Aurora turned toward him, still smiling, and her tone was calm, sincere, even. “I’ve never met another British person around here before. It’s nice. I like hearing home in Alex’s accent.”
That sentence alone made my spine lock straight.
Home.
Nice.
Alex.
Alex shot me the smuggest half-smile imaginable, petting Honey like some villain in a movie. “See? Little one wants me here.”
My jaw tightened. I wasn’t jealous—
…Okay, maybe I was.
Because that wasmygirl.
Myprincess.
The one who came running back to me in the middle of the night. And right now, she was sitting there beside Alex Grayson, all calm, unbothered, glowing like she hadn’t just wrecked me a few hours ago and smiling like that was perfectly fine.
“Yeah,” I muttered under my breath, stepping closer, eyes locked on her. “Guess she does.”
But the look I gave Alex said it loud enough:Don’t push it, Grayson.
Alex was still sitting there like he owned the damn place, one hand lazily stroking Honey as if the kitten were his, too.
I walked over, slow, deliberate, and dropped beside her. Alex’s eyes flicked up, amused. I didn’t break eye contact as I slipped an arm around her waist and pulled her onto my lap. She gave a tiny gasp, hands instinctively landing on my shoulders, but didn’t resist. My head fell against her chest, right where her heartbeat was steady and soft, grounding me immediately.
I turned my face away from Alex, eyes closing for a second as I tightened my hold on her. Her fingers threaded into my hair automatically, gentle, absentminded, and yeah, that only made me want to rub it in more.
When I finally looked back up, Alex was smirking.
“Sickening,” he muttered.
“Fuck off, Alex,” I shot back without moving my head.
Aurora giggled lightly, and Alex just leaned back into the couch, still petting Honey, pretending to look bored. “It’s your first day together, mate. Maybe let the girl breathe before marking territory and scaring her off.”
“She’s fine,” I said, tilting my head up just enough to glare.
Aurora mumbled softly, “I’m fine,” into my hair, as if she were confirming it for both of us.
Alex rolled his eyes. “Unbelievable.”
“Get your own girlfriend,” I muttered.
Alex’s reply came dry and instant. “No.”
Aurora suddenly slipped off my lap in that quick, clumsy way she always did when she remembered something. “I’ll make lunch,” she said, already halfway across the room before I could even offer to help. She looked back at Alex. “Stay!”
“Yeah, yeah.” He nodded, eyeing me.
Asshole.
She yanked the fridge open with both hands; it was barely heavy, but she still looked like she was trying to open a safe. Cute as hell.
Honey jumped down from Alex’s shoulder with a soft thump, trotting after her on tiny paws until Aurora bent to scoop her up. She set the kitten on her shoulder, whispering to it as if it were a co-chef.
