Side by side then, the two hovered over their creations, flipping each over as they browned. She could get used to nights like these. Distant music floating over the home, a bottle of bubbly chilling as they made dinner together.
“I can’t believe they stocked the pantry for you like this,” she said as they brought the food to the dining table. As predicted, the clouds rolled in just as the two finished up their time outside. They discovered an old chest by the fireplace for such occasions, stocked with card games, board games, even craft kits.
“It was either request some menu items or have a private chef join us for the night,” he said. “But I assumed that might have taken away from the whole island-to-ourselves thing.”
“Definitely.” Kat searched the neatly set table. A bowl of fresh tarter sauce rested beside a basket of homemade sweet potato fries, locally prepared coleslaw, and—of course—the crab cakes. “I think we’re ready.”
Duke pulled out a chair and motioned to it. “Here you go, babe. For the Princess of the Pillows.”
A tiny but potent thrill rushed through her. She loved how easily that had slipped off his tongue. She stepped in front of the chair, ready to sit down, when suddenly he grabbed her by the hip.
“Wait,” he said from behind. His warmth at her back told Kat just how close he was. “Want me to help you take off this apron?”
She glanced down at the colorful piece and grinned. “Yes, thank you.”
He fiddled with the knot at her lower back before moving to the one behind her neck. Kat knew—since she’d looped that part over her head—that untying it there wasn’t necessary, but the feel of his warm fingers on her skin felt nice. And so did the sensation of his heated breath after he’d unfastened it.
Kat held very still as his lips grazed the delicate center of her back. Once, twice. A trail of chills rushed up her arms.
He groaned low in his throat. “Maybe you should be my dinner tonight.” He allowed his teeth to skim over her flesh before planting a playful kiss to the same spot.
He cleared his throat, stepped back, and motioned to the chair once more. “Sorry,” he said. “I’ll leave you alone. For now.”
Kat took a seat and watched as he did the same. She was well aware of the sight behind her—a kitchen counter cluttered with squeezed lemon halves, measuring cups of all sizes, and an array of spices to satisfy chefs within miles, but the view across from her was perfect. The flawless face of the man she was falling in love with, accented by an ocean that magnified the blue in his eyes.
“We have a lot of catching up to do,” he said while plopping a scoop of tarter sauce onto his plate.
Kat reached for the coleslaw. “We do?”
He nodded. “Yes. There are probably about three hundred basic things we should already know about each other, being married and all.”
“Three hundred?”
“Give or take,” he said with a shrug. “So here’s how it’s going to go. One shouts out a question, the other one answers. We move onto the next.”
Kat nodded. “Okay. But whoever asks the question has to answer it too.”
“Right,” he agreed. “Favorite color.”
“Wow, you really did mean the basics, didn’t you?”
He smiled. “Mine’s black.”
“You’re kidding.” Her fork hovered halfway between her plate and her mouth. “I’ve never heard anyone say their favorite color, out of all the colors of the universe, is black.”
“It’s the best one.” But then he lifted a finger. “I am actually growing partial to another color as well,” he admitted, eyes fixed on hers. “It’s kind of a golden brown color,” he said.
He wasn’t the first person to call her eyes golden brown. He was, however, the first to say he favored the color because of it. She couldn’t stop the grin that pulled at her lips. “Mine’s red,” she admitted. “Has been since my grandma took me and Jeanie to a salon to get our nails done.”
“Cute,” Duke said. “Nickname. Have you got one?”
She shook her head, but thought better of it. “My dad calls me Aponi sometimes, but that’s actually my middle name. It means butterfly.”
“I like that,” he said. “Aponi?”
She liked how it sounded on his lips. “Yes. What about you?”
“Arrow,” he said. “I was a master archer back in school. Could hit that center target nine out of ten times.”
