He ran his gaze over the latest brand new computer lying in bits on his worktable in the corner. It had arrived the week before. He hadn’t found one yet that he couldn’t disassemble and put back together to make it work better.
As a sideline, he occasionally sold his ideas to companies—never using his real name—and then bought the new computer to take it apart and start again, it was fun making things work faster. He’d just not been able to get one to work as fast as his mind. He was hopeful one day he’d achieve that, until then, he liked to read how folks blew up the internet loving his new creations.
That was the simple part. Looking back at the multi-screens, he could already see locked data files hidden there in the information. He’d always been able to see things others couldn’t when it came to code. He figured it was all to do with how crazy fast his brain worked.
Grabbing his headphones to play some tunes and not wake anyone, he plonked them on and rammed up the base, grinning, his head bobbing as he got to work.
Despite the awfulness of what he knew—or part knew because the media never shared everything—he became buzzed with excitement as his fingers flew over his specially designed keyboard to allow him to work for hours without his wrists aching, his mind unpicking the code to break the encryptions blocking him from accessing some of the data.
His mind worked as fast as fingers flying over the soundless keys as he fought to figure out how to break through. This was the fun part, beating a faceless foe who thought they could hide stuff from him.
His neck ached, and his shoulders were stiff when a warm hand touched his cool skin, getting his gaze to shift. It took longer for his brain to compute and focus as he blinked rapidly, noticing Arlo’s large, tattooed barrel chest in front of him. His gaze moved up the glorious expanse, his mind switching gears as it landed on Arlo’s moving lips.
“Huh. What’s that Daddy, you need to speak up?” he shouted, forgetting about the headphones.
Arlo’s big shoulders shook as he reached over and plucked off the headphones, filling the room with the loud dance music.
“You’ll damage your eardrums with how loud that is,” he grumbled, then kissed the tip of Taggart’s nose, taking away the sting of the rebuke.
“It helps me focus when I’m working, Daddy.” It was the truth; sound helped his mind to calm.
Arlo’s gaze shifted to the bank of screens, a deep groove appearing between his brows. “How on earth do you keep up with all that?”
“Easy peasy, Daddy. My brain likes it.”
The sound of feet shuffling over the wooden floor got Taggart hitting the block screen mode out of habit.
Everything shut off, and Arlo was the one blinking rapidly. “Shit, did I hit something?”
“Daddy, does Taggart want me to make breakfast for him?” The hesitation and feelings coming from Soren suggested he’d picked up some of Taggart’s disquiet at him seeing anything.
Taggart was up out of his seat and around Arlo to pick up Soren and hug him. He nuzzled the warm skin, noticing just how chilly his body had become and how hungry he was. “I’mstarving, and yes, please.” He gave Soren begging eyes. “I like freshly made waffles with chocolate.”
Chapter Seven
Soren
Making waffles was one of Soren’s favorite things to do. Over the years, he’d experimented with the batter, so he could put different flavored chips, sprinkles and even fresh herbs and different seasonings in them for specific flavor profiles. Sweet and savory, he made a sweet ‘n’ spicy chicken waffle sandwich he couldn’t wait to share with Taggart. Right now, he was carefully rolling mini chocolate chips in flour so the batter would cling to them properly.
Fortunately, Taggart’s cupboards and refrigerator had also yielded the ingredients for the perfect surprise to go with his chocolate chip waffles. The whipped mixture of chocolate pudding powder and fresh cream sat waiting to top the waffles. Two waffle machines sat on the counter, each with the capability of making four waffles at a time.
He’d easily have his mates fed in no time.
Humming a song that only existed in his head, Soren fluttered around the kitchen. He laid three platters on the counter and made a ring of sliced strawberries around the center of each that he soon drizzled with chocolate he’d melted with a bit of cream. Maybe it was a little decadent, but it wasn’t just the first meal he’d be making for them, it was a celebration meal of their mating and the joy he’d felt in his mind last night, when their three voices tumbled together.
When the first timer beeped, his humming grew faster as he removed one waffle at a time, spooning cream between the layers until there was a tower on each plate. He topped it with a dollop of cream and more drizzled chocolate, then whistled to call them to the table, an old habit it would take time to break himself of.
Breakfast is ready,he thought when the whistling didn’t work and soon got rewarded by the sound of footsteps coming up the hall.
Fast too!
Holy crap.
His naked, skittering mate came flying up the hall, arms windmilling as he attempted to make the turn into the kitchen. He might have crashed into something if Arlington hadn’t caught up to him and wrapped an arm around his waist, steadying him for the rest of the far more cautious walk to the table.
“Ohhh my,” Taggart moaned when he saw the platters. “Ohh, chocolate on chocolate chips and strawberries too, oh yummy… yum… yum!”
His excitement and the way he dove in made Soren’s heart soar, especially when Arlington joined him at the table moments later, after pouring himself a cup of the coffee Soren had made. He joined them a few minutes later with a mini version of the massive platters he’d made for them.
