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“Wanna help me get the batter ready for the pancakes?”
“Yep.”
Freya retrieved the box with the dry pancake mixture and syrup from the pantry, placing them on the kitchen island. Then she took the eggs and milk out of the fridge. She filled Maddie’s sippy cup with milk, then set her in the middle of the kitchen island, which she thought was great fun.
Freya mixed the batter. Then removed a griddle from a cabinet and placed it on one of the six gas burners. She added some oil to the pan, letting it heat, and started cooking the pancakes. While those were bubbling in the pan, she put bacon on a cookie sheet in the oven to crisp, then whipped together some eggs in a bowl. Once the pancakes were done, she’d scramble up the eggs. She got out the watermelon and chopped it into smaller, more bite-sized pieces. They were going to eat like royalty today.
After months of scraping by, it would be sublime to enjoy a breakfast feast. Plus, she was making enough for Jasper too. She didn’t know what he liked to eat in the morning, but figured she couldn’t go wrong with pancakes, eggs, bacon, and fruit. A strapping man like him would likely eat a lot too, so she didn’t skimp on the portions.
She mainlined coffee while she cooked, unsure what the day would bring.
Once the food was cooked, she put all but what she needed to feed Maddie in the oven to keep warm. She sat with Maddie at the kitchen table. Her kid was happily stuffing her face when Jasper strolled into the kitchen in a pair of black basketball shorts and nothing else.
Holy mother of god!
Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. Because hubba, hubba. The man was gorgeous. His inky hair hung around his broad shoulders. His chest was covered with a light dusting of dark hair. But what had her panting was his six-pack abs and chiseled vee lines that disappeared beneath his shorts that hung indecently low on his hips.
For a moment, she stared there, thinking she spied the faint outline of his thang. And good lord in heaven, he couldn’t be that big.
Feminine flutters clenched and rippled in her sex.
“Morning, ladies. I smelled bacon,” he murmured and winked at Maddie.
“Breakfast is in the oven, staying warm. Help yourself.” It was his food, after all. “And the coffee’s fresh too.”
He padded over to the coffeepot and withdrew a mug from the cabinet. “Have you eaten yet?”
“I will once Maddie’s finished.”
“I’ll wait for you.” He leaned back against the counter with his steaming mug of coffee.
“Oh, you don’t have to.” She kept her focus on feeding Maddie, not her future husband, who was giving her all sorts of naughty thoughts. It was ridiculous. She was a grown woman with a child, not some horny teenager. Tell that to her uterus. Damn thing kept making kissy noises in his direction, because he was the biggest, baddest alpha male she’d ever encountered. And her body biologically understood he was the best alpha male to procreate with and continue the species.
“You don’t have to wait for me. Eat while it’s still hot.”
“I’ll wait.”
“But you don’t have to.”
“I’d like to discuss a few things with you.”
Oh god, he’d changed his mind. They were going to have to pack up and leave this place when they’d barely settled in. What would she do? Where would they go?
“All right.” She swallowed, uncertain what she and Maddie would do now.
“Relax. I’m not tossing you out.”
Was he a mind reader besides being a sexy beast of a man who was loaded and single? “Am I that obvious?”
“Yep. It’s written all over your face. You’d never win at poker.”
“I avoid games of chance.” She had experienced far too much excitement in her twenty-six years. She wanted peace. She wanted a place to raise Maddie without feeling like there was an ax above their heads.
“All life is risk, lass. The simple act of walking out your door each day could have dire consequences, so live your life and stop worrying about the rest.”
She snorted. “Easy for you to say.”
“Why do you say that?”
