Brooke lifted her head.“What?” She was so beyond confused.
“Yeah,” Anna said with a nod.“I’ve got a great pancake recipe saved on my phone. We should make brunch for Nate and Mel. I think you’d make a phenomenal Sous Chef.”
Brooke found herself blushing, there was something about the concept of having Anna give her orders that was enticing. Maybe it was because she had watched Anna control a full kitchen for over a year. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Brooke liked all the little ways in which Anna took care of her and she trusted that any order she gave would be for the best. Brooke’s mouth went dry. Those thoughts definitely did not have anything to do with a kitchen. She cleared her throat.“Um, sure. We can make brunch.” She rolled out of bed and stretched a little. She wasn’t used to sleeping flat on her back. She also still wasn’t used to having Anna sleep directly on top of her, but she wasn’t complaining.
Anna headed for the bathroom and Brooke dug through her suitcase looking for an appropriate outfit to cook in. She hadn’t really brought anything for just normal day wear, but she had brought just a plain black polo and khakis that would have to work for the occasion. It was just about the most casual look in her bag. She quickly changed and pulled her hair back into her signature low knot bun. She had just finished buttoning her polo’s top button when Anna knocked on the door. Her heart softened. It was oddly endearing how quickly they had established a routine. She knew it was something she’d miss when they made it home. She made a mental note to speak with Susan about it. She had never thought she’d take to sharing a space so easily.
“You may enter, Anna. I’m all changed.”
When Anna stepped back into the room, Brooke froze. She looked perfect, casual in an simple sundress. It was adorable, a bright teal-blue color, patterned with little black cats playing with yarn. Her hair was pulled back into the cute little half-up-half-down style that seemed to be Anna’s favorite. And her socks were back to mismatching, though they somehow coordinated perfectly with her dress.
Anna crossed the space in a breeze, a small frown furrowed in the center of her forehead in such a way that Brooke wanted to reach up and soothe it with her thumb. Anna’s hands fluttered up to Brooke’s collar and teased at the top button. She tugged slightly at the fabric, an unspoken question hovering between them. Brooke felt her stomach swoop back and forth at Anna’s signals.
“You look like an accountant with your top button all done up like this,” she said, her voice playful and flirty.
Brooke shrugged.“They wouldn’t put the button there if you weren’t supposed to button it.”
“Oh, I disagree. It’s like a silly rule. It’s meant to be broken.” Anna’s eyes fluttered up at Brooke as her fingers deftly unhooked the button. Her thumb traced along Brooke's collarbone as far as it could reach.“See, that’s better.”
Brooke was left with only the ability to nod in agreement. Who was she to argue with logic like that?
“Come on,” Anna smiled.“Let’s go make everyone food.”
Brooke had watched Anna cook for a year now, but she had never gotten the opportunity to participate. Nate had been sipping coffee when Anna and Brooke had emerged from their room. Mel was still asleep, but Nate had told them quite happily to make themselves at home in the kitchen. He even went so far as to get them aprons to use. The one he handed Anna said“kiss the chef.” He sent Brooke an adorable wink as Anna tied it around her waist. Brooke just blushed. She wasn’t sure, in the light of day, without the presence of too much alcohol, if kisses were even welcome. Besides, Anna had initiated all three of their kisses the night before.
The blush that spread across Anna’s cheeks when she saw it confused Brooke even further. Brooke cleared her throat, determined to act normal. Just because this had secretly been a fantasy of hers for the past year didn’t mean that she had to be weird about it.“What can I do to help?” she asked as she felt her own shy smile sneak into place.
Anna blushed again for some reason. Brooke wanted to ask her about it, but she knew that the answer was probably somewhere along the lines of Anna didn’t actually need help to make breakfast, but was too polite to shut Brooke down after Brooke had taken the trouble to put on her own apron.“Can you help me get out the ingredients?”
“Of course.” Brooke looked at where Nate had been standing just moments ago, but he had already disappeared into the living room. She didn’t mind, he had told them to make themselves at home. Brooke would dig through his pantry and cupboards to find whatever Anna needed.“What all do you need?”
They found everything they needed for pancakes. They also found back bacon to fry up and eggs they could scramble to go along with it.
“Are we doing beans, too?” Brooke asked.
“Beans? For breakfast?” Anna asked instead of answering.
Brooke nodded.“Yeah, not your thing?”
Anna chuckled, but she shook her head no.“No, but we can make them if we need to.” She started measuring out ingredients while they spoke. Brooke couldn’t help but want to just sit back and watch.
“I think we’re fine without. I was just teasing you. It’s an incredibly British breakfast item.”
“But I’m making American pancakes,” Anna pointed out. She paused what she was doing for a second and took a visibly deep breath.“I would try beans for breakfast though.” She smiled softly at Brooke.“If you ever want to make them for me.” She quickly busied herself with the dry ingredients.
Brooke’s eyes widened. Breakfast. Anna had just suggested that one day Brooke might make her breakfast. Her heart was suddenly in her throat. They were back to tiptoeing around it all. They had made quite a leap the night before and were back to toeing the line of what was going on between them. She quickly looked away, unsure of how to respond.
Anna cleared her throat.“Do you want to start mixing? I can get the bacon going.”
“Sure thing, Chef,” Brooke said, hoping that her words would come out as playful, flirty even. She might have underestimated the effect it would have on Anna who nearly dropped the mixing bowl of pancake ingredients. If Brooke was bolder, she would file that away as useful information. She would push the joke a little and try it again. Instead, she was terrified that she would push Anna away if she nudged too hard.
Anna handed Brooke the bowl and backed up. No matter how fragile the situation, Brooke had to ask. The whole morning had been a mess of hot and cold. They had woken up snuggling, then Anna had quickly gotten off of her, then had unbuttoned her polo, and was now dancing around her in the kitchen. Brooke knew that she was not the best at communication. She also knew that her brother could likely hear them from the living room, but she had to make sure they were okay.“Hey, Anna?” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Anna immediately gave Brooke her undivided attention.“Yeah, Honey?” Her voice was soft and laced with concern.
Brooke cleared her throat and set the bowl down on the counter. She nervously wiped her hands on the front of her apron even though she hadn’t managed to get any of the ingredients on them yet.“Are um,” she forced herself to look Anna in the eyes.“Are we okay?” Holy shit that question was a piece of glass on the edge of a very high ledge.
Anna softened immediately. She reached out and grabbed Brooke's hands.“Of course. I was just afraid that I was too much last night… I can be too much sometimes. And we haven’t really talked about…”
