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She obviously wasn’t in the mood to spend time with me, so I headed to the gym to burn some energy, hoping I’d be able to get a nap in before our date. It was strange not having the estate full of contestants. It felt emptier than it had in a while, and I found myself wandering around aimlessly.
Things had been so chaotic for the last few weeks with both the Contention and dealing with Branson that I almost didn’t know what to do with the free time. By the time evening rolled around, I was anxious with anticipation at seeing Kayden.
I stood in front of her door, my hand poised to knock when it swung open to reveal Faye standing there with a smile. Kayden, standing just beyond her, looked less thrilled to see me.
I smiled broadly in spite of her lack of enthusiasm and held my hand out. “Shall we?”
Kayden blew out a breath and took my hand, saying goodbye to Faye. As we walked down the hall, she finally spoke. “What are we doing?”
“It’s a surprise.” I squeezed her hand. “I’ve missed you, Kayden. I’ve hardly seen you the last few days.”
She didn’t respond as I led her upstairs to my apartment, and once we were inside, I couldn’t let it go. “Kayden, what’s going on with you? Why are you being so distant?”
She looked down at the floor for a moment, and when she looked back up at me, tears were shining in her eyes. “I just don’t know what to believe anymore.”
“About what?” I rested my hands on her shoulders, wanting to pull her close but afraid she’d just push me away.
She huffed and shook her head. “Nothing. Just forget it.”
“No. Talk to me. Please.” I stared into her honey eyes, imploring her to open up to me. To trust me.
But there was a knock at the door, interrupting us before I could get her to tell me anything. I opened it to find Helen standing there with an apron on, her graying hair pulled into an elegant bun. She had a large cart with her, loaded with ingredients.
“Helen,” I greeted her, smiling and pulling her in for a hug. “I’m so glad you could make it.”
“For you?” She pinched my cheek like she had since I was a little boy as she stepped inside. “Anything. Now, who do we have here?”
“This is Kayden, my…” I cleared my throat, catching myself before I called her my mate. “One of the finalists in the Contention.”
I glanced at Kayden, seeing her eyes flash, but she smiled at Helen. “I think we met at your restaurant a couple weeks back.”
“Ah, yes. So we did.” Helen retrieved her cart and pushed it inside, heading toward the kitchen. “Well, today, I’m going to take you behind the curtain and show you how things are done. I hope you like lasagna.”
Kayden’s eyes widened. “You’re cooking for us?”
Helen chuckled. “You’ll be the one doing the cooking,” she said. “I’m just here to teach you.”
Kayden turned to me as Helen continued toward my kitchen. “A cooking lesson?” Some of the irritation had drained from her face, and I thought there was a hint of a sparkle in her eyes.
“I thought you might like it. You enjoyed her food and said you don’t have much experience cooking. What better way to learn than from the best?” I offered her a smile, reaching out to snag her hand in mine. When she didn’t pull away, I counted it as a win.
“That was very thoughtful, Holden,” she murmured.
I led her to the kitchen, where Helen was already unloading ingredients onto my countertops. “Have you ever made lasagna before?” she asked Kayden.
Kayden shook her head, her cheeks turning pink. “Only putting a frozen one in the oven. I’m afraid I don’t have much experience with food beyond the basics.”
Helen chuckled. “Okay, let’s start with boiling some water. I know you can handle that.”
Kayden smiled, the first one I’d seen in days, and the tightness in my chest eased somewhat. Perhaps it was just the stress of everything that happened. She’d killed Branson, fought in a duel with seven other wolves, and had to deal with the fallout of nominating a new leader for her pack. All that on top of the stress of the Contention. We would be okay. We were so close now.
“Here’s where I keep my pots.” I showed Kayden around my kitchen, familiarizing her with where everything was. Not too long from now, I hoped to share this kitchen, this home, with her.
We set the water to boiling, then Helen showed us how to make her secret sauce, threatening to permanently maim us if we ever told a soul. Kayden focused intently on the lesson, her smile growing as she became more talkative throughout our time with Helen. By the end of the cooking lesson, her mood had improved drastically, and I was antsy for Helen to wrap it up and leave us alone.
There was something intimate about cooking together, and it made me look forward to all the evenings ahead. I was ready to share my life with this woman, and this was just a hint of what was to come.
“Would you like some wine?” I offered Kayden as she followed Helen’s instructions to create the layers of lasagna.
