Page 35 of A Roommate for Christmas
“I hope it’s okay I’m using the kitchen and all of your pans,” he said, filling the silence.“I just got a bit too excited to show off my one culinary ability.Oh!And there’s a coffee for you.”He pointed at the Nespresso machine.
Sure enough, there was a coffee that still had steam coming off the top waiting for her.Who is this man, and what has he done with the Carter I saw last night?
“No, no, of course it’s fine!Sorry, I’m just surprised, that’s all,” Paige said, grabbing the mug.
“All right, one pancake ready to go.”Carter handed her a plate with a perfectly cooked pancake on it.She sat down at the island, where he had already laid out silverware and syrup.
“What’s the occasion?”She asked him, still in disbelief that she was receiving royal treatment.
“Well, for starters, a thank-you for sharing your rations with me.Next, because it felt aligned with the Christmas spirit you’re sodesperatelytrying to summon in here,” he teased.“But also, I was just looking for an excuse to try to impress a girl.”
His back was turned because he was mid-pancake flip, which Paige was grateful for.Her cheeks were warm from blushing, and she didn’t want to give Carter the satisfaction of knowing his little trick was working on her.
After all,this was his move, she had to remind herself.He does this for his own purposes—don’t fall into the trap.
She composed herself just as he was turning to give her a second pancake.Perfect, again.
“Well, it takes a lot to impress me,” she quipped.She put the first bite in her mouth.
Carter stood across the counter wide-eyed, waiting eagerly for her review.
“I’ll hand it to you,” she said after savoring and swallowing the bite, “this is a near-perfect pancake.”
He smiled at her as if she had just told him he had won a million dollars.
“You hear that, Dad?”he said, looking up toward the ceiling.“Another fan of your work.”
Paige’s heart melted into a puddle to match the syrup on her plate.How could she stay mad at this guy?Before she could think it through, she blurted out, “So, what was up with you last night?”
“What do you mean?”he asked, looking suddenly confused.
“You completely ignored me when you came into the kitchen for that pizza.I started talking to you and—”
“Oh shit,” he interrupted.“I’m really sorry.I was doing some exercises and was totally in the zone.I didn’t hear you over my music.Seriously, I’m sorry.”He paused before adding, “Now these are also apology pancakes.”
Dammit, Nadia, Paige thought.Of course he has a valid excuse.
“Don’t worry about it.Sorry I took it so personally.I just ...”She hesitated again but decided to just come out with it.“I just wanted to say that, while yesterday started rough, not being able to go home and all, I ended up having a really fun day ...with you.”
A smile crept back across Carter’s face.
“Me too,” he said.“So I guess that means we really need to knock today out of the park now.”
“I guess so,” she agreed.“And if these pancakes are any indication, we are off to a great start.”She stuffed another full bite into her mouth.
“There’s more where that came from.”Carter turned back to the stove and poured more batter onto the pan.
They spent their meal engaged in the usual small talk you make with someone you just met.Paige was surprised at how little she actually knew about the guy living in the room across the condo, and how little he knew about her.
Carter was in finance, which she had known, but she learned more about what his job entailed on a day-to-day basis and the direction he wanted to take his career.He talked more about his mom, and they bonded over growing up as only children.He talked about where he went to college—Duke—and she learned he was a student athlete on their lacrosse team.
That explains the body, Paige thought.
She told him about growing up in California and life on the west side of the country.She talked about her job at the marketing agency and how ready she was to leave.She even told him about her dream of freelance consulting.
“I think that sounds awesome,” Carter said.“You should totally just go for it.Life is too short to continue doing something that makes you unhappy.It took me way too long to learn that.”
“You know from experience?”
