Page 67 of Grumpy on the Mountain
"No, I know. But like… you can cook?" Sienna repeats, as if he just claimed he could fly. "Like, actual food that won't poison us? Food that hasn't been caught in a trap on your roof last night?"
I laugh, stepping forward to press a kiss to Beau's jaw, right above his beard. "He's full of surprises."
The kiss makes him go very still, and when I pull back, he's looking at me with an expression so tender it makes my chest tight.
"We're staying," I announce, grabbing Sienna's hand and pulling her fully into the cabin. "I'm not ready to leave this perfect bubble yet."
Relief flashes across Beau's face so quickly I almost miss it.
"Good," he says deeply. "Let me just... put on some pants."
"Probably for the best," Sienna murmurs as he kisses the top of my head and disappears down the hallway, still clutching his sheet. "That man is ridiculously attractive, and I'm very happily married, but even I'm not immune to..." She gestures vaguely in the direction he went.
"Right?" I flop onto his couch, pulling my knees up to my chest. "It's like he was carved by ancient gods who had very specific ideas about what the perfect man should look like."
"And apparently very generous ideas about proportions," Sienna adds with a wicked grin.
"Sienna!"
"What? I'm just saying… That sheet was working overtime."
I bury my face in my hands, torn between mortification and laughter. "You're terrible."
"I'm observant." She settles beside me on the couch. "So. Want to tell me what's really going on here? Because last I checked, you were visiting for a few days to get your head straight after leaving Riley. Now you've forgotten to pay the mechanic and I've found you up on the mountain playing house with your ex-fiancés brother."
The teasing note in her voice fades, replaced by genuine concern, and I feel my stomach twist with anxiety.
Because she's right.
This is complicated. And messy.
And probably moving way too fast.
But it also feels like the most right thing I've ever done.
"It's..." I start, then stop, not sure how to explain something I don't fully understand myself.
The sound of cabinets opening and closing drifts from the kitchen, followed by the sizzle of something hitting a hot pan. Whatever Beau's making already smells incredible.
"It's new," I finally say. "And scary and wonderful and I have no idea what I'm doing. But Sienna? I've never felt like this before. Not even close."
She studies my face for a long moment, then reaches over to squeeze my hand.
"Then just go with it," she says simply.
And just like that, my perfect morning bubble gets a little bit bigger.
Chapter Sixteen
Beau
I stand in my kitchen like a man who's forgotten how to use his own fucking appliances.
The professional-grade stovetop gleams under the morning sunlight, all six burners pristine and barely touched since I installed them three years ago. Same with the stainless steel refrigerator. And the convection oven that I've used maybe twice in all the time I've lived here.
Because what's the point of cooking for one person who barely remembers to eat most days?
But now... now Molly is sitting in my living room wearing nothing but my flannel shirt, her sexy fucking legs tucked under her as she chats with her sister.
