A breathy laugh escaped him. He embraced me again, his strong arms curling around my back. His body heat and the comforting scent of his hoodie soothed my spirit. As my tightly wound tension evaporated, I closed my eyes and relaxed into his body.
“No, dumbass,” Chase mumbled into my shoulder. “I was worried as fuck, though.”
Emotion choked my throat. I breathed through it. I didn’t want to cry on him.
“I should’ve told you I went home,” I said.
“Well, I shouldn’t have been an ass, so we’re even.”
I appreciated his words, even though I didn’t fully believe them. Itwasmy fault that he was still possessed. If I was stronger...
Chase sniffed the air. “Is something burning?”
Cursing, I wriggled out of his arms and ran to the stove, but it was too late. The bottom of the pan was burnt. The food was just charred enough to be inedible.
A wave of despair hit me like a truck. Frustration, anger, and self-hatred made me sink down to my knees.
The one thing I was good at, and now I’d fuckedthatup, too.
I was two seconds away from a total mental breakdown when Chase lifted me from behind, brushed my hair aside, and kissed the back of my neck.
A hot, vivid shiver coursed down my spine. It annihilated any thoughts exceptfuck, that felt good.
“It’s okay,” Chase promised. “We’ll redo it together, yeah?”
My heart pounded hard and fast. It took me a second to form thoughts again. Finally, I nodded and put down the metal spoon clutched in my fist.
“Let’s make something easier,” I mumbled. “Can you get some garlic?”
Chase planted another kiss on the back of my neck and I bit back a gasp. “You got it.”
He scanned the counter for the paper bag containing the garlic, then paused when he noticed the half-eaten soft pretzels.
“Wait... are these the pretzels from the mall?” he asked.
“Yes. I held onto them for you.”
His gaze melted into a pair of puppy eyes. “Dude, that’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me.”
I disguised my flustered reaction with a snort. “Oh, come on.”
“I mean it.”
My pulse was a constant rapid thrum as we prepared the new meal. The back of my neck tingled where Chase kissed it. I was grateful that the dish was second-nature to me, because otherwise I’d be too distracted to do anything but mindlessly stir a pot.
“By the way, I have two major updates,” Chase said as he peeled the skin off a garlic clove. With a premature grimace, he added, “You might get pissed at me, though.”
At this point, I was emotionally exhausted. The only thing I could feel was relief. And possibly arousal.
“Try me,” I said.
He handed me the naked clove. “After I left the food court, I ran into Lily. I felt crappy, and I was in a desperate mood, and I kind of told her everything.”
That was... not great.
I sighed. There was no taking it back, and I was too drained to be angry at Chase. “It is what it is. I assume she’s trustworthy?”
Chase nodded. “If there’s anyone I’d trust to keep a secret, it’s her. And I think she actually believed me, too.”
