“Morning,” he said quietly, probably trying not to startle me or wake the rest of the house.
I twisted around, trying to act normal. But, the way his jeans hung low on his hips and his navy Henley hugged his muscles had me swallowing before responding. “I didn’t want to wake you. You looked so peaceful.”
He glanced over his shoulder, making sure no one had stumbled upon our conversation. “You sleep okay?”
“Thanks to you.”
He shrugged. “Your boyfriend’s not gonna kick my ass or anything, is he?”
I shook my head because I’d never tell Gino. What he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. “As long as your girlfriend doesn’t kick mine.”
“I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Does Masie know that?”
“We’ve been on two dates.”
“Three,” I corrected.
His lips slipped into an adorable smirk. “You keeping track?”
My eyes flashed away from his, embarrassed that I’d been paying attention to what he did and who he did it with.
“Maybe I’ll have to take her on a sleigh ride for our fourth date,” he offered.
I smiled. “That’s so cliché.”
He chuckled.
“I made pancakes. You hungry?”
He sat on a stool at the massive island. “Starved.”
I stacked pancakes onto a plate and placed them in front of him.
“These look great.” He picked up the nearby bottle of syrup and covered them with it. “You gonna eat with me?” he asked, slicing into the stack with the side of his fork.
I removed more pancakes from the griddle before they burned and then put two on a plate for me. I slipped onto the stool next to him. It was strange being so close to him now that I knew what it felt like to sleep next to him—wrapped in his arms. Wrapped in his arctic scent.
“They’re good,” he said with a mouthful.
“Don’t give me too much credit. There was a box of mix in the cupboard.”
He laughed as he shoveled more into his mouth and chewed. “Well, then you really know how to mix things.”
I smiled.
“Morning,” Kason called as he bounded down the steps. “Smells amazing down here.”
I jumped up and rounded the island, plating pancakes for him—more so to avoid being next to Thayer than to cater to my brother. I handed Kason the plate, and he started eating as he leaned against the counter.
“Where’s Jesse?” he asked.
“He went pretty hard last night,” Thayer explained. “You may need to wake his ass up or he’ll sleep ’til noon.”
“You guys gonna be gone all day?” I definitely felt more at peace being surrounded by a lot of people—at least people who I knew cared about me.
“Probably,” Kason said as he chewed. “Why don’t you and Shay head to the lodge later. We’ll meet you for lunch, and then catch back up with you after our afternoon runs.”