He smirked. “I pounced and was knocked on my ass, thanks to that shiny stone around your neck.”
“Didn’t stop you for long. I stumbled as always and made it all too easy for you.”
His smirk slipped into something much sadder. “I almost didn’t do it. I watched you play in the sea with the demi-cat. Watched how your entire face lit up when you laughed. It did something to me, Evan. Made me feel things I hadn’t before.”
“Like what?”
“Guilt for what I planned to do. Before then, I always acted with my own interests in mind. Screwed over anyone for ashilling, just as your captain said. But that was the first time I ever second guessed myself. The light in your eyes was so damn bright. I didn’t want to take it away.”
“You said you didn’t regret capturing me.”
“And I don’t. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here with you right now.” Rowan dropped his gaze to our joined hands. “I’m not good with words, little treasure. They get jumbled in my head and never come out how I want. I’m also not good at… this. Loving someone and outwardly showing that love. But I’m trying. I really am.”
“I know you are.” I stepped into his orbit, no space between our bodies. He stood only an inch taller than me, bringing our mouths in near perfect alignment. His breath held traces of rum and smoked almonds. “You’re doing great. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
He wet his lips. “What I’m trying to say is I’m not going anywhere, Evan. So put any worries about me leaving to rest. Because this life with you? It’s greater than a no-good thief like me deserves.”
“You deserve all the happiness in the world.” I hooked my wrists behind his neck. “Being loved by you and the others? I don’t know what I did to get so lucky, but I don’t take a single moment of it for granted. I love you so much, Ro.”
“Ro?” he asked with a crinkle of his brow.
“Is that okay? It just slipped out.”
Smiling, he ghosted his mouth across mine. “I like it.”
We kissed, then, beneath the shade of the tree where we’d first met.
A muffin and his thief.
***
Stars looked so much brighter in winter. They shone like diamonds in the night sky, as if the treasure from the sea earlier had floated up and got caught in the dark web. Each twinkle cast the world in a silvery hue, kissing the land with stardust and moonbeams.
“Are you warm enough?” Lake adjusted the scarf around my neck. He’d knitted it for me, working on it many nights while I’d sat by the fire reading.
“Yep.” I admired the dark green material, loving how it faintly smelled of peaches. “Thanks to you.”
“Where’s mine, pup?” Rowan sat on the porch railing, one leg dangling down. He was like a bird, always perching on something. “Don’t care if I freeze to death?”
Lake exhaled through his nose. Like an annoyed huff. “Cheaters don’t deserve scarves.”
“For the last damned time, I didn’t cheat.”
Another huff. “Magic isn’t allowed in chess.”
“Know what shouldn’t be allowed?” Rowan withdrew his dagger and picked at his fingernails. “Your face.”
“You have no manners.”
Smiling at their banter, I tipped my face to the sky and inhaled the crisp air.
After leaving the beach, Rowan and I’d returned to the cottage and ate a late lunch with Lake. It then turned into a lazy afternoon of kisses, cuddles, and reading by the fire before Maddox and Briar came home.
“Supper was delicious,” Lake said. “What did you call the meal?”
“Spaghetti and meat balls.”
One thing about this fantasy world? I had to make everything from scratch. No pre-made pasta. The same went for making my own spaghetti sauce. I didn’t mind though.Homemade tasted better anyway. Caramelized onion was my secret ingredient.
