“You better watch that powdered-donut mouth, sweetness. I’ll give you what you ask for.” I kiss him, but Theo pulls away with the satisfied look of someone who won. And maybe someone who called their boyfriend out on something. He’s right. I know it’s not some huge step, but I was afraid to go further sexually if he was going to leave. That’s how bad I have it for him.
Luckily, the stress of trying to not fuck it up on the video puts my libido in check. At least until I can haul Theo out of here in a few hours.
“What’s that?” Piper asks, pointing at the bowl Theo is picking up.
“That will become bread. Right now, it’s bread dough, almost done with the first rise.”
I catch his elbow. “Don’t move it. There’s plenty of room.”
“Hope you don’t mind, but you said Italian flavors . . .”
I look up to the items Theo carried in with him before he came to find me. “What’s all this, sugar?”
“Tiramisu and cannoli cake. Been working on the cannoli for Lucien, and you have no problem using your family as test subjects.” Theo looks at me from under his hair with crimson streaks on his face.
Perrin and Quinn laugh from their perch at the outdoor bar-height counter overlooking our workspace. Liam and Piper are next to them, with their phone and lights and assorted nonsense.
“This looks absolutely beautiful, Theo. Should I chill it before dessert?” Rita asks him, and he nods, eyes quickly darting back to his prep tasks.
Despite the changes in him, having Nico Donahue out of his life hasn’t suddenly made him an extrovert or overcome his natural shyness. But it’s given him his missing confidence. His flavors are bolder, his designs are more fun, and in bed, he’s more vocal about what he wants.
Quinn hands me two drinks, breaking me out of my thoughts. “This is for you and your boy. He’s a natural.”
“Is Piper filming?”
“I think so.”
I take a drink, staying near Quinn, to the side of Theo, answering Piper’s questions. He takes them seriously, and Piper and Liam lean forward with interest.
“Well, we are going to add herbs and cheese and olives to one of the breads and one we won’t, so there are different preparation techniques. Now that we have it through the first rise, we can play with it more.” Theo doesn’t look up from his hands moving the dough, adding flour.
“Baking is like science, a result of chemicals and reactions, so you need to be careful and precise.”
I walk up to Theo with an extra apron in my hand. Piper can just edit me out. He is consumed with the dough and answering questions, so when I spin him around, he blinks in surprise.
“Here, sweetness.” I take flour from on his shirt and brush it across his nose, earning a quiet giggle, before I drop the apron over his head.
“I need to punch this down.”
“Go ahead.” I move behind him, allowing him access to the counter. I cross the apron ties behind him, then move my hands around his waist to cross them again in front and wrap back again for me to tie in the back. Theo’s small frame is cinched in the protective apron, and I give him a kiss on the cheek, wiping away the flour I put there with my thumb.
“Thanks.”
“What’s this?” His prep station holds cheese, tomatoes, freshly diced herbs.
“Some for the bread, some for a dipping sauce.”
“What can I do?”
So, Theo and I work together. He gives me directions for making bread, which is not anywhere near my wheelhouse. In turn, once the bread is chilling to stop the rise before baking, I guide him through the prep of a rustic lasagna and manicotti.
“I like that I can pronounce all the ingredients,” Theo laughs, as his clever hands swiftly fill manicotti.
“Good food doesn’t have to be fussy. In fact, it shouldn’t be. But it also doesn’t have to stay the same. It should change with the seasons, even something like a lasagna.”
Once Theo is finishing his savory loaf, artfully placing chives and tomatoes and onions over it in a floral landscape, more art than food.
When we get to my cabin in the late afternoon, Theo heads to the shower, and I sprawl out over the couch. My hair is still damp from the shower I took at the Hobbit Hole while he put together his bag and Mulder’s things so they can stay out here with me for a few days. A bag containing far too many clothes for what I have in mind.
