I tilt my head. “Is thatnothow you take your tea?”
“I…that’s beside the point.”
“Mhm.”
Haley chuckles quietly as she sets the sugar on the counter, then fetches an unmarked glass bottle of milk from the fridge. “Wait, so this is…”
“Local.”
“Like from the cows we passed on the way in?”
“I think so? I could bullshit you, but ‘local’ is all I know.”
Mylo grumbles, “Can’t even be bothered to remember…”
I laugh and tousle his hair, earning another death glare. “I was never told. This isn’t my house.”
Haley’s eyes widen. “You haven’t broken in somewhere, have you?!”
“I’m flattered you think so highly of me. Nah, this is Reynold Gosling’s guest house.”
“You know Reynold Gosling?!”
“Yeah, we met at the Oscars last year. I mentioned surfing, and he extended a standing invitation. Said they don’t get enough use out of the place.”
Mylo puts on a mocking tone, “Yeah, we met at the Oscars.”
Haley bursts out laughing, covering her mouth with her hand until she sees my amused expression. Then she adds milk and sugar to our tea and joins us at the island.
“You’re grumpy,” Haley says to Mylo, sliding his mug over. “Caffeine should help.”
“I’m not grumpy,” Mylo huffs.
I raise a brow.
Haley taps the top of his mug.
“Ugh, fine.” He wraps his hands around the mug and glowers. It should be too hot to comfortably hold, but he’s shivering again, so his body craves the warmth.
I could pull him against my body and solve that problem immediately, but I kind of want to see how long it takes him to cave.
His scent fills the room. My omega is here. I have infinite patience.
“So we’ll stay for tea and then head back?” Haley offers.
I shake my head. “At least stay for dinner.”
“I don’t want to impose…”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Does anyone deliver this far out?” Haley asks.
I take a sip of my tea. “Hm? I’ll cook. This freezer’s full of meat. Also local. And there’s an avocado orchard out back, so a couple of them are bound to be ripe.”
“Oh, I couldn’t let you do that,” Haley says.
“Yeah,” Mylo adds. “She’s probably terrible.”
