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“In that case, you win.”
She winked and carried the pan over to the island, plating two fried eggs for each of us, followed by some toast that had just popped up from the toaster. She buttered both pieces and brought the plates to the table, where I joined her after I grabbed us more coffee.
“This is nice.” She held her mug with both hands, watching me take my first bite. “The before-work thing, I mean. Now that Hannah is living with Declan, I only cook for myself. It was so strange for a while since we’d lived together for so long and I always made breakfast for two.”
I dipped the toast into the runny yolk and groaned as I chewed.
I didn’t know how she had made eggs taste this good, but, shit, they were fucking fire. “You can make me breakfast anytime you want.”
“That would mean I’d have to stay the night.”
I looked up from my plate. “And?”
Her grin grew. “You’d better get out of here. Fast.”
I laughed and inhaled the rest of my food, downing my coffee as I brought the plate into the kitchen and set it in the sink along with the mug. When I returned, I turned Oaklyn’s chair until she was facing me and knelt to pull her into my arms, holding her tiny body against mine.
“Stay as long as you want,” I told her. “There’s no reason for you to rush out of here.”
She circled her arms around my back, her head on my chest, where she’d slept all night. “I didn’t bring my laptop, so I really do need to go home.”
“Don’t you dare touch those dishes. My housekeeper will be here in a little while, and she’ll clean up.”
“But—”
“No buts. You cooked, and since I’m out of time, my housekeeper will clean.” I gave her a final squeeze and stood. “I’ll text you later.”
* * *
“My assistant said you phoned about an hour ago,” Easton voiced after I answered his call. “Did you get everything you needed?”
I lifted the Hooked file from the mess on my desk, trying to remember why I’d even called him. I’d been at the office for four hours, and it felt like a month. I was in the midst of juggling all three cases, and it was too much for my fucking brain.
I peeked inside the folder, reading the notes I’d written earlier, and it all clicked. “I did,” I replied. “She sent over the documents I needed.”
“How’s it looking?”
I set the file down and pushed my back into the chair, my eyes closing, my hand rubbing across my forehead. “We’re making headway. We’ve got our team working on the weekends to log all the data we’ll need to show in court. This morning, I listened to the conversations you’d recorded that we’re going to use for evidence. I’ll tell you what; Declan and I can’t wait to present those.”
“When anyone fucks with me, the Boston comes out, and I hit record so fucking fast when that opportunity presented itself.”
I laughed.
Jesus, I missed that city.
Bostonians had a rawness that LA locals just didn’t have.
“It’s a good thing you did,” I told him. “That proof alone could win you the case. But that doesn’t make our job any easier, not when you go up against a social media giant like Faceframe.”
“That’s why we hired the best. Now, go work your magic and let me know if you need anything else.”
“Will do,” I said and hung up.
I was just opening Hooked’s file again when there was a knock at my door.
Goddamn it.
I couldn’t go a fucking minute without being interrupted.
