Page 25 of The Odds of Happily Ever After
“Gabe . . .”
Damn it. I recognized that tone. I opened my mouth to end the call before she said anything more, but my conscience interfered. “What?”
“Can you do me a favor?”
chapter nine
luna
Luna
So great to see you guys!
Enjoy the rest of noche buena!!
Lonzo
Ate T ate your share of the ham loll
Ate
I did not. Lonz ate double.
Luna
So jealous! Miss you all!!!
Stepping out ofmy bedroom, I stared at the chaos in front of me.
Bowls, pans, and baking tools littered every inch of the limited countertop space while the small dining table struggled to contain my attempts at recreating bibingka. A pot of spaghetti sauce simmered on the stove beside a bigger pot with water forthe pasta. In the oven, a slab of ham was roasting in pineapple glaze.
I might have gone a little bit overboard with my meal prep.
Considering I was cooking for one, that was an understatement.
“Ugh.” My loud groan cut into the cheerful carols streaming from the speaker. Why did I think this was a good idea again? Forget about eating—clean-up was going to be a massive headache.
I was psyching myself up to clear the table when the doorbell rang. Putting the music on pause, I walked to the door and peered through the peephole. Then I stood there for what felt like a full minute because my eyes had to be fooling me.
Gabe looked straight through the small circle of glass as if he could see me. “Open up, Luna.”
Moving without thought, I opened the door to him standing in the hall, dressed in a white sweater and something I’d never seen him wear before.
My jaw dropped. “Are you wearingjeans?” The blue denim bordered on black, the fabric framing the length of his legs in a perfect straight cut.
He huffed out a breath, drawing my eyes to his face. “That’s what you find unusual here?”
“Uh, considering I didn’t think there was a universe where you owned jeans? Yeah.”
He didn’t just own them. He freakingownedthem.
“It was laundry day,” he muttered, glancing down at his pants.
“You should wear them more often.” I tilted my head and considered him. “Heck, if you’re feeling adventurous, you could pair them with sneaks.”
“Noted,” he said wryly. “Are you going to let me in?”
The question snapped me back to my senses. My back straightened as I remembered that this was Gabe and I was definitely not supposed to be checking him out or giving him unsolicited fashion advice. “What are you doing here?”
