Holden woke up to the smell of coffee and the sound of Elise’s humming. He smiled as he heard her buzzing about the kitchen, clanging pots and pans. Then he sat up suddenly, realizing that Elise should have been at work by now. She’d called in for the dinner shift yesterday, thanks to all the drama with Nick. But she’d told him after Nick was found that she’d have to cover the breakfast shift this morning to make up for it. So why was she still here?
He pulled on his t-shirt and jeans, and then made his way out to the small kitchen, where he found Elise cracking eggs over a skillet. She had her back to him, and hadn’t heard him coming over the sound of her humming. For a few moments, he watched her while she was unaware. He smiled at the sight of her curvy hips swaying to the music of her own humming. But then she turned slightly, and saw him out of the corner of her eye. Sheepishly, she turned around and shrugged.
“I like to hum while I cook,” she said.
“Don’t stop on my account,” Holden said, coming closer to give her a quick good morning kiss on the lips. She blushed and started to turn away, but before she had fully gone back to minding the skillet, he caught a glimpse of the redness that rimmed her eyes.
“Is something wrong?” he asked. Elise shook her head no, but she didn’t turn back to look at him. Holden knew that wasn’t a good sign. If she wasn’t willing to meet his eyes, it was because something definitely was wrong. Holden reached for her arm and gently turned her back so that she was facing him once again. She looked down quickly, but not before he saw the glimmer of moisture in her eyes. She was on the verge of tears.
“I thought you were working this morning,” he said.
The tears came then. One or two escaped at first, making their way down her cheek in silence, but soon, she could not hold back the dam, and her face was soon covered with salty, wet trails.
“My boss called me before I’d even left the apartment this morning and told me not to bother coming in ever again.”
Holden blinked a few times as he processed what Elise had just told him. “He fired you?” he asked, incredulous. “But you’re the best waitress he has.”
Elise shrugged, looking heartbroken. “I know. And I’ve always taken so much pride in my work. But apparently being the best and working the hardest wasn’t enough. He said I’ve called in too much and he needs someone more dedicated to their work. Never mind that I’ve only called in twice, and with good reason. And that I’ve only missed shifts a total of six times in all the years I’ve worked there. None of the other employees can say that. They call in every other shift, it seems. But he’s been looking for an excuse to sack me ever since that morning the fight broke out. You know, the fight you rescued Nicky from?”
“I know the one,” Holden said. How could he forget?
Elise shrugged again. “Yeah, well, thanks to that little incident, I’m jobless now. I…I’m not sure what I’m going to do. This is a small town, and most of the restaurants are fully staffed. God, if I have to move again, Nick’s going to be so upset. But I don’t see how I’m going to make ends meet unless I replace my job in the next day or two. I’m barely surviving as it is.”
Elise turned abruptly back toward the frying pan, trying once again to hide her tears. Holden reached for her arm and firmly pulled her back.
“Hey. It’s okay. You don’t have to be so damn strong all the time, you know? You’ve had a couple of hellish days. It’s okay to shed a few tears. And don’t worry about the job. Your boss was a dickhead, anyway. You’ll find something else, and in the meantime I can help you. We’re in this thing together now.”
He felt Elise bristle slightly at his words.
“I don’t want help. I didn’t agree to date you just so I could mooch off of you. I’ve always taken care of Nick by myself. I don’t need help.”
Holden sighed. “You do need help, from what you just told me. And there’s no shame in that. I know this whole relationship is new, but we’re committed to each other for life. We talked about that already. We love each other, and we’re a family. And families take care of each other. Lord knows there have been countless times in my life that I’ve needed help, and my clan has been there for me.”
“I hate feeling like a damsel in distress,” Elise said, still looking at the floor. Behind her, the white edges of the over easy egg she’d been cooking were starting to turn a crispy brown. Holden took the spatula from her and deftly removed the egg from the pan, sliding it onto a plate that was sitting next to the stove.
“Well you shouldn’t feel that way, because you’re not a damsel in distress. You’re a damsel who has done a kickass job of taking care of herself, and now deserves a bit of a breather.” Holden picked up the plate with the egg on it and pushed it toward Elise. “Go. Sit. Eat. I’ll finish cooking. You’ve spent enough mornings lately serving people eggs.”
Elise opened her mouth like she was going to protest, but then she clamped it shut again and went to sit at the table. She munched silently for a few moments while Holden cracked another egg into the pan. As soon as it hit the heat and started sizzling, he left it for a moment to go put a few slices of bread in the toaster. Then he grabbed two mugs from the mug tree that sat on the counter, filling them with coffee from the pot that Elise had already brewed up. He took one of the mugs to Elise before turning his attention back to the skillet. As soon as his back was turned to Elise, he started talking again. He wanted to give her a chance to think about what he was going to say without feeling pressure to react a certain way. But god, he hoped she was going to accept the offer he was about to make.
“I actually wanted to talk to you about quitting that job, anyway,” he said, in a voice that he hoped was loud enough for her to hear over the sizzle of the pan. “Because there’s about to be an opening for a job here in Blackstone that would be perfect for you.”
Holden paused for a moment, letting his words sink in, and then continued. “Weston called me last night, long after you had fallen asleep. Miraculously, I managed to sneak out of your bedroom without waking you, and had a long chat with him. He and Violet had gone over the video footage and photos Nick took in Saul’s camp yesterday. It looks like your son managed to capture quite a bit of vital information during his short stint as a spy. Peter and Knox, the leaders of the army I’m fighting with, are sending a group to Blackstone to attempt a sneak attack on Saul’s camp. All of those wizards and shifters will be hungry, and they could use someone to take care of meals for them. I’ve been given authorization to hire someone, and, instead of bringing someone down from Falcon Cross for the job, I was hoping you might take it.”
Holden waited a few beats, but then could hold his curiosity back no longer. He turned around to face Elise, hoping he would find eagerness on her face, or, at least, interest. Her expression, however, was pure confusion. She was biting her lip, which he had quickly learned was an indication that she was nervous or unsure about something. He forced himself to remain quiet and let her think for a moment, but it was not easy task. He wanted to rush over to her and tell her that this was a perfect solution. She would be great for the job, and it would allow them to work closely together. Instead of always running off to work double shifts for a bully boss, she’d be cooking for people who actually appreciated her.
“Weston is the guy who was here yesterday?” Elise finally asked.
“Yes. He’s also a dragon shifter, and one of my best friends. Sorry, I didn’t realize you were never actually introduced. I guess everything was a bit chaotic when Nick first got back.”
“Yeah, it was,” Elise said, her face tensing up a bit at the memory.
“I’ll introduce you to him later. Actually, he wanted to show me what Nick found. If you’re interested in seeing it, he could bring it over here to show us both. That would give you a good chance to meet him, too.”
“I’m not sure I want to see what Nick was doing yesterday,” Elise said with a wince.
Holden smiled at her. “You should take a look. I know you didn’t want him to go, but your son may have just made a big difference in our war effort. He found some pretty interesting stuff.”
Elise shrugged. “Well, I’d like to meet Weston, at least. You can tell him to come over. I’m sure Nick wants to spend more time with the latest dragon in town, too.”
Elise rolled her eyes, and Holden laughed before turning to remove the eggs he’d just cooked from the stove. He put them on a plate and took it to the table, then turned back to the kitchen to grab the toast.
“Help yourself to more eggs if you want,” he said, as he started looking for a butter knife. When he’d found one, he started slathering butter and then jam onto the toast.
Elise grabbed another egg from the plate, and took a bite, chewing carefully before speaking again. “So, this job would be cooking for a big group? You know I didn’t do much cooking at the restaurant, right? I was more of a server. Usually, the only thing I made there was coffee.”
“I know,” Holden said. “But Nick tells me you’re a fantastic cook. And besides, you understand how to run a kitchen. You’d be great for the job. It pays well, and it’s honestly probably less work than you were being forced to do at that diner. It would also give you a chance to get to know some of my crew. And, you know, do your part for the cause of good.”
Elise still hesitated. “Are you sure you’re not doing this because you feel sorry for me for losing my job?”
Holden sighed. “I’m doing this because I think it’s a perfect job for you. Honest. I was planning to ask you even before I knew you’d been fired. In fact, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to convince you to leave your job. But now that your boss made that decision for you, I hope you’ll take the job I’m offering and join me in this war. It’s not just about a job as a cook. It’s about doing something that will help stop a truly evil man from continuing on his path of destruction. I know we haven’t been together that long, but I’m pretty sure I know you well enough to know that you’d support a cause like that.”
Elise kept chewing her lip, and Holden was starting to worry that she was going to tell him no.
“It’d help you keep an eye on Nick, too,” Holden said, giving her a mischievous grin.
Elise laughed at that. “Okay, okay. I’ll take the job,” she said. “It’ll be nice to do something other than plain old waitressing for a while, anyway.”
Holden let out a whoop, and pulled Elise up from her chair to spin her around. He planted a kiss on her lips just as Nick emerged from his bedroom, sleepy-eyed with hair sticking out in every direction. Elise pulled back from Holden like he was on fire, and her cheeks turned red. Holden had been so caught up in telling Elise about the job that he’d forgotten Nick was in the apartment. He and Elise hadn’t spoken yet about how they would tell Nick that they were dating, but it looked like they were about to have the conversation whether they were ready for it or not.
Nick raised a sleepy eyebrow at the two of them as he walked over to the kitchen table. He plopped down in one of the chairs and reached for the plate of eggs Holden had just set down, apparently intending to eat the entire pile himself.
“So, are you guys like a thing now or what?” Nick asked just before sticking a giant forkful of food into his mouth.
“You mean are we dating?” Elise asked, her voice sounding unnaturally high. “Yes, we are. I’m sorry you found out in such a surprising manner. I’d intended to sit down and talk with you but I was just so excited right now about a job Holden told me about and—”
“So you’re his girlfriend, then?” Nick asked, interrupting.
“Well, yes. I’m his girlfriend. We’re dating,” Elise replied.
Nick shrugged. “Cool,” he said, in a mildly interested tone, just before shoving an entire egg into his mouth at once.
Holden caught Elise’s eye. She smiled and shrugged, and he leaned over to give her a quick peck on the cheek. It looked like Holden’s relationship with Elise was just fine with his new son. And that is what Holden considered Nick—a son. After all, they were family now. Holden smiled as he went back to start cooking more eggs.
Family.
He’d been so scared to have one of those for so long, but nothing had ever felt so right to him as this moment. As he cooked, he replayed over and over in his mind the smile that had crossed Elise’s face when she’d realized he was serious about the job. God, he could look at that smile for the rest of his life and never get tired of seeing it. And, it looked like that was exactly what he was going to get to do.
Holden cracked another egg into the pan and started whistling. Today was already a good day, and he hadn’t even had breakfast yet.