Page 15 of Seal of Approval

Rose and Bailey charged inside the house, dumping their things as they went. Seriously, every day it was the same. They stopped short at the kitchen counter where a big box sat.

“What’s in the box?” Bailey asked Ethan.

“Something to make my mornings better.”

That was cryptic. The only thing that would make my mornings better was for Rose and Bailey to stick to the routine. Maybe there were whips in there.

Did Sex on Legs like to use whips? I blushed. What the fuck was I thinking?

“Are you going to open it?” Rose asked, climbing up onto one of the chairs at the counter. She tucked her short hair behind her ears. It had been short since she was four and had declared that long hair was annoying.

Ethan nodded and got a knife out of the drawer. He sliced along the tape and lifted the flaps. Then he reached inside and pulled out another box. I tried not to notice how his biceps flexed as he was lifting it out. Trying and doing were two different things. I was only human.

“A coffee maker?” Bailey asked.

That’s all he needed to make his mornings better?

“There’s nothing better than the smell of fresh coffee to awaken your senses,” Ethan said.

Rose stared at him. “Where are you going to put it?”

“I was hoping your mom would let me have some counter space?” He looked over at me, raising his eyebrows and giving me a smile.

I shrugged. “Sure.”

Bench space was easier than storing whips. I held my laughter in. As much as I hated to say it, this was Ethan’s home too. And I needed to be accommodating for at least another few weeks.

“How does it work? Are you going to make one now?” Bailey asked.

“It might be too late in the day for your mom.”

“No, it’s fine,” I said.

“I bought one that can make coffee as well as hot chocolate for you and Rose.”

Rose clapped her hands. Bailey grinned. That was very thoughtful of Ethan. He didn’t need to consider the children in his decision-making. Max never would have, and he was their own father.

“How about I set the machine up while you put your stuff away?” he said to the children.

Rose jumped off the seat, grabbed her schoolbag and placed it next to her bookshelf, where it belonged. Then she placed her school shoes next to it. She ran to her room and was back in no time, putting her school uniform in the wash. Bailey hadn’t budged. He was watching Ethan unpack the box.

“Bails, put your stuff away or else we won’t get hot chocolate,” Rose said.

Ethan twisted his mouth like he was trying not to laugh at Rose’s insistence. He caught my eye and his lips quirked.

I sidled up to him and whispered, “Hot chocolate might be my new reward system if they do their chores.”

Bailey reluctantly turned away and did as his sister said. I kept myself busy unpacking their lunch boxes. It had been a long time since I’d had anything but instant coffee. There were no coffee shops in Haven Bay and I was usually too busy when we went to Somewhere Bay to stop for one. Could it be as good as Ethan said?

Rose watched Ethan. “What are you doing now?”

“I’ve put the water in and now I’m putting the milk in. It goes in this plastic part at the back. When we’re finished making the coffee or hot chocolate, we can pull it off and put it in the fridge to keep the milk fresh.”

That was a good idea. I liked the idea of not wasting the milk.

Ethan pulled two packets out of the box. One was hot chocolate and the other was coffee. He reached in again and pulled out some glass cups with lids. “These cups are reusable. Not like what they use in coffee shops, so we won’t be adding to waste.”

Bailey sat down at the bench. “Have you seen that TV show War on Waste?”

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