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“Like apples and butter and brown sugar. Delicious. And when you’re turned on…the apples ripen.” Now it was her turn to choke on her tea, and he chuckled quietly before going on. “I immediately pulled over and followed you into the bakery. You had your hair in two braided buns like dragon horns, and the freckles on your nose were little bright sparks that lit up my whole insides. I was at a complete loss for words when I got up to the counter. Couldn’t even focus on the menu to order. You were so kind, though, and recommended the everything bagels because they’d just come out of the oven, so I got one. When I came in the next day, you recognized me and asked, ‘You want an everything?’ and—” he broke off, shooting her a look that she already understood.
“You’re not scaring me.”
He gave her a crooked grin and exhaled before going on. “And I desperately wanted everything from you. So I said yes. And the next morning, the same thing. It’s been like my secret message to you all along. Every day, I want everything.”
She smiled into her mug. “So you just…throw them away?”
“What, the bagels?” He chuckled again. “No. I usually give them to the guy who runs the news stand on the corner. He’s a big fan of your baking.”
She raised her mouth from the rim of her mug to make a face at him. “I thoughtyouwere a big fan of my baking.”
“Oh, I am. The things you make are beautiful, Ivy, and they smell so good. I just can’t eat them. We dragons produce our flames in our gut, and the gluten tangles up the ignition system, so to speak. I’m sorry to miss out.” He sounded so genuinely remorseful that she reached out to squeeze his hand.
“It’s okay, really. This whole thing is requiring me to rewrite a lot of memories, and I haven’t quite wrapped my head around all of it. I’m not sure what I’m going to feed you for Christmas dinner tonight. Everything I brought has gluten. I’d meant to stop at for groceries on the way out of town, but yesterday was so weird that I forgot. And all the stores are probably closed today.” Her heart sank as she realized they’d probably need to cut the weekend short.
“Leave it to me,” he said firmly, pushing up from the bed to stand beside her. He squeezed her shoulder and then slid his free hand under her pillow-snarled curls to support the back of her head as she looked up at him, his thumb rubbing a few gentle circles in the sensitive spot behind her ear. “You have breakfast. Relax in the hot tub. Sort out whatever you need to sort out while I run into town and pick up food. My hive always cooks a big feast for Christmas, and they said it’s fine to come grab some to go.”
“But the roads—” she began worriedly, glancing out the window at the fresh-fallen inches.
He made the purr sound, and a bright flame licked his lips. “I can thaw them if necessary. Don’t worry about me. You have enough on your mind. I want to take away every worry that I can.”
“In that case,” she said, standing up and pushing out her bottom lip in an affected pout, “I’m worried I won’t get to kiss you for hours.”
“Ivy, Beautiful, give me that sugar,” he murmured, drawing her closer until his mouth found hers. A gentle brush of skin-on-skin at first, but then his forked tongue tested the corners of her lips and took over, stroking over the seam and then dipping between them to flutter against her tongue.
Her nipples tightened behind the velvety fabric of her robe and sent a direct signal to her clit, which definitely remembered exactly how that tongue felt. She moaned into his mouth, and he pushed his mug into her empty hand so he could cup her face and deepen the kiss.
Balancing two mugs of hot tea, her calves backed up against the bed frame, Ivy was helpless to do anything but submit to the sensation of his mouth on hers, his scented breath mingling with the flavor of the tea as he sucked and savored her. When he finally pulled back, they both were panting.
“You better go before we melt all the snow and ruin our white Christmas,” she joked.
8
Taironstoleonemoresly lick before they bid a temporary goodbye, and Ivy watched his bike roar off into the sparkling morning.
She parked herself at the kitchen table, munching a toasted bagel with hazelnut butter and fig jam. No property managers would be answering their phones over the holiday, but she could at least submit some rental applications to get the ball rolling on finding a new place. With sticky fingers, she scrolled the reviews of apartment complexes on her phone, checking out pictures of the kitchens on their web sites.
Her heart sank when she saw the price tags, though. Even the least-expensive one-bedroom places would stretch her budget past the breaking point. She searched for studios instead and quickly realized that the only places she could afford were ones with kitchenettes. Could she live without an oven?
Not happily. She reluctantly submitted several applications and then browsed listings for roommate shares. A few possibilities popped up, mostly in large houses that catered to Otherworld Academy students. Not ideal, but the kitchens were bigger than the efficiency apartments. She sent some emails for those, too.
She put her phone aside, feeling discouraged. Even at the lower rents, she’d have to work on her budget. Cut back on her data limit, maybe do without streaming services. Pick up a weekend shift.
A vision of her new life came into focus, of spending long hours at work and then coming home to a lonely, cramped room without the ability to work on recipes or watch the latest season ofThe Great British Bake-Offto relax.Anger at James bubbled and rose like double-yeasted dough. He’d really ruined everything. It was so unfair that he got to cheat and then—
She stopped herself. Took a deep breath and tried to let go of the resentment. She didn’t want to bethatperson, nor did she want things to go back to the way they were with him. Already, she had hints of how amazing her life could be. She’d had more fun in the last twenty-four hours than in the last twenty-four months put together! What did she have to mourn, anyway? A relationship with a man who didn’t want her? A comfortable routine that prioritized his needs over hers?
Change was scary, but it didn’t have to be bad, Ivy reminded herself. She’d get through the uncomfortable transition period somehow. She’d decorate whatever tiny apartment she rented and make it a cozy nest to incubate her dreams of owning her own bakery someday. She’d scrape together money for a countertop oven and bake her little heart out. And maybe her new fun friend would visit and keep her company on lonely nights. She had a feelinghe’dnever leave her on read.
The thought of booty-calling Tairon made her smile, and a weight lifted from her shoulders. She was not going to spend this weekend moping around and feeling sorry for herself, damn it! So she spent the next few hours doing anything but think about the future.
She called her parents to wish them a Merry Christmas and broke the news about the breakup with James. They were surprisingly blasé about it.
“I never liked him much, anyway,” her father said gruffly. When she asked why not, he explained, “He’s always suspiciously lukewarm, like leftovers that have been sitting out too long. You don’t want to waste them, but you know they’re going to spoil any minute, so you don’t dare eat them either. So you end up just waiting for them to go bad so you can throw them out.”
Ivy couldn’t have put it better. “He’s officially gone rotten. Feel free to return any Christmas gifts you bought him.”
“That seems prudent,” her mother agreed.
