His stomach grumbled.“I suppose sustenance would be appropriate.”
She gave him a funny smile.“Yes, sustenance would be highly appropriate.”
He opened the refrigerator.“I have eggs.”
“Any hot sauce?”she asked, coming up behind him.
“No.”He pulled out a jar of olives.“Will this do?”
“Olives and eggs.Yum.Not.”She nudged him aside and took in the contents of the refrigerator.“Caviar.Capers.Dark chocolate truffles.I heard you Caidos lived high on the hog, and it’s true.Not stuff I’m used to using, but I can work with this.”She grabbed up several items and set them on the counter.
He eyed the box of truffles.“Don’t tell me you’re making caviar chocolate eggs.”
“The chocolate’s for me.After what we just went through, I need it.”She popped one into her mouth and pulled a pan from the rack hanging above the stove.
He watched her assemble the ingredients and pour the egg glop into the sizzling pan.Admittedly, he was so fascinated by her—her confident gestures, her attention to detail—that he forgot to offer to help.She seemed to have it well in hand though, and he suspected she’d have politely refused anyway.
Within minutes she’d plated two black olive and caviar omelets on plates and set them at the counter.
“I’m impressed,” he said after a bite.“I’d have never put these together like this.”
“What do you usually have for breakfast?”
“When I’ve recently had groceries delivered, I have a slice of buttered sourdough, a fried egg, and fruit.Sliced pear or apple.But being at your bakery has put a fluffy croissant in my mind.Do you deliver?”
“Afraid we don’t have the staff for that, but you could use one of those online pickup services.”She gave him a cheeky grin that sent a tingle through his chest.“But you wouldn’t see me, and that would be a shame.”
“Indeed it would.”He returned that grin, or at least he thought he did.He’d never done so before.
She tilted her head thoughtfully as she finished the last bite of her egg.“You know, if enough Caidos came to our bakery, I could set up a special Caido window of time, so you wouldn’t be exposed to other people’s emotions.”She winked.“And even make a special cookie for you all.”
He wasn’t sure if she was kidding or not, but the idea sent a warmth through him that reminded him of the heat from her skin when she was pressed up against him in Jeremy’s room.Good gods, what was happening to him?He shook it off.“Interesting though.”
She picked up their empty plates and set them in the sink.“Of course, we have bigger buns to bake at the moment.”
Yes, a good reminder to stay focused.
He pulled Jeremy’s address book close and flipped through the pages, looking for a name of interest.
She sat beside him, a mug of coffee in front of her, eyeing her cell phone.“I feel like I should call Kirin and update him.Even though he sure as heck hasn’t been sharing information with me.But I don’t know what I’d tell him at this point.I know he’d yell at me for consorting with dangerous individuals.”She flashed him a wry smile, then set the phone on the counter and leaned closer to the book.“Find anything?”
Her heat pulled at him.Why was he so sensitive to it?So drawn by it?Now he was aware of her physically, the smell of her shampoo and her unique scent, and the way her blond hair curved around her neck.When he’d held her, protected from pain by his wings, he’d gotten lost in her.
He focused on the book again.“I know some of these names.”
She pointed, her finger drawing an imaginary line beneath the name Silva.“Ooh, Jeremy was pissed at this guy.He scribbled his name out.Is Silva powerful enough to change the orientation of a fetus?”
“I’ve never heard of him, odd considering how small the Caido community is.”Archer flipped through the rest of the pages.“He’s the only name in here that Jeremy crossed off.Something big made him do that.”
He picked up the phone and called.When a man answered, Archer said, “Silva, please.”
“He’s busy,” the man snapped.“If you care to leave a message?—”
“No, I care to talk to him.I understand he can perform…services.”
Had the man coughed or snorted?Archer couldn’t tell.
“Silva is not currently performingservices.”
