AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“That’s really good.” Understatement of the year.
Davis grunts, and I think that’s all I’m going to get as he feeds me another bite. “It’s my mom’s recipe.”
So many thoughts are racing through my head. Davis just shared something personal without me having to prompt him for an answer. He made me soup and is freaking hand feeding me. I don’t think anyone has ever fed me like this, not since I was a baby at least. It’s oddly sweet and totally disarming.
“Does everyone know how domestic you are?”
The spoon halts over the bowl, broth spilling back into the bowl. “What?”
“Making homemade soup, baking pies, you’re like the Martha Stewart of Wild Haven.”
“Martha Stewart went to jail, created a poncho fad and came back like a rockstar, I think that’s a compliment.”
My eyes widen just as much as my smile. “You know a lot about Martha Stewart.”
There’s a devilish look in Davis’s eyes that’s so brief it hurts when it fades. I want to see that spark there all the time.
“I moved out at 16. I had to figure out real fast how to take care of myself.”
“Why did you move in with Birdie?”
“I didn’t want to be a burden on anyone.” My heart pangs at his words.
And his dad would break into his house. What a piece of shit. Davis feeds me a few more spoonfuls of soup. He’s careful not to spill a drop.
“Do you think being a horrible parent is passed along in your DNA? Like being a shitty person is built in?” Thoughts of Anthony float around in my psyche. He’s supposedly my dad, and he fucking cursed me. Why? And who the hell would do that, anyway?
“Christ, I hope not, or I’m screwed.”
I laugh and am surprised when it doesn’t hurt. “I’ve only met your dad once, but I already know you’re nothing like him.”
Davis freezes again, the soup momentarily forgotten. “How do you know that?” The question sounds casual, but the hard glint in his eyes and the way he’s gripping the spoon so tightly it’s about to snap in half tell me he’s taking my response very seriously.
“Would your dad make soup for someone to help them feel better? Would he be worried enough about someone’s safety that he’d stay overnight just to make sure the boogie man doesn’t come out and get them? Would he have friends who would do anything for him? You can’t think you’re like him.” I guess I answered my own question.
“I don’t think people are intrinsically anything. We have the ability to control our own choices, but that doesn’t always mean we make the right ones.” He’s saying all the right things but I’m not sure he actually believes that.
“People are fallible. As long as you try to do the right thing, you’re doing better than a lot of the population.”
He feeds me a few more bites of soup. “Are you feeling any better?”
I lift my hand to brush my hair out of my face, my hand getting tangled in the snarled strands. Oh boy, I bet I look fantastic. Hair aside, it doesn’t hurt to lift my arm. I twist my head side-to-side and that feels fine too. “Is there something in the soup because I actually feel really good.”
“I mixed in a few healing herbs I had on hand.”
“You are a secret potions mixer.”
“I told you, I’ve had to take care of myself for a long time.”
My smile falls as Davis sets the now empty bowl of soup aside. He’s close enough for me to reach out and touch him. I trace the scar that runs from just below his ear to down below his jaw. I’ve wanted to ask him about it from the first moment we met.
“What happened?” As if the sky knows we’re talking about things that require quiet, the sun slips beneath the horizon. Its retreat throws the room into a dim glow from the one lamp that’s on the bedside table.
The flecks of gold and green that circle Davis’s pupils are more pronounced, they’re color more vibrant and clear as he holds my gaze. His hand falls to my knee, resting there like he needs the anchor.
“I was eight. I got it the night my mom died.”
I don’t move, don’t make a sound. I’m afraid any sudden movements will make him change his mind and he won’t tell me what happened. It feels just as important to learn about this as it does for him to speak about it. I get the feeling he’s never talked about it with anyone before.
