Sounds good.
We rolled out of bed shortly after, running to take quick showers and dress back into pajamas per my request. I told Cal we had a ban on any other kind of clothes while we were here for the week. I absolutely refused to wear anything but the most comfortable sweats I owned and my hoodie of Cal’s until we were dragged back out onto the road for who knows how long.
Cal and I walked down to Maverick’s place, hand in hand, like we’d been able to do it for years. It reminded me of our time in Scotland, when he demanded we walk and hold hands and he kissed me on the street in broad daylight. But right now, it also ached inside my chest, knowing that in just a few days, we wouldn’t have the luxury of just existing like this anymore.
As soon as we walked through the doors of Maverick’s place, we were hit with the madness of it. My dad’s home felt like a weird time capsule of things. He’d taken a lot of the things my grandfather had left behind in the old farmhouse that now belonged to me, and now, his house was a strange mash up of the childhood we both shared, and his weird collection of random shit. The house felt lived in in a different way, almost a creepy way now that I thought about it, but you don’t always catch that with all the noise here that never ends.
“Silas! Cal!”
Shannon’s voice cut through the chaos of the TV blaring cartoons and the sound of sizzling bacon. She was at the stove, hair tied up, pointing a spatula at us like a wand.
“Please tell me one of you knows how to flip pancakes without destroying them, because Maverick has been banned from the griddle.”
Cal didn’t even hesitate. He dropped my hand, only for a second, and grinned. “I actually love cooking. Need a sous chef?”
“Oh, thank God. Get in here,” she said, waving him over.
I watched, feeling a surreal tug in my chest as Cal walked right into the heart of the kitchen. He washed his hands and immediately fell into step beside Shannon, laughing at something she said he took over the spatula. He looked… relaxed. He fit.
I made my way to the island where Maverick was sitting, nursing a coffee and watching the scene with a smirk. I hopped onto the barstool next to him.
“So,” Maverick said, swirling his coffee but keeping his eyes locked on Cal’s back. “He cooks. That’s a point for him. What’s his credit score?”
I choked on my own spit. “Dad. Seriously?”
“I’m serious,” Maverick said, raising his voice so Cal could hear him over the sizzling batter. “Hey, Kincaid! You got good credit? I don’t want my son dating a guy with a five hundred score and a leased Dodge Charger.”
Cal didn’t even turn around; he just flipped a pancake perfectly into the air. “Seven eighty, sir. And I drive a paid off truck.”
Maverick hummed, impressed. “Okay. Seven eighty. Acceptable. Can you change a tire?”
“I can rebuild an engine block if you give me a wrench and a six pack of energy drinks,” Cal shot back smoothly.
Maverick looked at me, eyebrows raised high. “Okay. Now I really like him. Does he fish?”
“Maverick!” Shannon scolded, popping him on the shoulder with a dish towel as she walked by. “Stop interrogating the poor boy while he’s making you food. Let him breathe.”
“I’m just asking!” Maverick defended, holding his hands up. “It’s my fatherly duty. Silas has terrible taste usually, I gotta make sure this one isn’t gonna pawn the family silver.”
I rolled my eyes, stealing a piece of bacon off Maverick’s plate. “We don’t have family silver, Dad. We have family debt and trauma.”
“Details,” Maverick dismissed.
Just then, Taylor walked into the kitchen, looking disheveled and barely awake. He stopped dead when he saw Cal flipping pancakes, then looked at me, blinking slowly.
“Wait,” Taylor said, rubbing his eyes. “So… you guys are like,togethertogether? Like, official?”
“Yes, Taylor,” I said, bracing myself for the teenage awkwardness. “We’re together.”
Taylor let out a loud groan and threw his head back. “Dammit!”
I blinked, confused. “Excuse me?”
“I lost the pool!” Taylor shouted, pointing an accusing finger at me. “I bet Josie twenty bucks you wouldn’t have the guts to come out for another year. I thought you were gonna drag this ‘mystery vibe’ out forever.”
Cal turned from the stove, laughing so hard he nearly dropped the spatula. “You betagainsthim?”
“I bet on cowardice,” Taylor corrected shamelessly. “Which is usually a safe bet with Silas.”
