Page 73 of Begin Again

“Good.” He slides a plate toward me, his fingers grazing mine, sending a spark straight through me. I hate how my breath catches, how my pulse betrays me. How something as simple as his touch makes my entire body hum with awareness.

Celeste hums approvingly before snatching a piece of French toast for herself. “God, I love this for you.”

I shake my head, grabbing a fork. This is going to be a long morning.

Valkyrie lets out a soft bark, making Theo chuckle as he flips a piece of bacon onto a small plate and sets it on the floor for her. “Here you go, Little Terror.”

Celeste leans over the counter, eyeing the spread. Fancy french toast, scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, and even a small fruit salad. “This is way better than your usual toast-and-peanut-butter routine, Selene.”

“Gee, thanks,” I say dryly, but my gaze lingers on Theo as he moves around the kitchen with easy confidence. It’s an intoxicating confidence that comes from knowing his way around. From feeling comfortable here. That thought does something weird to my chest.

I frown slightly, glancing at the food again. “Where did you even get all of this? I didn’t have half of these ingredients yesterday.”

Orion’s voice cuts through the room bringing a halt to what Theo was about to tell me. “So, care to explain why you’re coming out of my sister’s room shirtless this morning?”

I freeze, coffee mug halfway to the pot, and Theo straightens, a spatula still in his hand.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Theo says, his tone calm but firm. “I was checking on her after she screamed bloody murder. Celeste was still jumping on her bed as I ran in.”

Orion’s eyes narrow as he steps further into the kitchen. “And why were you shirtless?”

Theo glances down at himself, then back at Orion, raising an eyebrow. “Because I don’t sleep fully dressed? Is that a problem?”

A muscle feathers in Orion’s jaw. Valkyrie, sensing the tension, lets out a huff as she walks over to Orion, nudging his hand with her nose. He scratches the area between her ears absentmindedly, but his glare doesn’t waver.

Celeste snickers and I try to step in before Orion escalates things further. “Orion, it’s fine. Nothing happened. Theo was just being considerate.”

Orion doesn’t look convinced. His protectiveness isn’t just instinctive—it’s ingrained. He’s spent the past year guarding me, making sure no one ever got too close. That I had time to get over my last heartbreak—which if I’m being honest with myself—wasn’t that much of a heartbreak. That no one ever had the chance to hurt me again. And now, Theo is standing here, in my kitchen, cooking me breakfast, fresh from my bed, and I can practically hear the internal alarms going off in Orion’s head.

After a long moment, he grumbles under his breath and stalks off.

Theo sighs, turning back to the stove. “Remind me to bring a suit of armor the next time I stay over.”

“Inviting yourself over already?” I ask, hiding a smile as I grab a plate.

“Next time there will be no alcohol involved.” He says with a heat in his gaze. “By the way, you’re out of maple syrup. I improvised with honey.”

I glance at him, my chest tightening with warmth. Did he just imply what I thought he implied?

He flashes me a quick smile, and for the first time in a long while, everything feels… easy. Perfect, even. Too perfect.

Orion, as always, shatters the moment.

“We should be hearing back from my friend about the DNA soon. Have you been able to figure anything else out about the cyanide poisoning? Have there been any other people in town that also had mysterious deaths that could potentially be connected?”

Theo shakes his head, flipping the last piece of French toast onto a plate. “Not much yet. I think Mo was going to be looking into the specifics of everything. Bennett is only a private investigator so he doesn’t have the connections she has. Especially if we want to do everything by the books. Mo also is the one that has those herbalism books to look into. The cafe is closed today so I’ll stop by her place and see if she needs an extra set of eyes.”

Orion straightens, his expression hardening in a way that makes it clear there’s no room for negotiation. “I’m going too.”

Celeste and I exchange a quick look, her eyes sparkling with amusement. This is about to get interesting.

“The more eyes, the better,” Theo says, though there is a cautious note to his tone. “Let me just give her a call. I want to make sure she’s awake and give her a heads-up that we’re heading over—”

“She’s awake, so you don’t need to, I just left her place. I came back here to grab a few things.” Orion cuts him off, already moving toward the door. As he steps into the hallway, he mutters under his breath that sounds suspiciously like, “She’s expecting me to be back soon anyway.”

Wait,what?

Celeste and I whip our heads toward each other, jaws nearly hitting the floor in perfect synchronization.

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