Page 23 of Cinnamon Strudel
She pushed her arms under the pillow and softly hummed at how good this felt. Not only his touch, but simply… existing with him and feelingsafe. It was so different from what she had experienced in the past. Before she could doze off, Morgan placed a kiss on her snowflake and tugged her shirt back down.
“Time for me to hold you,” he said, spreading out behind her.
Covered back up, warm and being held by a strong man, she soaked in the feeling, easily drifting off to sleep.
Morgan
Somehow, Ruby ended up cuddlingBlueinstead of him during the night. How he knew? He’d been pushed to the edge of the bed, with Blue’s tail whacking him in the face and Ruby nowhere near him. Morgan sat up and stretched, finding his phone and letting Manuel know he wouldn’t be needing a ride that morning. Those fuckers could manage on their own for a day.
Ignoring the call he got immediately, he trudged into the kitchen to start the coffee. He knew they only wanted to look out for him but fuck they shouldn’t have gone behind his back.
“Is that coffee I smell?”
He turned towards Ruby’s sleepy voice and greeted her with a smile. “It is. How do you drink yours?”
“In a large cup and with lots of milk.”
He carefully sifted through his mugs, withdrawing one that he hoped fit the bill. “Something like this?”
“It’s perfect.”
“I have to take Blue out but maybe after, we can go to the café across the street for breakfast.”
“I assume since you are your own boss, you’re taking the morning off?”
He gave a nod and filled his cup, holding it up to his line of sight so he didn’t flood the counters.
“Would you mind if I took a shower first?”
“Not at all. Towels are in the bathroom behind the door. There should also be new toothbrushes under the sink somewhere.” A surprise kiss to his cheek had him almost spilling his coffee.
“Sorry.”
“That bubbly tone says that you’re anything but sorry,” he tsked.
Ruby’s steps disappeared, so he called for Blue and took him downstairs. Once back in the apartment he fed his furry companion and changed into a sleek black polo and dark jeans.
“You don’t happen to have a hair dryer, do you?” Ruby asked as he stepped out of the closet.
With his free hand he ran over his stubbly scalp. “I’m sorry to disappoint.”
“I’ll just have to live with the frizz today.” The sheet’s ruffled. “Bathroom is all yours.”
When he finished his morning routine, he emerged into the living room to find Blue’s harness. Ruby let out a low whistle, and heat rushed to his face. “Handsome.”
“Was that for me? Because the last time I wanted to take a compliment, it was meant for the furry, four-legged jerk who stole you right out of my arms last night.”
The bench gnashed as she sat down. “Just to be clear, last time I threw out compliments it was for the both of you.”
“What about this time?”
“Are you fishing, Mr. Gorgeous?”
Wetting his lips, he tried to hide his smirk and fastened Blue into his halter. “Clearly it worked.”
As they walked to the café, Morgan demanded that she take his hand, entwining his fingers with hers. Blue already knew the way by heart, so he took advantage of being able to hold her hand like any other person would. Angelo gave him his usual seat, off to the side of the patio where Blue could tuck away and rest without having to squeeze to avoid being stepped on.
“I guess you come here often?”
