Page 59 of The Light Within

A beat of silence.

“Fuck you.”

The look on Darcy’s face was so utterly serious, so fiercely resolute, that Cinn started snickering, joining in with Elliot, and then Julien finally cracked, joining in with his own laughter—his genuine, loud, cackling laughter Elliot treasured so much.

Darcymanaged all of five seconds before her stern scowl twitched, her face splitting into a smile as bright as the sun.

“You’re all idiots,” she said at last. “But yes, Elliot, I am very much over my girl crush.”

thirteen

Cinn

There wasn’t even a hint of dawn outside the kitchen window, yet Cinn was wide awake.

Where’s the goddamn cocoa powder?

He rummaged through the unfamiliar drawers and cabinets, his frustration mounting with each search of the holiday home’s sparsely stocked cupboards. Honestly, it was a miracle he’d found a whisk earlier.

Footsteps crept on the old creaky floorboards. Cinn frantically surveyed the countertops. Various ingredients spilled across the counters, several egg shells had somehow managed to fall on the granite tiles, and a trail of sugar led to the half-opened pantry door. A small puddle of batter glistened near the sink.

This is why he didn’t cook in other people’s kitchens.

The door opened slowly. Messy auburn hair poked around it, and for a moment his brain screamed Darcy, even though the figure in the doorway was a foot taller than her, and male.

Heart plummeting, he lunged for a dishcloth, and held it up. “Hi. I’m just about to clean it all up.”

Alexander laughed, a booming chuckle that somehow carried his Scottish twang. “Ye’re alright, lad. Sorry to startle ye. I couldn’t sleep.”

“Me neither,” Cinn heard himself say, as if insomnia was a good excuse for destroying a kitchen.

“Can I give ye a hand?”

“No, no. Well… I can’t find your cocoa powder. Figured you had some around, since you made us hot chocolate yesterday…” He probably should have said please and also thank you for all the ingredients he’d already stolen.Oops.

Alexander crossed the kitchen. “Ah. I put it behind the cereal boxes so I’d remember where it was, after Fiona crammed all the groceries in.” He passed Cinn the small cylinder, thankfully still heavy—he’d need a fair bit of it.

Cinn tipped in the powder, eyeing Alexander while he stirred the mixing bowl. The man seemed set to linger, leaning against a counter, stretching. Cinn didn’t really have the time or inclination for company right now.

“I’m gonna pop out for a cig.” Cinn swiped his packet of cigarettes off the counter near the back door, which led to a dingy alley.

“Oh aye,” Alexander said brightly. “I’ll join ye.”

For fuck’s sake.But Cinn could hardly be rude, not when the man had invited them to stay in this posh house for free.

They slipped out back into the frigid night air. Cinn offered him the carton and lighter, and soon they were blowing dual streams of smoke into a dark, starless sky.

Did Cinn need to make conversation? Surely they could just be two blokes enjoying a silent smoke in the early hours of the morning?

“She speaks so highly of ye, ye know, Darcy does. All the time, lad.”

“Yeah?”

Alexander hummed on an exhalation of smoke. “I think she struggled after their friend Béatrice died, being left with those two numpties. She’s never said anything, mind.”

Cinn snorted at Julien and Elliot being labelled numpties. It was a fitting description.

“But since ye came, she’s been much happier.”

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