Page 15 of Consume Me

Bailey walks into the room, rubbing her eyes. Knowing her, she didn’t sleep much either.

“Breakfast will be a while. Go back to sleep.”

“I knew you couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t either…” What she doesn’t say rings louder. It’s been bad without Blake, but with him back, the strain in the group is even more apparent.

She helps me assemble the ham and egg muffins in the pan while I prepare some with almonds and blueberries.

“You’re spoiling us.”

“Baking helps to take my mind off things.”

“How are you, honestly,” she asks. It’s impossible not to like her. She’s just too good, too genuine.

I shrug, not wanting to lie. “I don’t know.”

She nods, and Celine and Kaden walk in and begin setting the table.

“Any plans for today?” I ask them.

“We’re going to the vacation house. You should come with us,” she says, but I see Kaden’s longing for more alone time.

“Nah, I have some classwork to catch up on.”

“And you?” she asks Bailey.

“Cassandra wants me to go over to the estate so we can discuss some potential information leaks,” she says.

“Let me know how it goes and if you find something,” Kaden says.

“I will.”

A pause follows, and Kaden looks at her. “Could you at least let me know when he leaves this time?”

Bailey offers a nod.

While the muffins bake in the oven, the three of them take a seat. Next, Hunter enters and greets everyone with a jerk of his chin.

“And you? Any plans for today?” I ask my brother.

“Heading for some training with Sebastian and Dad. You should come too.”

I shake my head, wanting to preserve the small illusion that I am a regular girl until danger rips me awake from that dream.

I hear Abi’s giggles long before she appears holding hands with Dane. A smile automatically teases my lips at seeing them so in love and happy. I’ve always been the type of girl who finds it sweet to meet your person at a young age and spend your life with them. I thought I’d fall in love, and the first person would be my last. How naïve of me to think that, yet it’s nice to see it happen for others.

“What smells so good?” she asks, sniffing the air.

Right on time, the oven pings. I take the muffins out, their succulent aroma filling the air. As they cool, the atmosphere changes, becoming headier. I don’t need to turn around to know why.

I place the tray on the table and take my seat. Blake doesn’t come closer. He just glances at us, and then he walks out. My heart aches for him. Physically, he’s so close, but emotionally, he’s on a different planet––impossible for me to reach.

“Where is he going?” Kaden asks, partially out of worry but mostly because he’s a control freak.

“We have to give him some time,” Bailey says.

“We need to fucking talk and fix this.”

There’s no fixing this. Bailey looks at me, her expression resigned, revealing she thinks the same.

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