Page 90 of A Love Like Pumpkin Spice
I’d wanted to take her on another proper date. A quiet, cozy restaurant a few towns over, run by Iona, the sweetest Italian woman you’ll ever meet, who also happens to make the best pasta within a five-hour radius. And yes, I absolutely wanted to impress Nic. But the moment Erik opened his mouth back at Caleb’s, I knew that today wasn’t going to be the day for that.
There is too much going on in that beautiful head of hers, too much anxiety for her to enjoy herself. What she needs right now islove, to cuddle with her cats and, hopefully, me, and some quiet as she processes her emotions.
“Come here,” I say, lifting my arm once I’m settled on the couch. Without missing a beat, she grabs her blanket, drapes it over us, and snuggles into my side. The moment I pull her closer, her whole body relaxes against mine and a deep sigh falls from her lips.
“What are you in the mood for?”
“I don’t care. You decide.” She hands me the remote. “I don’t want to use my brain.”
She might claim she doesn’t care what we watch, but I’ve learned to read the signs. A little nose wrinkle? Not a fan. Slight eye-widening? That’s a maybe. Any kind of seat adjustment? That one’s a winner—she’s invested.
And after the day she’s had, I figure it should be her pick, even if she won’t verbalize it. So I scroll through our options, gauging her responses until I land on a cartoon. Sure enough, she snuggles even closer into my side, putting one of her legs over mine.
“This one sounds interesting,” I say and press play.
“Really?” she asks, lifting her eyebrow at me, surprised. “I didn’t take you for a cartoon guy.”
“No, I totally am,” I lie through my teeth, tossing the remote aside and pulling her other leg over my lap as well, drawing random patterns on her knees with my thumb.
It doesn’t take the animals long to join our cuddle-ball. Jensen lies down over my feet, the not-so-little heating pad that he is, while Cinnamon climbs into Nic’s lap and Pumpkin … well, Pumpkin is currently trying to climb the wall, not very successfully.
“God, that cat,” Nic mumbles, watching her jump up. “Sometimes I watch her, and I could swear there’s not a single thought behind those little eyes.”
“Not a thought, but plenty of dumb ideas,” I agree with a chuckle and watch as Pumpkin diverts her attention to her reflection in the window, promptly hissing at it.
Suddenly, Jensen bolts upright and takes off, sprinting out of the room while barking loudly.
“What the—?” I start, already on my feet, my heart rate picking up.
Then I hear it. The unmistakable sound of someone fiddling with Nic’s front door lock, then athudas that person tries to push or kick the door open.
My eyes snap to hers. She’s completely still—wide-eyed and frozen in place, pale as a ghost.
“Are you expecting anyone?” I ask, my voice low, already scanning the room for a weapon.
She shakes her head.
“I have a gun,” she whispers, and quickly jumps up, to run over to her cupboard, fumbling with a key hidden under one of the books and unlocking a drawer.
“You’re not handling a gun in this state,” I hiss when she takes it out with trembling hands, and she hands it to me.
I take it carefully, fingers steady despite the way my pulse is picking up and echoes in my ears. Dad taught me about guns in my teens.“Just in case,”he’d said. It hasn’t come in handy until today, and holy fuck, am I now glad that he taught me.
I eject the mag, check the chamber, then give the slide a slow rack, to make sure everything is moving how it should.
It’s in decent shape. Not new but well-kept. I slide the magazine back in and click the safety on, keeping the barrel pointed low.
“Go upstairs and lock yourself in a room,” I whisper as we slowly and quietly make our way to the hallway, peeking around the doorframe to see what’s going on. But all we can see are shadows.
“Henry, I’m not leaving you down here alone,” she hisses back, furrowing her eyebrows and shaking her head.
I stare at her for a beat. Then nod. Quietly and resignedly. She’s stubborn as hell. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t find it oddly reassuring now. I take a deep breath and straighten up. Trying to exude self-confidence. I take a step into the hallway. The gun raised, aimed at the front door.
“Stay outside! We’re armed!” I call out loudly, forcing myself to take deep breaths and keep my hands steady.
“Fuck you!” I hear a slurred male voice reply and shoot Nic a glance. Two words and we both know exactly who is trying to break in. Who is kicking down her door.
Pumpkin is hiding somewhere in the living room, but Cinnamon is next to Jensen. Her fur puffed up like a feather duster. Her ears flattened and tail twitching with laser focus on the door. Jensen is next to her. He doesn’t move. He’s coiled tight. A low growl rumbling deep in his chest.
