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He’d listened. He’d been engaged. He made her feel valued in a way no one ever had before.
They must have drifted off somewhere between talks of the future and questions about the present. The past had stayed off limit. She was tired of talking about Isaac and terrified of the damage her ex would try to cause when seeking his parental rights. Too nervous to discuss it, she hadn’t asked about his past. Even though a hundred questions about the life he’d led outside of Pine Valley, and the ribbon she’d found in the office, sat on the tip of her tongue.
Maybe they didn’t need to hash out every detail of the lives they’d lived before now. But she wanted to find a way to show him she understood he’d walked away from something traumatic and dangerous and came out a better person. A person who saw her for who she was and made her want to be better. Not only for her baby, but for herself as well.
An idea formed in her mind, and she snuck off the couch and tiptoed down the hall to the office. The award she’d found was on the desk where she’d left it. This was something special. Something that should be displayed with pride, not thrown back in a drawer for no one to see.
Sending out a quick prayer that Cade wouldn’t notice it was gone, she slipped it off the desk and crept into the guest room across the hall where she’d put her bag. She tucked away the medal then made quick work of dressing in fresh clothes and running a brush through her hair before washing away her morning breath in the bathroom.
Satisfied with her appearance—makeup free and with no fear of Cade’s response—she went into the kitchen to throw togetherbreakfast. As she pulled eggs and shredded cheese from the stainless-steel fridge and found the right pan and bowls, she couldn’t help but think back on other early mornings preparing a meal for a man who slept.
With Isaac, she’d made as little noise as possible, making sure to cook things exactly the way he liked them. It didn’t matter that she preferred bacon to sausage links or omelets to scrambled eggs, she created a meal to someone else’s preference.
Someone who never once showed appreciation or even kindness at her thoughtfulness.
Cracking the eggs into a bowl, she rolled her eyes. Not thoughtfulness. Fear.
But now, she’d found the ingredients for a simple breakfast she wanted, knowing Cade would be happy with anything she did.
A lightness lifted her spirits. She whirled around to the stove, turning on the burner and heating her pan before pouring the eggs inside.
“Something smells amazing.”
She smiled at the sound of Cade’s voice then turned around and stifled a gasp, pretending to cough to cover the strangled noise.
Dark stubble covered his jaw, bordering on a beard. His disheveled hair begged her fingers to run through it. Sleep made his eyes heavy, somehow making him look like a sexy teddy bear who needed a hug and not an overwhelmed basket case like it did her. His white T-shirt was wrinkled, and gym shorts hung low on his hips.
She licked her lips then spun back around to the stove before she did or said something she’d regret. “Thanks. Thought I’d make a simple omelet if that’s okay?”
“Better than the cold cereal I usually eat.”
His bare feet padded against the wood floor. Every nerve ending in her body sensed him—felt him.
He moved closer. The warmth of his body soothing against her skin as he reached into the cabinet for a glass. “Sorry. Just gonna reach around you a little.”
She cleared her throat, determined not to stop staring at the eggs sizzling in the pan. Because if she moved an inch, if she glanced up with his face so close to hers, she’d do something she shouldn’t.
“Do you want coffee? Tea?” he asked, taking a step away and filling his cup with water.
“Water would be great.” She peppered the now-cooked egg with cheese then folded it over. “How are you feeling?”
“My head hurts but not too bad.”
She reached up to grab her own glass from the nearby cabinet just as he stepped into her personal space with the same objective. His hand brushed against hers, causing a rush of heat to trickle from her head to her toes.
“Oh, sorry,” she said, turning to give him room.
He pivoted, bringing his chest to press against her.
The world stopped. Her throat went dry. She stared at his chest, watching the place where his heart beat and swore she could see it thudding—beating as rapidly as her own.
“Laura?”
He said her name like a question, pulling her gaze up to his. Their eyes met, and the intensity in his stare threatened to drop her to her knees. She braced a hand against him to steady herself and the heat from before morphed into an inferno.
He wet his lips as he watched her.
Dear God almighty. I’m in trouble.
