Page 25 of Protecting the Nerd

We’d tried some of Brianna’s pastries for breakfast, and York hadn’t exaggerated. They’d been delicious. We’d also brought home sandwiches for lunch, but now my stomach was growling, signaling it was time for our next meal. And the cupboards in Tomás’s house were all but empty.

He sighed. “Takeout in Forestville is limited to calling in an order to Eddie’s Drive-In and picking it up, which means having heartburn the rest of the evening. Or getting something from the Double F, which is slightly better food but has a limited menu. Collins sells rotisserie chicken and slices of pizza and on the weekends, lasagna and one rotating menu choice. That’s it. If you live here, you either cook or eat microwave meals.”

I blinked. “Right. Cooking it is. I can make something.”

“You’re my bodyguard, not my personal chef.”

“Considering we both have to eat, and I don’t plan on eating burgers, pizza, and microwave junk for the next few weeks, I’m sure I can be both.”

“We’d have to do groceries.”

“Can we have them delivered?”

York shook his head, chuckling. “Instacart hasn’t arrived here yet. Probably won’t get here for the next, oh, ten years.”

“Is there a grocery store?”

“Collins Family Grocer is on Main Street. They have a limited assortment and aren’t cheap, but it’s good quality. The nearest big store is Walmart, a twenty-minute drive.”

“Let’s head to Collins. We can plan the rest of our meals tomorrow and go shopping at Walmart.”

“You don’t mind us leaving the house again? I wasn’t sure of the rules.”

I shook my head. “We can’t stay cooped up here. We’d both go crazy. So yeah, I’m fine with going out for groceries, providing you drive and carry the bags. I have to have my hands free at all times. And I’ll have to let Miller and LaFontaine know. The two FBI agents.”

“Fair enough, though I will warn you I don’t lift weights like you, so I can’t carry much.”

“Who says I lift weights?”

He snorted. “Please, you spend more time in a gym in a week than I do in a whole year. Your eyes lit up when you saw the gym Tomás has set up in the basement.”

He wasn’t wrong. “I do like to work out, though I focus on endurance training over strength.”

“The best training is actually a mix of both. Weight training helps develop your big muscles, which increases your metabolism and makes you burn more fat, while endurance training strengthens your heart and lungs. Though several studies show evidence that overdoing it isn’t always healthy, like running ultra marathons.”

Did he realize how adorable he was when he got serious like that? I was fascinated by his mind, which seemed to store all kinds of random information. “For someone who hates working out, you know a lot about it.”

He looked away, his cheeks coloring. “I read a lot, and I like to know how things work, even when I’ll never use that knowledge for myself.”

“It wasn’t a criticism.”

“I’ve been accused of showing off. I know not everyone enjoys being lectured.”

“That wasn’t lecturing me or showing off. That was you sharing relevant information pertaining to a topic we were discussing.”

“Oh.”

“I enjoy learning new things, so feel free to keep sharing those bits of information and knowledge with me.”

The shy smile he sent me was a reward in itself.

I let the two agents know about our plans and gave them five minutes to get ahead of us. As soon as we stepped outside, I took York’s hand, and he only hesitated for a moment before accepting it. When our fingers laced, he blew out a long breath as if releasing something he’d been holding for a long time.

“What kind of food are you in the mood for?” I asked.

“Whatever you want.”

“Is that you being polite, or do you mean it?”

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