Page 58 of A Table for Two
“I wasn’t going to say anything,” Natasha said with feigned innocence.
“Mm-hmm.”
“Not too many guys would mow your grass just because. Gabriel might be a keeper.” Natasha dropped her head and shoved a spoonful of strawberry shortcake into her mouth.
Serenity eyed her friend.
“That’s more than one word, so you can’t get mad.”
“Smart aleck.” If only she’d met Gabriel before her ex. At this point the jury was still out on whether Serenity could risk opening herself up completely to another man, no matter how much she liked him.
Chapter 16
Gabriel woke up bleary-eyed Sunday morning and peered at the nightstand clock. He’d stumbled to bed at 5:00 a.m., which meant he’d gotten a whole four hours of sleep. He rolled over onto his back and blew out a long breath. He couldn’t keep his mind from wandering to the woman who’d invaded his dreams for the past few nights. Dreams so erotic, he’d had a difficult time convincing himself they weren’t real. Gabriel thought by working himself to exhaustion he’d be too tired to dream, but that wasn’t the case. No amount of cold showers, running, or any other form of exercising had helped. As he lay there, he decided distance be damned, he was going to see Serenity today.
He drifted off to sleep for another hour, then got up to shower, dress, and find some food. Gabriel surveyed the meager contents of his refrigerator and realized he should probably go grocery shopping. Whenever he got focused on programming, everything else took a back seat, including food. There had been times when he’d gone an entire day without eating. Since being here, he’d done a better job of eating on a somewhat regular schedule. Until now. Closing the door, he went to put his shoes on. He’d pick up breakfast from Ms. Ida’s place, stop at the ice cream parlor, and grocery shop afterward.
Once outside, his gaze automatically traveled to Serenity’s house. Without stopping to think about what he was doing, Gabriel crossed the yard and rang her doorbell.
“Gabriel. Hey,” Serenity said, clearly surprised to see him.
“Good morning.”
“Is everything okay?”
He nodded. “I was on my way to Ms. Ida’s for a late breakfast and wanted to know if you’d like to come with me.”
A smile played around her mouth. “Any other time I’d be game, but I just made batter for waffles. You’re welcome to join me, if you like.”
Gabriel laughed. “I’ve never turned down a great meal, and Iknowyours will be exactly that. Do you need me to run home for anything?”
“Nope.” She held the door open for him to enter, then led him to the kitchen. “I have everything for a lazy Sunday brunch—scrambled eggs, bacon, fresh fruit, and my homemade waffles.”
On cue, his stomach growled. “What made you decide to make waffles? Not that I’m complaining.”
“Somebody’s hungry,” she said with a chuckle. “I’ve been craving them for the past few weeks.”
“Let me wash my hands and you can put me to work.” He had no problem working for his breakfast. And he enjoyed cooking with her.
Serenity handed him a paper towel to dry his hands. “You can handle the bacon and the fruit. Just use this plate for the fruit.” She had halves of a cantaloupe and watermelon, grapes, strawberries, and a pineapple.
“Got it.”
“Do you mind if I put on some music?”
“Of course not.” Serenity walked over to her phone, punched a few buttons, and Jill Scott’s powerhouse voice poured through the portable speaker on the counter. Gabriel bobbed his head in time with the music as he sliced and diced the fruit. Once he finished, he joined Serenity at the stove, where she was adding brown and white sugar, a little salt, and water to a pot. “What are you making?”
“Vanilla maple syrup.”
“Wait. You make your ownsyrup?” This woman never failed to amaze him.
“It’s good, too,” Serenity said with a little dance move in time with the beat. “And the best part is that it doesn’t take long to make.”
Smiling, Gabriel swung her out and moved his body in sync with hers. They danced for a minute, and then she went back to the stove. He watched in fascination as she brought the mixture to a boil, then turned it off and added maple extract. She grabbed another bottle from the cabinet. “What’s in there?”
“Vanilla extract.” She measured and added the liquid to the pot, then gave it a little stir. “That’s it.”
“Wow. That entire process took less than ten minutes. Where did you buy your vanilla extract from? I’ve never seen it in that kind of container.” He held the bottle up in the light and noticed the long brown stems inside. He opened the lid and smelled. “Vanilla beans?”
