Page 16 of The One With The Secret Crushes

"Do you bake or just cook?" I dropped the softened butter into the bowl and began mixing ingredients.

"I almost never bake." He swallowed. Hard.

And that sent a thrill through me. I liked that I stumbled into something nice for Scott. I liked even more that he appreciated it so much.

He cleared his throat, but his voice was still rough. "Has anyone been cooking for you lately?"

My nerves disappeared. How could I still be anxious when he sounded so jealous and hopeful and disgruntled at the same time? "No one has cooked for me in a long time. Not until today." I shot him a smile as I mixed the wet and dry ingredients together. "It was really nice."

That disgruntled look multiplied. "I will cook for you anytime. I really wish we'd cleared this up sooner. You deserve to have meals made for you, Mackenzie."

Oh, he was too cute when he got his grouch on. My heart pattered away in my chest while visions of my skin colliding with his danced in my head. "I mean, technically, Annie cooks for me sometimes."

"Visiting the only restaurant in town and ordering off the menu is not what I mean, and you know it." He pointed at me. "I will be doing your cooking. You want breakfast dropped off at the office?"

My brain short circuited on the image of Scott standing in this kitchen in nothing but his boxers making me breakfast. It utterly ignored the office delivery part. "And what would you make me for breakfast?"

In went the chocolate chips. More than my grandmother's recipe called for because Scott liked them extra chocolatey.

"Anything you want. Pancakes, eggs, I'll make you a fucking soufflé if that's what you like. Place your order now because there's no convincing me otherwise."

"What if I don't eat breakfast?"

When he didn't reply I looked up to find him staring at me.

"What?" I shrugged.

"Mackenzie. You pass out two hours after waking up if you don't eat. You need protein and little to no sugar, so the pancakes are out, but I do make a high protein oatmeal pancake tower layered with Greek yogurt and fruit that might pass the test. Do you still hate fruit?"

Oh my.Scott paid attention. A lot of attention. And kept it memorized foryears."I don't mind fruit these days. I really like yogurt, granola, and fruit compote for breakfast. I fell in love with it when I interned in London."

"Shall I bring it to your house or meet you at the office?" He cocked an eyebrow, daring me to refuse him again.

I couldn't unhinge my jaw. The house? The place I barely existed? No. Absolutely not. I didn't want whatever this was becoming, this new and beautiful thing, to be tainted by the time capsule that was my current living arrangement. "The office."

He nodded once. "I'm headed to the city tomorrow to pick up supplies from my distributor, so I won't be able to make you lunch again. Do you need anything from town? I'm happy to pick up anything while I'm there."

The city wasn't the other side of the moon, but it wasn't a quick trip either. He'd be gone most of the day and for some reason that made me sad. I wasn't sure why since I'd be working all day just like always. Maybe it was just knowing he wouldn't be near. "Thank you for asking but I'm good."

"If you think of anything, call me or text me. I mean it." He nodded to the cookie sheet. "Those ready to go in?"

I glanced down, startled. I must have moved on autopilot because all the cookies were laid out in nice rows, ready to be baked. "Oh! Yes."

He took the sheet and slid it into the oven and set the timer. "Hungry? If I don't feed these animals they starve or eat chicken tenders from the microwave, which is sacrilegious."

My stomach growled, answering for me. "I could eat."

His fingers flew over his phone and a moment later it vibrated. "Looks like it's just the five of us tonight. Travis and Joanne have been called to family dinner."

"More for me!" Logan said as he poked his game controller.

Digger and Jasper had their faces scrunched, bouncing in their chairs. An intense battle of some kind was taking place. Nothing had changed in all these years except which video game was being played. Everyone gravitated to Scott, who fussed over and fed them, all while I shrank into a corner and watched it all play out.

Except this time Scott had no intention of letting me blend in. "Help me?" He hooked a hand around my hip and redirected me to the center of the kitchen.

"I doubt you need any help."

"Then keep me company. I'm not making anything complicated." He handed me a pot and nodded to the sink.

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