Page 59 of Vengeful Union

Rory and I go into the back door of the kitchen to avoid Niall.

“He’s probably holed up in his office, but just in case.” Rory lets go of my hand once he opens the refrigerator door.

“What are you going to cook me?”

“You like red meat?”

“Love red meat. Rare. Bloody.” My mouth starts watering.

Rory smiles. “Me, too. How about some steak and potatoes? Maybe a salad on the side?”

“That sounds incredible.”

“I think you can handle the salad,” He throws me a head of lettuce, which I manage to catch with one hand, cradling it against my chest.

“Your funeral.” I shrug, and Rory laughs out loud.

I look up in the cabinets and find a mixing bowl and some salad tongs.

Rory gets out the steak, seasoning it and getting it in the pan while I rifle through the fridge for more salad ingredients.

I find some cherry tomatoes and shredded carrots, and some dried cranberries in the pantry.

“I sure hope you have bottled dressing.”

Rory nods. “Should be some in the door.”

I pick out a balsamic vinaigrette and toss the ingredients all together with a liberal amount of dressing.

By the time I get it all mixed, it actually looks pretty appetizing.

Thirty minutes later, Rory and I have a ribeye each with salad and roasted potatoes. It smells like a restaurant dish, and I can’t wait to eat it.

Rory peeks out of the kitchen to make sure his father isn’t there, and then gestures for me to come through.

Back in the room, I sit down cross-legged and start to cut my steak.

Rory sits next to me, but he doesn’t dig in. His face is serious, like he’s thinking.

I frown. “Are you all right?”

He shrugs, but leans against me, nudging his shoulder against mine.

“I just keep thinking about how this ends.”

My throat goes dry.

“Yeah?” My voice sounds strained even to me.

What does he mean? When we separate? Because I keep thinking about that, too, and a big part of me wants him to…

I don’t know what I want him to do. All I know is I feel awful when I think about all this being over, and I guess I want to know that he feels that way, too.

“He’s still my father.”

Oh.

Rory’s worried about what happens to his father. Of course, he is.

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