“It’s probably not good,” Harley replied.
“Don’t fucking care.” Pulling away, I took his hand and gently tugged him in the direction of the kitchen. “Also, you underestimate the kind of food I eat.”
I wasn’t about to elaborate on that.
“I made breakfast.”
“You mean brinner,” I corrected with a grin. There were plates of mini pancakes and freshly cooked bacon, along with little cups of maple syrup, chocolate sauce, and strawberry syrup. I popped a piece of bacon in my mouth before I grabbed a few of the plates. As I moved toward the table, I added, “I love brinner.”
“Yeah?” Harley followed suit, carrying everything else we’d need.
“And bacon.”
“Everyone loves bacon. At least, I think they do.”
“Only wrong people don’t like bacon,” I retorted. The laugh he let out made me grin. I watched with genuine interest as Harley used a spoon to drizzle strawberry syrup, then chocolate sauce, onto a single pancake. He folded it in half and took a large bite. “Did you just turn that into a fucking taco?”
He mumbled something unintelligible as he offered me a sheepish grin.Fuck, he was adorable.Taking hold of his wrist, I helped myself to a bit of his concoction. The explosion of strawberry and chocolate was more satisfying than I expected.
“Fuck maple syrup,” I said through a mouthful of food. “That’s so goddamn good.”
“Right!” he exclaimed, the sound muffled by the last bite of pancake. I dragged his chair closer as he made two more chocolate strawberry pancake tacos for us. I rested my chin on his shoulder, enjoying every second of the very domestic moment.
I also really liked how his head tipped against mine on instinct.
“Are you staying the night?” I asked when he handed me one of his creations.
“I should be home when she wakes up,” Harley said.Yeah, that made sense.“But I can come tomorrow, if that’s okay.”
“You have a key.” I shrugged, playing off how much I wanted him there.
“Do you want me to?” he replied quietly. I kissed his shoulder, recognizing his need for reassurance.
“If I had it my way, you’d never leave, princess,” I told him in earnest. The little sound he made was solemn and sad, mirroring everything I felt.
And there was a tiny part of me that wondered why the hell he couldn’t. Stay, that was.Why couldn’t he just stay?Why couldn’t it just be him and me always?
CHAPTER 30
harley
I’m sorry again.
MAV: You’ve got nothing to be sorry for, princess.
I feel like I do.
MAV: Pancake tacos made up for it.
Are you sure?
MAV: Yup. I’ll see you tomorrow.
Yeah.
Iwent home long enough to leave my mother a note to confirm my presence at the business dinner she had planned. I gave some vague, probably ridiculous reason as to why I wouldn’t be home most of the day. Despite knowing how much trouble I’d get in for it, I couldn’t help myself. The only place I wanted to be was with Maverick.
By the time I walked back into his house, he was asleep in bed with his arm thrown over his face. The room was dim, lit only by the faint spill of light from outside. Even still, I could make out the steady rise and fall of his chest as he slept peacefully. I paused in the doorway and just watched him.
