She takes a bite, and her eyes widen. “Oh. Oh, wow. You’re right. That’s really delicious.”
“Right?” I take another bite of my own, and the combination of flavors and textures is perfect—the crispy rice, the tangy kimchi, the sweet beef, all bound together by that rich egg yolk. “This is exactly what I needed.”
We eat in comfortable silence for a few minutes, and I let myself just enjoy the moment. The food is amazing, yeah, but it’s more than that. It’s Kiera in my house, making something I’ve been wanting to try for years, looking proud of what she’s created.
“So,” I say, careful to keep my tone light and easy, “what else do you like besides cooking? What do you do for fun?”
She glances up at me, chopsticks paused halfway to her mouth. “Fun?”
“Yeah. Hobbies, interests. Things you do when you’re not working at the bakery or plotting your culinary school takeover.”
That gets a small laugh out of her. “I don’t really have hobbies.”
“Come on. There has to be something.”
She thinks about it, chewing slowly. “I like reading, I guess. Mostly mysteries. And I watch cooking shows, but I don’t know if that counts since it’s related to what I want to do anyway.”
“What’s your favorite cooking show?”
“The Great British Baking Show.” She says it without hesitation. “I love how nice everyone is to each other. It’s not all drama and competition like American shows. They just genuinely want each other to succeed.”
I smile at that. Of course Kiera would appreciate a show where people are kind to each other. “Have you ever tried making any of the technical challenges?”
“A few.” She takes another bite of rice. “I made the Mary Berry Victoria sponge once. It turned out pretty good, actually. Levi was impressed.”
“I bet it was better than pretty good.”
She shrugs, but I can see she’s pleased. “What about you? What do you do besides make documentaries and watch Korean dramas about mythical creatures who live in the sea?”
“Hey, not all of the mythical creatures live in the sea. There’s also some dramas about a gumiho,” I protest, grinning. “That’s a nine-tailed fox. Totally different.”
“Of course. My mistake.” Her tone is dry, but her eyes are sparkling with amusement.
“I like hiking,” I say. “And I collect vintage movie posters, which probably makes me sound like a film nerd.”
“Youarea film nerd.”
“Fair.” I mix some more rice and egg together. “What about other aspirations? Besides culinary school, what else do you want to do with your life?”
The question seems to catch her off guard. She sets down her chopsticks and looks at her bowl. “I want to be independent. That’s my goal right now. That’s why I need that scholarship so badly.”
There’s something in the way she says it—not just wanting independence, butneedingit—that makes my chest tighten.
“Why is independence so important to you?” I ask gently.
She’s quiet for a long moment, pushing rice around in her bowl. When she finally speaks, her voice is barely above a whisper.
“So I never have to sleep under a bridge again.”
The words hit me like a physical blow. I set down my chopsticks, suddenly unable to eat. Kiera—sharp, talented, guarded Kiera—slept under a bridge. She was homeless? She’s only eighteen. How old was she when she was homeless? That must have been terrifying.
The silence stretches between us, thick and heavy. I want to ask what happened, want to know every detail so I can understand what she went through and figure out how to make sure it never happens again. But I can see the way her shoulders have tensed, the way she’s staring at her food without seeing it.
Last time I mentioned her parents, she ran. I can’t risk that again.
“How long?” I ask quietly, because I need to know at least this much. “How long were you on the streets?”
“About six weeks.” She still won’t look at me. “I got kicked out, so I came to the island to find Kiki, but I was too embarrassed to go to her right away. I saw her with Tobias and Skyler. I thought she had this perfect life now, and I didn’t want to ruin it by showing up, needing to crash at her place.” She laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “So I tried to make it on my own for a while. Obviously, that didn’t work out.”
