Page 151 of Shutter and Sin
I grab the spatula and hurl it straight at his head. He catches the handle mid-air without blinking and sets it on the counter. "No throwing weapons in the kitchen," he warns.
"Since when is that a rule?"
"Since you tried to hit me with a utensil." He grabs the back of my neck to pull me in for a quick kiss. "I love you too,Vedma."
I try to stay annoyed and fail. He scrapes my disaster into the trash.
"I give up," I sigh.
He laughs in a deep rumble. "Sit down. I'll handle it."
"But it's a woman's job to…"
"Sit your pregnant behind in the chair. I'm going to feed us before you burn the entire house down."
Alexei moves through the kitchen with fluid confidence, never having to search for a single pan or utensil. He melts a fresh pad of butter and cracks four eggs one-handed before pulling out fresh spinach and crumbles of feta.
"What are you making?" I ask.
"An omelet with vegetables, plus oatmeal and berries."
"That's way too much food, Alexei."
"You're eating for two." He chops the peppers with a fast, professional rhythm, the knife thumping against the wood. "The baby needs protein and iron. Try to get it from the food this time, not the burnt pan."
"Since when are you a nutritionist?"
"Last Tuesday. I fell down a rabbit hole of videos."
I blink at him. "What kind of videos?"
"YouTube. What to cook for your pregnant wife. Best meals for fetal development." He pauses, giving me a pointed look. "How to keep your wife away from midnight frozen pizza. The internet wasn't helpful with that last one, so I'm improvising."
"You watch pregnancy cooking videos?"
"Yes. I also learned how to install a car seat. How to change a dirty diaper in under thirty seconds. Why you should never microwave breast milk."
“When did you have time to learn this stuff?”
He looks almost embarrassed. “In my earpiece at work—turns out interrogations are incredibly boring, so I’ve been listening to pregnancy podcasts instead of music.” A tender smile crosses his face. “There’s this one host who’s amazing at explaining everything, makes it all easy to understand. I’ve been writing things down so I don’t forget, i thought we could listen together, you know? Learn about the baby as a team.”
He pours the egg mixture into the pan, the sizzle sounding perfect. "When the baby comes, I won't be useless."
He plates everything and sets it down in front of me. Fluffy omelet, sliced avocado, and a steaming bowl of oatmeal arranged neatly on the dish. He taps the fork with his finger, sliding it toward me.
"Eat."
I stare at the plate as my stomach begins to softly growl. “This looks like it came from a restaurant.”
“I made it with love and the internet.” He sits on the stool beside me. “Now eat before it gets cold. I don’t want to lecture you about wasting good feta.”
My stomach growls louder and I blush.
He grins. "That engine sounds broken. Should I call a mechanic to look at it?"
"Shut up."
I take a bite and groan at the perfect texture. I hate that he’s this good at everything. “When did you learn how to cook?”
