“This is delicious,” Arlo declared around a big mouthful of food.
“I love cooking,” Soren asserted. “I’ll be happy to make all the meals and keep the house tidy, I just need to know what you both like so I can organize menus and meal prep.”
“M-menus?” Taggart asked, a smear of chocolate near the corner of his mouth that Soren leaned over to lick off.
“Uh-huh,” Soren said, getting a little giddy inside at how the chocolate and his mate tasted together. “With meals and snacks. I like to make them in advance so it’s easier to gather ingredients and keep track of what we’re eating so we don’t have the same things all the time.”
“Will you post them on the refrigerator?”
“I can,” Soren said. “But I won’t be able to make them until you each give me two lists. One food you love, and one of the stuff you absolutely won’t eat,” he answered Arlo once he’d swallowed the mouthful of waffle.
“What happens if I like something and Arlo doesn’t?” Taggart asked, his brows riding up his forehead.
The first two waffles in his stack were already gone, along with all the strawberries.
“Then I’ll make two options for the meal,” Soren explained, shrugging. Cooking was his passion. His way of making folks happy—it was never a hardship. “Or I make the same dish, but with different components. Back home, I loved making lasagnebecause each time I made it, I got to make three different batches. One with ground meat, one with seafood, and one with sausage or chicken. Then everyone could grab whatever they were in the mood for and even mix and match if they wanted.”
“How many people did you feed each day?” Arlo asked gently.
“Dozens,” Soren explained quietly. “People were always flitting in and out and bringing friends along too, so I made a lot of different dishes every day. It’s fun for me. I love when foods harmonize. Cookbooks are some of my favorite books to read, especially the ones that come with stories behind the concept of a dish and the people who created it. I collect recipe cards too, and I love creating modern twists on classic dishes. Everything about it is just… it's like getting to play with blocks all day and then getting to eat them instead of having to put them away.”
“Your brain just likes them,” Taggart said, nodding. “The same way my brain loves computers and digging through all the codes and bits of information.”
“Yeah, my brain just really likes everything about the process. Dicing, chopping, cubing, it all has its own rhythm. I love the swish, thunk of kneading bread and the pretty waves that form in batter when I stir it. Please let me take care of the cooking and the house for you.” Was he begging? Possibly, but he wanted to take care of his new family. “I promise that there will always be yummy things to eat, and I’m happy to bring snacks to your office so you don’t have to take as many breaks to come out here. Is there a mini-fridge in there? I didn’t see one, but if you have one, I can fill it with things each day so you always have something at hand. It could be amazing sandwiches, with cheese and meat and veggies. Bacon too, if you’re a fan. I love bacon. I make my own sauces for them too. Like garlic aioli and pepper jelly. Sometimes I even make mayonnaise from scratch, but I love blending it with a bit of mustard to give more of a kick. I make honey mustard spread too. I can make squeeze bottles ofeach so you can add whatever you’re in the mood for.” He was waffling now in his excitement, but no one seemed to mind.
“Wow. T-that’s j-just w-wow,” Taggart stammered, his plate almost empty now.
When he let out a little burp and giggled, Arlo raised an eyebrow at him until he blushed and murmured, “Excuse me.”
“It’s a lot to take in,” Arlo replied slowly. “But most appreciated, especially with how much work Taggart and I have on this current project. I just don’t want you to think that work is all you’re supposed to do around here.” He reached out and placed a hand over Soren’s, squeezing gently. “You’re allowed to take time for yourself anytime you want it. In fact, I will insist on you doing so if there ever comes a point when I feel you’re wearing yourself out trying to prove that you have something to offer us. I won’t forget either, and I will keep an eye on you.” Arlo glanced at Taggart. “Taggart isn’t going to need me looking over his shoulder all day, especially not when we can communicate mind to mind. We all have plenty of opportunities to have some one-on-one time together that I fully plan to take advantage of.”
Soren had to keep from bouncing in his seat, he was so happy at what Arlington meant by that.
“And I promise I won’t be working all the time,” Taggart added. “I really like the idea of a mini-fridge though, for the really busy days. I’ll order one after breakfast.”
“And I’ll fill it as soon as it arrives,” Soren said, leaning to rub cheeks with Taggart, loving how his whiskers made his skin tingle.
“I can see the purchase of a lunch sack in my future, so I don’t miss out on the extra treats when I’m doing security shifts for the crash,” Arlington rumbled, sounding pleased. “Now that I have the two of you in my life, I don’t want to live the life of an enforcer anymore. Being sent on month long missions just won’twork for me moving forward I need to see the two of you every day.”
Soren loved hearing that and leaned his way next, snuggling, when Arlington reached for him. As far as mornings went, this one was the best he’d had in a long, long time.
Arlo
With Soren snuggling against one side and Taggart on the other, Arlo felt nothing but contentment as he held his boys. He’d learned some very important things about the way their minds worked and their need for tasks that allowed them comfort and repetition. It would take some research to find toys and games for them that would allow them the same mental stimulation while still creating the fun aspect. He was a Daddy with a mission in mind, and he’d work it out at the earliest opportunity, hoping they’d be pleased with what he found for them. Added to the list he was forming was a call to step down from his existing role and become a crash security officer instead.
Taggart needed to get back to work unraveling the data in those eyes, but first, Arlo needed to ensure that there were no more near mishaps like the one this morning. There was no telling what those devices had recorded, but the one thing Arlo knew was that it was nothing good. The last thing he wanted was for Soren to see anything like what Arlo had seen in the caves where Romy and other shifters were held and experimented on. It was a nightmare that still haunted him, the way he could tell something haunted Soren. The last thing he would ever want was to add to whatever memories were already floating around in Soren’s mind. It was bad enough that he’d exposed Taggart to some of those horrors, though he hoped to mitigate the damageby asking him to turn away and listen to his music while Arlo watched the recordings and looked at the images. The data itself, any written entries or notes, would hopefully not be encrypted. If they were, maybe Taggart had a software program that would handle any decryptions, again leaving Arlo to be the only one who had to read or look at any of the evidence.
As if Soren sensed his change in mood, he pressed in closer.
“Thank you for a wonderful first meal together,” Arlo said before pressing a kiss to Soren’s temple.
“You have work you both need to do,” Soren replied, curling against Arlo and nuzzling beneath his jaw to kiss the pulse point there. “And I have sticky dishes to tend to, cupboards and a fridge to finish rummaging through, a grocery list to compile and my first menu to make, so go on now, both of you, so I can get my work done. I won’t cook in a dirty kitchen, and I made a little bit of a mess this morning.”
“If you think this is a mess, you should see what happens when I try to make homemade pizza,” Taggart giggled, standing, then bent to help Soren up so he could hug him.
Arlo felt how happy it made Soren, and a smile tugged at his lips.
“We’ll make them together,” Soren said, nuzzling against Taggart’s neck, then kissing it the same way he had Arlo’s. “It might still be a little messy, but I guarantee it’ll be a lot more fun than doing it alone.”
