Page 53 of Finn

“Hey,” I say softly so as not to startle her.

It doesn’t work, though.

She jumps and spins around.

“Oh, Finn.” She places her hand over her heart. “I didn’t even hear you coming downstairs.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

She waves the spatula in her hand. “Aw, no worries. I was just in the zone—the cooking zone.”

“I see that,” I say with a nod to the stove.

Biting her lip, she says, “I hope you don’t mind that I’m making us breakfast. It’s just that when I came down to the kitchen to see if there was anything to eat, seeing as I was feeling kind of famished, I found the whole pantry and refrigerator completely stocked. I then figured I’d just go all out for both of us.”

“That’s cool.” Grabbing the back of a wooden chair at the table in the center of the room, I say, “As for shit being here, yeah, I had the guy who takes care of this property when I’m away make sure he loaded us up with provisions. You’ll find not only food but laundry detergent, soap, dishwasher pods. You name it, it should be here.”

“Wow.” She smiles at me, and damn, there goes my heart—like always these days. “You really planned ahead for our stay.”

“I tried to,” I reply.

Turning back to the bacon, she asks over her shoulder, “How do you like your eggs?”

It’s then that I notice a carton of eggs and a stick of butter on the counter next to her and another skillet on a different burner, ready to go.

“Uh, scrambled would be good,” I begin, but then I add, “You don’t have to do all this, though. I can help.”

Turning to me, she points at me with that damn spatula. “No,” she states firmly. “You sit.” She gestures to the chair I’m still holding the back of. “I’m on breakfast duty today. You can make us a different meal another time.”

“Okay, okay.” I raise my hands and surrender by pulling out the chair and sitting my ass down, as directed. “I give up.”

“Good,” Sammie murmurs as she directs her attention back to cooking.

And man, a short while later, I’m thinking,What a great breakfast she made for us.

It’s a literal feast of eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice.

“This is fantastic,” I say between ravenous bites, seeing as I’m fucking famished too.

Sammie smiles at me. “Good. I’m glad you like it.”

“No, really,” I go on. “The eggs are so fluffy and light, and the bacon is just the right amount of crispy.”

Laughing, she replies, “I think you’re just hungry.”

I am, but I assure her, “No, everything is truly terrific.”

“Thanks, Finn,” she murmurs humbly.

When we’re done eating, I lean back and ask her, “What would you like to do today?”

She’s in the middle of taking a sip of orange juice, so I wait until she swallows and puts the glass down.

Shrugging, she says, “I don’t know. It’s your town. You tell me. I’m up for anything.”

“Okay, cool.” I nod once. “How about if I show you the house I grew up in and some old haunts of mine? Then we can go back into town, and I’ll show you the more touristy places. In fact, on the way back, I’ll take a route where you’ll be able to get a sweet view of Mendenhall Glacier.”

Sounding genuinely excited, she replies, “Oooh, that all sounds good.”

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