“You two have to be the weirdest couple I’ve ever met,” I grumbled.
Coby giggled, and Ocean snorted before lifting the silver dome off his plate. My mouth watered when I saw the braised short ribs on a bed of rice and carrots. He picked up his fork and knife, cut off a piece, and lifted the meat for me to eat.
I hesitated only a moment before leaning forward and accepting the offering. The flavors immediately exploded in my mouth, and I hummed my amazement.
“Oh, my God,” I moaned.
“Good?” he asked me.
My skin flushed for some reason. “Yes.”
“Want some more?”
I greedily nodded, so he speared another piece for me. Bite after bite, he patiently fed me, and I was too hungry and exhausted to be embarrassed about it.
“What about you?” I asked after half the plate was almost gone.
“I’ll eat when you’re taken care of,” he told me.
Coby finished eating, having gotten a head start while Ocean hunted me down, so she stood and announced she was going to shower.
I frowned after her as she left the balcony, leaving Ocean and me alone.
I stared off into the distance, so Ocean started eating from his plate and mine.
“Want some wine?” he offered between bites.
“Ocean,” I shifted on his lap to face him when I heard the shower turn on inside the room. “What’s going on?”
Sighing, he placed his fork and knife down. I actually felt a little guilty about not letting him finish, but not enough to deny myself the answers I needed. “You won’t be staying in the cabin after tonight. There’s a winter storm coming. You and Coco will be safer and more comfortable in the main house. Coby sleeps in my bed, but if you prefer, I can have a room prepared for you…”
If I prefer…
That meant it wasn’t the first option being offered to me.
Curling his fingers with mine, Ocean lifted my hand from my lap and kissed the back of it. “Is that what you want?”
I didn’t answer right away because I didn’t know what I wanted. “You said if I prefer…”
“I did.”
I gulped. “What’s the alternative?”
Ocean sat back and rested his cheek on his fist as he stared at me. “My bed, Hunter.”
My stomach dipped.
On cue, an off-key rendition of “We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey suddenly came from the direction of the bathroom.
Neither Ocean nor I reacted because it meant falling out of this bubble erected around us.
“You want me to sleep in your bed with you and Coby?”
“Yes. But only if you want it, too. I don’t want to make you feel unsafe.”
“I feel safe,” I blurted. “I don’t think you’ll hurt me.”
Ocean stiffened under me.
