Page 85 of Tobias

“Cooking is not my specialty, but I tried.”

“It’s the thought that counts,” he says right back at me, and we both laugh. “Open your gifts before we eat.”

“Come on, Biscuit,” I say, kneeling onto the floor with the bag that’s labeled with her name. It’s honestly adorable that he went that far. She nuzzles her nose into the tissue paper, sniffing. I pull it out, then let her dig inside to pull out her gift. “If that isn’t the cutest thing,” I say as Biscuit runs off with her stuffedbiscuit.

“When I saw it, I knew I had to get it for her.”

“Let’s just hope there isn’t a stuffed Theo in mine.”

His eyes narrow slightly, and then he smirks. What I said hits me, and my cheeks burn. Instead of facing him, I dig my gift out of the bag. My breath catches in my throat at what I see. The gift itself is simple, but it’s not about what it is.

“A model car,” I say, darting my eyes up to him. There’s a small smile on his face, with a hint of sadness lingering. It only shows how meaningful this gift is.

“Same as you have in the garage. My father and I did a similar one. I still have it. Just thought it would be fun.”

I brush my fingers over the picture of the car on the box. “This is great. Thank you.”

He shrugs. “It’s not much, like I said.”

“It means a lot.” I make sure to say the words firmly, wanting him to know that I get it. That this gift is special to him,because it’s something he shared with someone special to him… and now he's sharing it with me. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he says with a nod.

“Let’s eat, then I’ll give you your gift,” I say, putting the box back into the bag and leaving it on the counter. “Go sit.”

Tobias takes a seat at the table as I pull the food from the oven, where I left it to stay warm. French Toast bake, cinnamon rolls, and sausage. Once the cinnamon rolls are on the plate, I drizzle them with the frosting. I’d already put the silverware and syrup on the table, so I set our plates down.

Tobias’s eyes widen. “Wow, this looks good.”

“Hopefully it tastes as good. Do you want coffee?”

“Yeah, sure.”

I pour us each a mug, bringing them to the table. “I have cream or milk, and sugar.”

“Black is fine.”

I nod and take a seat, and we start to eat our Christmas breakfast that hopefully won’t give us food poisoning.

“This is enough of a gift, Theo. It’s delicious,” he says once he has a few bites.

“I was worried it would taste like crap.”

He chuckles. “Not even close.”

We don’t talk while we devour everything, and then we get seconds. When we’re finished eating, Tobias helps me clean by wiping down the table and counters while I rinse the dishes and put them in the dishwasher. When I turn, he’s standing behind me, looking at me with a dark look in his eyes.

“Can I be honest with you?” he asks.

There’s a tickling sensation in every nerve as I nod, unsure of what he could possibly say with a look like that in his eye.

“I’d love nothing more than to fuck you today.”

Fucking hell…

“R-really?” I breathe out.

He takes a step closer, putting his palm on my cheek.

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