Page 25 of Nothing to Deny

“And you, sir,” she said. “Anyone have allergies or requirements I need to know about?”

“No,” he said. “We eat what’s put in front of us… This is very generous.”

“It’s what I do, sir.”

Leaving him, she went into the kitchen at the back of the space to unpack her ingredients. Once everything was laid out, the kitchen got her scrutiny. It wasn’t full of mod cons but had the essentials. A sink, a stove, a fridge, and the long, wide breakfast bar was a generous working space.

A groan in the living room signaled Abel getting out of his chair. He snagged a stick from next to the table, using it for balance as he came toward her. Regardless of his infirmity, his shape was impressive. There didn’t seem to be extra weight on his frame, and she smiled at the stubble on his jaw… It suited him, just like it suited his eldest son.

Taking a board from the end of the counter, she checked out blade after blade in the knife block before finding the right one.

“Yo, you two, homework,” Abel called out to the boys who were taking turns hitting Presley’s cast in the dining/den area by the kitchen. “What you got?”

“Nothing, Dad,” Presley said, holding up his injured arm. “Teacher said she was impressed I was in.”

Charlie shoved his brother. “All day I had to help him… Baer said I gotta. I don’t gotta, do I, Dad?”

“I heard that conversation,” Abel said, propping himself on a stool. “Sounded like you came out on top of that barter, Charlie, boy… What you extort out that conversation?”

That shut Charlie up fast.

Getting ready for cleaning and prepping, she hid a smile at Presley making faces at his brother, sharing his gloating amusement.

When he was done with that, he came moseying over to watch what she was doing.

“Wash these for me, please, Handsome,” she said, handing off some of the vegetables.

After taking a second to look at them every which way, Presley went to the sink.

“Pres got arrested and Baer took him out for burgers,” Charlie said. “It’s not fair… How come we didn’t go?”

Raising the knife a little, she stopped trimming the meat. “That’s my fault,” she said. “I invited Presley for burgers. I didn’t think about it causing trouble at home.”

“I’ll take you at the weekend,” Abel said. “Stop starting trouble.”

“He gets to go with Freya, and he’ll have to go twice ‘cause what will we do with him? Baer’s never here at the weekend.”

“If Miss Dere is free, she can join us…” Abel said, his intent gaze expected an answer.

“I would be honored. And, please, it’s Freya.”

Charlie was getting closer and closer by the moment. She figured he was intrigued, or hungry. Pushing the pre-tossed salad toward him, she nodded at it. Even if he finished it, there was plenty extra to make more.

“Presley can just sit and watch us eat,” Charlie said, opening the tub of salad to pick at the leaves.

She handed him a bottle of dressing. “It’s better with that… If you want to try it.”

“Baer makes salad,” Charlie said, opening the bottle.

“Yeah, and you complain before you eat it,” Abel said. “Who’s cooking for your family tonight, Freya?”

“I live alone.”

“No husband? No kids?” Abel asked and she shook her head. “Where did you meet Baer?”

Ah, excellent, a question she didn’t want to answer. “I, uh… ran into him,” she said, smiling at the memory of her panic on leaving that gallery. “I was distressed about something. He took me for coffee to calm me down.”

“And she kissed him,” Charlie said, then froze to look at her and his father. “That’s what Presley said.”

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