I let out a soft, disbelieving laugh. “Once I finally passed out from all the orgasms, sure.”
His response was a wicked, satisfied smirk I could feel even without seeing.
Heat blossomed in my belly, and my heart raced as I realized how quickly I was falling for him.
Bexley pushed onto one elbow, and the way his gaze swept slowly down my body made my blush come roaring back. I tugged the blanket a little higher, which only made the corner of his mouth tilt like he knew exactly what effect he had on me.
He grabbed his T-shirt from where it had landed last night and pulled it over his head. Then he did the same with his sweatpants, forgoing his boxer briefs. Once he was dressed, he reached behind him and picked up a folded flannel shirt I didn’t remember seeing yesterday.
“Here,” he murmured, handing it to me. “Grabbed it from my truck when I noticed you were cold last night.”
I held the soft fabric against my chest for a second before slipping it on. It dwarfed me completely, the hem hanging to my mid-thighs. His scent clung to the cotton, and it felt like being wrapped in him. “Thank you.”
Bexley brushed a kiss against my forehead in a gesture so sweet that I almost cried, then he pushed to his feet. He padded across the cottage with a quiet confidence, moving like he already belonged here. And maybe he did.
He crouched at the fireplace first, stacking wood and coaxing new flames to life. Then I followed him into the kitchen, where he checked the stove, turning knobs and muttering under his breath about pilot lights. Finally, he looked out the window, assessing the snowfall with a slight narrowing of his eyes.
Watching him was its own kind of warmth. My heart felt too big for my chest, so full I didn’t know what to do with it.
“You hungry?” he asked without looking back.
“Do you even have to ask after all the calories we burned yesterday?”
He rewarded my teasing with a deep, satisfied rumble as he rummaged in the pantry. After grabbing some supplies, he set a bowl on the counter and began mixing flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and spices. Then he added oil, water, and vanilla.
“You’re making pancakes?” I asked, incredulous when I realized what he was doing.
“Yep.”
My brows drew together. “But you don’t have milk or eggs.”
He shot me a half grin over his shoulder. “You gotta trust me.”
I was surprised to realize how easily trust came to me with him, when I was so wary of other people. I could only assume it was because of the whole fated mate thing.
He flipped the first batter round into a hot pan, and the smell of food made my mouth water. Then he slid a plate toward me with golden, slightly crisp pancakes that looked far better than anything that should’ve been possible with the sad contents of my grandmother’s pantry. Or mine, now.
I took one bite and groaned. “How? These are incredible.”
He shrugged, but his smugness was unmistakable. “I have skills you haven’t seen yet.”
Heat bloomed in my cheeks. “Pretty sure I saw a lot of your best moves up close and personal last night.”
Bexley froze for half a heartbeat, his eyes going dark and molten. There was a delicious growl in his voice as he murmured, “Those were just the warm-up, baby.”
All I could do was shove another bite of pancake into my mouth so I didn’t whimper out loud.
The morning quiet had just settled into something warm and lazy when a strange mechanical buzzing drifted through the window. I paused mid-bite and frowned. “What is that?”
“Sounds like a snowmobile.”
Bexley followed me as I stood and moved toward the window, where he was proven right. A snowmobile crested the last bend of the long driveway and glided to a noisy stop beside the porch. A man bundled in a heavy ski jacket with goggles pushed onto his forehead hopped off and trudged through the snow toward the front door.
“Oh!” I breathed. “I bet that’s my real estate agent. We were supposed to meet today, but with the storm, I didn’t think he’d make it.”
A low growl vibrated at my back. “Forest.”
“Yeah, that’s his name.” I gave him a look over my shoulder. “You have me in such a daze, I couldn’t remember it for a second.”
