Page 69 of Lost in You (The Monroes 3)

Macy blew out a sigh. “I attempted Liam’s mother’s recipe for dumplings,” she explained. “I’m pretty sure the smell is better than the taste.”

“No.” Cora pushed her fork into the dumpling and scooped up another bite. “It tastes amazing. It doesn’t matter what it looks like, my taste buds are pretty happy.”

Brock pulled a drawer out, grabbed another fork, and settled onto the stool next to Cora. “I’ll be the judge of that. There’s no way you can eat all of this.”

Cora laughed. “Not if I want to fit into my wedding dress.”

“Well, I’ll finish this off and then you won’t have to worry about it,” Brock mumbled around a mouthful.

Liam went back to the island where the rest of the do

ugh sat in the pile of flour. He motioned for Macy to come over. She shook her head. When he raised a brow, she crossed her arms over her chest and glared back.

Cora and Brock continued to argue over the dumpling as they took stabs at their bites. Liam didn’t take his eyes off Macy.

What was it about this woman in her little apron? He’d worked with female chefs before, had seen plenty of them in aprons, but he’d never once thought of stripping one of them and taking her on the counter.

Clearly there was something about Macy, apron or no apron, that made him think twice about everything he ever wanted.

Sophie breezed into the room, immediately looking toward the stove. “Liam, I swear you make this house smell better than any air freshener I could put out.”

Shaking his head, he pointed to Macy. “She did the work.”

Sophie’s eyes widened. “You’re learning to cook? That’s great. Liam is an awesome teacher.”

Macy held her hands up. “Oh, no. I’m not a great student. There’s one giant dumpling those two are fighting over.”

Cora laughed. “That’s because it tastes amazing. I don’t care what it looks like to you all.”

“It’s really good, Soph,” Brock agreed. “But you can’t have any.”

Sophie crossed the room, reached around Brock’s shoulder, and grabbed his fork before he knew what she was doing. When he yelled, Heidi came to attention, but Cora quickly reached down and patted the dog.

“I just want a bite.” Sophie helped herself and then ended up getting two more bites. “You’re right. That does taste amazing.”

Liam threw a lopsided grin to Macy, who was fighting back her own smile. After all the raves, there was no way she could deny that she’d done a great job.

“I actually do have to finish working on some things for tomorrow.” Liam circled the wide island and braced his hands on the top. “Are you all about done attacking that bowl?”

“I better stop or my dress won’t zip and I already paid for the alterations,” Cora told him as she dropped her fork onto the counter. “But feel free to make those anytime. Better yet, let Macy assist you in the kitchen.”

Macy assist him? He threw her a glance, noting her wide eyes. He couldn’t help the chuckle. “I don’t think she wants to make this a permanent arrangement. We were working on things for her dad’s surprise party and dumplings just happened to come up, so here we are.”

“Then find something else to work on and I’ll be happy to test it as well,” Cora added as she came to her feet and reached for Heidi’s collar. “I’m ready when you are, Sophie.”

The ladies ushered one another out the back door, leaving Brock scraping the bottom of the bowl.

“Do you want me to leave this stock boiling?” Macy asked.

“No. Go ahead and turn it off. I’ll use it in the morning to make up the dinner.”

“Are you guys dating or something?”

Liam froze at Brock’s question. Macy had turned her back as she twisted the burner off. But seeing her rigid shoulders, he guessed she was just as stunned by the words hovering in the air.

“I’m going to take that silence to mean you aren’t dating, but you’re more than friends.”

As if the one-sided conversation was completely normal, Brock got up and put his bowl and the two forks in the dishwasher. “It’s cool,” he went on as he turned to face Liam. “I think you’re both awesome, so if you want to date, that would be—”

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