Page 38 of The Season
Eddie shakes his head, then shoulders past me to the bathroom.
“You’re such a simp, dude,” he mutters before pulling the door shut.
My shoulders stiffen at his words, and I quickly cast a glance down the hallway to Lily’s room to make sure she didn’t hear him. I might only understand about half of what the Kiwis are saying at any given time, but this I do understand.
To my relief, there is no Lily in sight and her door is shut, so she’s probably still in her room getting ready. I try not to stare longingly at her door as I walk past it to the kitchen, where the smell of eggs, bacon, and coffee are wafting temptingly.
“Oh, good. You’re ready to go!” Seth pauses whatever he’s doing at the stove to throw me a cheerful smile. “I’m making breakfast. Take a seat.” He nods to the table where Liam and Antoine are already sitting, both glaring intently at their coffee, both looking equally unhappy.
Huh. I guess they aren’t morning people.
“Hey guys,” I say, sliding into the seat between them.
Liam lifts his eyes briefly to give me a head nod and a wan smile. Antoine takes that moment to sip his coffee, bright green eyes flashing in my direction with a hint of something I don’t really understand. But that’s not unusual with him—I don’t understand him most of the time, even when he speaks to me, and I can’t even blame it on his accent.
I think… no, IknowI’m not the sharpest tool in the shed. I’ve been told that all my life, by my dad, my teachers, my superiors in the military. Antoine, on the other hand, is obviously super smart. Lily mentioned he went to some fancy boarding school, and I know he speaks at least two languages perfectly.
I can barely speak English. And I grew up in Idaho.
“Morning darlin’,” Eddie says with a fake southern drawl, reaching across to ruffle Liam’s hair before flopping into the seat across from me.
Liam scowls, but seems to tolerate Eddie’s behavior, and I can’t help but stare wide-eyed between the two of them. There is no way I’d try something like that with Liam. But then I remember they know each other from before, from the mountain they both worked at in New Zealand, so I guess it’s not that strange.
“Coffee?” Seth asks.
“Shit yah,” Eddie replies, leaning forward and resting his arms across the table.
“No, thank you.” I pivot in my seat to give Seth a polite smile, clasping my hands in my lap. Behind him, an assortment of pots and pans steam and sizzle on the old stove, and several plates are spread across the kitchen counter. “Do you… um, want me to help with anything?”
“Nah, all good.” Seth gives me that infuriatingly perfect smile—the one that reminds me of how much more likely he is to win Lily over than me—then slides a full mug in front of Eddie. “Milk, no sugar, right?”
“You’re a treasure, mate,” Eddie says by reply, dimples forming as he beams at his coffee. “Keep this up and I might have to marry you.”
I honestly can’t tell if he’s being sarcastic, or if he’s really just that excited about the coffee. But Seth just chuckles, slinging the dish towel over one shoulder before turning back to the stove.
“You’d be lucky,” he says conversationally, flipping eggs with his spatula before turning off the stove. “It’d take more than your scrawny ass to satisfy me,” he flashes Eddie a wink over his shoulder, then starts plating up the food.
“Hey.” Eddie’s smile drops, transforming into that feral scowl he often wears when he lets the mask slip. “What’s wrong with my ass? I haven’t had a girl complain about it yet, I’ll have you know.”
Liam snorts into his coffee, and Antoine widens his eyes with a mixture of horror and amusement.
Me? I’m just confused. Like always. Maybe this is just some weird Kiwi humor that I don’t quite understand.
I scrub my face with my hands and try not to frown.
Seth waves one dismissive hand. “Your ass is fine, I’m sure. Just not really my thing.” He slides a plate of food in front of me, and my frown dissipates almost instantly, replaced by a wistful sigh of gratitude.
“I just meant I’m a more-than-one-person kind of guy, that’s all.” He mutters this last part under his breath, the words so faint I almost think I’ve imagined them. His cheeks are pink. Probably from standing over the stove.
“Good.” Eddie takes a long sip of his coffee, his eyelids fluttering shut with obvious satisfaction.
For a moment, he looks like an angel again, like one of those little cherub statues my gran always has scattered around her house. Until he opens his mouth.
“Because as much as I like to be appreciated for my assets—and they are fine assets, I’ll have you know—I’m not really into dick. Just to clear that up. Not that there’s anything wrong with being into dick…” Another slow sip of coffee, a gentle sigh.
Behind him, Lily’s door silently opens, her eyes bright as she smiles at Seth in the kitchen, then me. I feel my heart squeeze in response, that dangerous heat low at the base of my spine coiling like a demanding serpent. I’m pretty sure I’m giving her that dopey smile again, but I can’t seem to bring myself to feel embarrassed about it.
Eddie keeps talking, his back to Lily, completely oblivious of her walking toward the kitchen. “…I’m just more of a tits and pussy kind of guy,” he says conversationally, reaching across the table to snag a piece of my scrambled eggs off my plate with his fork, even though Seth is making a plate for him too.
