Page 66 of In Every Chapter

“Hey, Shane has never been on call when I accidentally burnt something!”

“Not yet.”

Paisley swatted my arm, and I chuckled, rubbing it. Then her words caught up to me. “Hey, how’d you know that? About Shane.” Because she was right.

She lifted a shoulder in a half shrug. “It just felt like the truth, I guess.”

Not a slam dunk, but I’d take it.

Inside, I let Rosie out into the backyard to stretch her legs, then trailed back to the kitchen. Paisley stood in front of the fridge, chewing her lip.

“Let me make you dinner,” I said, slinging a towel over my shoulder. “To celebrate.”

Paisley closed the fridge, face bright with curiosity. “What are we celebrating?”

“You and your first day back to work. Jerry drama aside, it was a success from everything I heard.”

Paisley crossed her arms and popped a hip against the counter. “Oh, you heard, huh? How much work do you get done in a day? Or is the shop just a front for the gossip center?”

Lifting an arm, I flexed my bicep. “You tell me.”

She rolled her eyes, but her gaze lingered a second too long. “Are you a good cook?”

“Better than you,” I teased.

Paisley huffed. “I’m doing better.” She cocked her head. “At least I think I am. Am I? I haven’t technically cooked beyond the potato salad after the whole kettle debacle.” Her nose wrinkled. “And the cookies.”

“Before that, you’d only burnt one thing since we married, and that was six months ago. Roast dinner.”

She shimmied. “Let’s keep that record going then. Cook away, master chef. Do you want my help? I make a decent sous-chef.”

“No, but thanks. Take a load off. You earned it.”

Paisley smiled and moved to the couch, perfectly in my line of sight, thanks to the open kitchen and living room concept, and curled up with a beat-up paperback.

A warmth and sense of rightness tugged at my chest. This banter and dynamic was normal. I liked to cook a couple times a week, and if Paisley wasn’t insisting on helping, she was right there curled up with a book, falling through the pages into another world for an hour.

I pulled the Kiss the Cook apron over my head—a gag gift from Cal a few Christmases ago—then set the spaghetti sauce to simmer on low before I added my secret arsenal of spices. Once it was simmering, I added a package of cooked ground beef from the freezer.

All that was left was the noodles and the sautéed veggies. As I chopped the mushrooms, garlic, and onions, my mind drifted back to Keegan’s offer. He’d texted again today, still trying to persuade me. I needed to tell Paisley about the job offer. Even if she couldn’t remember that we were talking about it, she needed to know the offer was still on the table. Because we hadn’t made a decision together yet.

And it wasn’t a decision I wanted to make without her.

I stole a glance at her as I started caramelizing the onions and frying the mushrooms. Everything was just . . . a lot. After Cannon Beach, we’d started to reestablish our stride in a relationship. Tentative friends and roommates so far. Upgrading to mild flirting. I was hesitant to upset that balance, but Gabe was right. I really shouldn’t put it off. Paisley had been choked about the whole Jared thing. I didn’t want to repeat that just because of my own cowardice.

When the meal was ready, I called Paisley’s name.

Nothing. Not even a twitch.

I grinned, balling up the hand towel draped over my shoulder and launched it at the couch. It harmlessly bounced on the cushion beside her, and it was worth it to see the way her head popped up like a groundhog, her eyes blinking rapidly to reorient herself in the real world.

“Welcome back, love.” I winked. “Want to taste test?”

Paisley giggled and jumped up. “Do you even have to ask? It smells deeeeee-vine!”

“What are you reading?” I asked, moving to the cutlery drawer to grab a fork.

“The Lantern Bearers. Of all the books I could have forgotten, I wish it had been that one. But I suppose the first time I read it was special, so . . . I guess it’s for the best.” She boosted herself up to sit on the counter beside where I was working, looking like a bookish woodland sprite with her messy bun and the maroon dress pooling around her knees. “Have you read it?”