. “How to position you.”
“Position me?” My brow furrows. “Like you want me to be in a specific yoga pose while you talk?”
