Page 31 of Little Etheldreda Riding Hood

“Of course I do.”

I’m sure I’m about to get a tray of oven-heated chicken nuggets and tater tots, but free food is free food.

“Sure, that sounds great.”

He offers me a hand up and shoos me off to the couch when I try to follow him into the kitchen. I make myself at home, wrapping myself up in a soft blanket that’s been tossed over the back of the couch before picking up the remote and scrolling through to see what there is to watch. He subscribes to enough streaming services that I easily find a history documentary I haven’t seen and curl up to watch it, the blanket wrapped tightly around me. Soon, the sound of meat sizzling coming from the kitchen is loud enough that I have to turn up the show.

“Whatcha watching?” Zach asks, coming into the room with two plates, Dolly prancing and trilling behind him.

“World War Two documentary. I can change it.”

“No, leave it.” He hands me a plate with a meat patty, blue cheese melted over the top, and sprinkles of bacon chunks here and there. Beside it is a pile of diced potatoes with more cheese and topped with ranch.

“How do you stay so thin?” I say, shaking my head.

“Not a fan of cheese?”

“I’m definitely a fan of cheese, I’d gain twenty pounds if I ate like this all the time.”

“I don’t eat like this all that often. No time.”

I cut off a piece of the meat patty and hand it to Dolly before I dig in myself.

“She’s never going to leave you alone, you know.”

“Maybe I don’t want her to leave me alone. Besides, she’s eating for five.”

He huffs a laugh and digs into his food. I cut off a piece of the burger patty and bite into it. The meat is perfectly done and melts in my mouth.

“This is amazing,” I mumble with a full mouth.

“What’s that again?” he teases.

I elbow him and he laughs.

We eat and watch the documentary with Dolly between us as she cons us out of more and more bites of our dinner. When our plates are empty, I take them into the kitchen and wash them over Zach’s protests. Dolly winds around my ankles, hoping for one final bite to fall as I fill the dishwasher. It’s nearly seven and he has to be exhausted, but I’m wide awake.

Zach is passed out on the couch when I come back in the living room, the TV still on. I turn it down and lean over him carefully, not sure how he does with people in his personal space.

“Zach,” I whisper-yell, shaking his knee. “Zach!”

He opens his eyes and looks at me, confused for a moment before recognition sets in. “Hey, you should get to bed. Do you have to go in?”

“Midnight.”

“Oh good. Get some sleep. I’ll take care of Dolly so she doesn’t bug you.”

“You sure?” he asks through a yawn.

“Yep. Get some sleep. We’ll see you when you’re up.”

Zach heaves himself up from the couch just as Dolly runs out of the kitchen. She weaves herself between my feet as I step back, trying to give Zach room to move between me and the coffee table.

The next few seconds feel like slow motion as I desperately try not to step on her tiny body, and instead fall head first. Zach isn’t even completely awake, but his wolf reflexes must be insanely sharp. He pulls me toward him before my head gets anywhere near the coffee table and we land on the couch, his hand pressing my head protectively against his broad chest.

For a minute neither of us move. I can hear the beating of his heart incredibly fast in my ear. Oblivious, Dolly meows and jumps on us, her tiny feet digging in as she rubs against our joined bodies, demanding attention.

“You are shameless. You nearly kill a person and then demand pets,” Zach grumbles. I don’t move and Zach doesn’t either. I should move…I really, really should. I take a chance and look up at him. He meets my gaze and brushes the hair out of my eyes.

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