Page 59 of Shadow

Her heart rate picked up slightly.

For the love.

Asher walked in carrying three pizza boxes stacked in one hand and two grocery bags in the other. Dark jeans, gray Henley, jacket over his shoulder. Hair slightly windswept.

He looked…good.

Really good. She hadn’t realized how handsome he really was.

Okay, maybe she had. But this was the first time she’d taken a full breath and let it sit inside her.

Whatever.

“Hey,” he said, setting the boxes on the counter. “Got pepperoni, supreme, and veggie. Wasn’t sure what everyone wanted.”

“Veggie?” Daphne moved to help with the bags.

“For Destiny. Figured she’d complain less if there were options.” He started unpacking. “Also got coffee, cream, some fruit, chocolate, some sparkling cider, and”—he pulled out a bag of ground beef—“ingredients for actual meals. Can’t live on pizza for a month.”

Daphne stared at the counter. “Thank you,” she said. Meaning it.

“Yeah, well.” He shrugged. “Seemed practical.”

But it wasn’t just practical. It was thoughtful. Considerate. The kind of thing someone did when they were paying attention.

“I set up the security system,” she said. “Cameras on all four corners. Motion sensors on every window. Hub’s here.” She gestured to the monitor. “We can pull up feeds on our phones too.”

Asher looked at the setup. Something flickered in his expression. “You’ve been busy.”

“So have you.”

“Guess we’re both overachievers.” His mouth quirked slightly. Almost a smile. And Daphne felt something shift in her chest.

Dangerous.

“I also stashed weapons,” she said. Keeping it professional. “Two in the kitchen. One upstairs. One in the master bath. Just in case.”

“Where in the kitchen?”

“Under the sink, behind the cleaning supplies.”

“That’s—” He paused. “Actually, that’s brilliant.”

“I’ve done this before.”

“Clearly.” He pulled plates from the cabinet. “Let’s feed the witnesses, and then we talk. Fix the cover story before we make more mistakes.”

“Agreed.”

Daphne called Destiny and Roger. They came in from the living room, reluctant as teenagers summoned for dinner.

“Pizza,” Roger said flatly.

“And veggies,” Asher said, handing Destiny a plate with two slices of vegetable pizza and a small salad he’d apparently also picked up. “Figured you’d prefer this.”

Destiny looked at the plate. Then at Asher, something softening in her expression. “Thank you. That was sweet.”

“Don’t get used to it.”