Page 177 of Chasing Infinity

Once we’re both sated and showered, we walk hand in hand back to the house. Addison’s cheeks have that post-sex glow, and I grip her hand tighter, wondering if I’ve ever seen anything more beautiful than her.

“Good morning,” my mom says as we walk into the kitchen. “You two sleep well?”

Addison ducks her head, her eyes gluing to the floor, but not before I notice a faint blush forming on her cheeks. I chuckle under my breath and answer for her. “Yeah, Mom, everything was great.”

My mother had requested the cottage be built on the property for visitors. A lot of the time, my Aunt Trish would take up residence there when she and my mom would be working on a project. But in cases like this, where I paid a surprise visit, it worked out nicely to have a separate space I could stay away from the main house.

There was never any telling how many women my mother would have staying in her home at any one time, so it was safer for me not to bank on staying there. And anyway, I wouldn’t ever want to make the women uncomfortable with my presence, as many are still leery of men, so keeping space was totally fine with me.

“I’m glad to hear that,” Mom says and then turns back to the scrambled eggs she’s whipping up. “I’ll have breakfast ready for you two in a few minutes. Most of the girls have eaten already. If you need some, there’s a little coffee left in the pot.”

I let go of Addison’s hand and walk over to the counter, grabbing two coffee cups and filling them with the dark, heavenly liquid. Then going into the fridge, I find the creamer and pass it over to Addison, who smiles at me gratefully, popping the top off and pouring a healthy amount into her coffee.

We settle into our seats at the table, and my mom serves us each a plate of breakfast. I sit next to Addison, and without wasting any more time, we all dig into our meals, scarfing down the eggs and toast.

“Knock knock. Anyone here?” A voice calls through the house. My mom looks up from her breakfast and grins at me, shaking her head.

“In the kitchen!” she calls out.

I hear something drop on the floor from the main hall and then footsteps echoing against the hardwood floors. A woman appears in the kitchen doorway, her curly dark hair a mess on her head. She looks at the three of us sitting at the table, and accusingly puts her hands on her hips.

“Didn’t realize we were having a tea party. Where was my invite?”

“Hey, Aunt Trish,” I say, laughing, standing up and wrapping my aunt into a hug. She hugs me right back, patting her hands on my broad shoulders.

“Alright, Kid, that’s enough of that.”

I step away from her and turn to Addison, who is watching the exchange with confused eyes. “Parks, this is my Aunt Trish. She’s been helping out at Carmichael House here and there, working with my mom.”

“She’s also the one who killed me,” my mom chimes in, grabbing her plate from the table to take it to the sink and shooting a wink at me.

Addison’s eyes dart to me, furrowing in the middle, but Aunt Trish interjects before I can say anything. “Yep, that wasallme. Guess all those years studying botany paid off, huh?”

Addison’s attention now alternates between my mom and my aunt, who is sharing a little smirk with each other. “What are you two talking about?”

I sit down next to Addison again, draping my arm against the back of her chair. “My aunt graduated college with a botany degree. When I decided it was time to get my mom out of there, I reached out to Trish for her help. She combined a concoction that could put the body into a trance-like state, simulating death.”

Addison stares at me blankly, and Trish chimes in. “You ever readRomeo & Juliet?”

Addison turns to her and frowns. “Of course,” she replies a bit haughtily, and I have to bite back a chuckle.

“Well, it’s like that.”

Now Parks looks at me again, and I nod my head. “I know it’s a little far-fetched, but that’s why Charlie was such a crucial part of the plan. Since he was in on it, he could look past the signs of life that weren’t extinguished with the mixture.”

Addison closes her eyes and places her hand on her forehead as if overwhelmed. I wrap my arm around her shoulders tighter. “Hey,” I say, getting her attention again. I carefully place my finger under her chin and bring her eyes back to me. “We don’t have to talk about this anymore if you don’t want. Just whenever you’re ready or if you have questions.”

She nods her head but doesn’t say a word. I rub her back, looking over at my Aunt Trish, who is watching the two of us closely. When I raise an eyebrow at her, she curls her lip up in mock distaste. “Well, you two are just disgustingly in love, aren’t you?”

Addison’s jaw drops open, and I bark out a laugh. “Guilty,” I say as I lean over and press a kiss to Addison’s cheek. When I pull away, I grin at the rosy blush on the apples of her cheeks.

“I’m still a little confused,” Addison says to my aunt. Aunt Trish raises an eyebrow at her expectantly. “How could you create such a concoction so easily when it could be so problematic.”

“Guess that’s the power of working for the government,” my aunt responds bluntly. “I’m pretty confident I signed away my soul as soon as I handed that recipe card over,” she says with a chuckle.

Addison still looks as though she’s thinking hard about the whole thing. “I’m just surprised they were okay with it being used at all.”

I shift in my seat, uncomfortable. “That might be partly because of me,” I tell her. “I was able to convince my supervisors that this would be a one-time-only thing. I think there were equal amounts of trepidation and intrigue at the prospect of somebody having made the Shakespeare potion, so they let it slide.”

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