Page 77 of Chasing Sparks

“Two minutes up the road, which is nice when it’s single digits outside.”

“I didn’t see your truck.”

“No,” I laugh, taking another sip of coffee. “Ash insisted we had to get his bike home safely before the storm. Figures he’d choose the coldest night of the year to take me on a moonlit ride.”

“We love our ladies.”

“Only if they’re carved from steel.”

“Touché,” Braden replies, clinking his mug against mine. He straightens and peers toward the doorway, no doubt waiting for Ash to make an appearance. “Are you two okay?”

“I think we’re better than okay. We had a bit of a breakthrough last night, which is far superior to the breakdowns we experienced earlier in the day.”

Braden leans on the counter, tapping his fingers against the ceramic surface. His green eyes lock on mine, serious now. “He really cares about you, Ori. I know he sucks at showing it sometimes, but trust me, he does.”

“Now you tell me. Where were you yesterday when I was a hot mess, thinking he slept with Casey?”

“Right next door, as usual.” He shrugs, a small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “But don’t worry. Nothing happened there. It’s not Ash’s style.”

I sputter my coffee, sure I heard him wrong. “Juggling multiple women isn’t Ash’s style? Since when?”

“When Ash gets serious about someone, it’s like blinders go on. Nothing else matters.”

I wrap my fingers around the mug, considering his words. “I thought he didn’t get serious. Ever.”

“Not in a long damn time, but you seem to have changed his mind.”

Have I, though?

Despite stepping forward, Ash remains wary about the concept of love. All I know is some woman broke his heart and did a bang-up job of it.

How do you help someone trust in love again when they’ve already decided it’s a losing game?

“What are you two talking about?” Ash asks as he strolls into the kitchen and grabs a mug of coffee, pausing to drop a kiss on my forehead.

I give him a nonchalant shrug. “You. Obviously.”

“Shit. Here I thought it would be a good morning.”

Braden laughs and motions toward the door. “I’m heading into the shop. I have a custom piece later this morning. You two behave.”

“No promises,” I giggle, swatting at Ash when he slides his hands under my shirt to squeeze my boobs.

“Be nice, mister, or I won’t make you breakfast.”

“Just appreciating the chef,” he teases, grinning as I swat him away. “Although far be it from me to stop you from taking over the kitchen.”

“I can teach you how to cook, you know.”

Sadly, although half Italian, the man could burn water.

Come to think of it, he likely has.

The further away he stays from the oven, the better off we all are.

“How about you cook, and I’ll clean up afterward?” Ash offers.

“Deal.” I grab some eggs from the fridge and crack a few into a bowl.

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