“No, thank god and knock on wood. It’s a jungle out there.”
“This cake isdelicious.” Cary’s mouth was full. “It’s like carrot cake.”
“Yeah, but no carrots.”
“Seriously.” He was smiling. “It’s so good.”
“Don’t be too impressed. There’s no art to baking a cake—it’s just following instructions.”
Cary leaned back, settling into the couch. “Then why do most cakes taste significantly worse than this?”
“Because most people refuse to follow instructions?”
“Well, that’s true. You have me there.”
“There’s no caffeine in the tea,” she said, pointing. “It’s lemongrass.”
“You didn’t have to do all this, Shiloh.”
“I boiled water, Cary. Relax.”
Carylookedrelaxed. He looked happy. The cake had been a good decision. Even if the sink was full of dishes.
Shiloh sat back in her chair and ate her cake, letting herself watch him.
He knew she was watching him... He was smiling at his plate.
“What do you do?” she asked.
His eyebrows twitched down. “When?”
“In general. What’s your job?”
“I’m a line officer,” he said. “I help run a ship.”
“Like an actual warship?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, like it was nothing, focused on the cake. “A destroyer.”
“Adestroyer,” Shiloh repeated. “But you don’t live on it?”
“Sometimes I live on it. During a deployment.”
“In a little room?”
His eyes flicked up to her. He looked amused. “In a little room, yes.”
“I thought you were going into the Navy to do nuclear-power stuff.”
“That’s where I started. I’m trained in that. But I went a different route when I got my commission.”
“Because you didn’t like it?”
He shrugged. “I wanted to do something new.”
Shiloh twisted her lips to the side. “I keep trying to picture your life, and I can’t.”
“Most people can’t imagine living on a ship. You get used to it.”
