“So we’re not going to talk about it, then?” He sank into a chair at the table, and she set a bowl in front of him.
“Talk about what?” She sat across from him, stirring her spoon through the yogurt. The kiss had happened. He just said he hoped he didn’t dream it, so why was she making things so awkward?Get yourself together, girl. It’s obvious he likes you.
Her cheeks heated at the thought, and she fought her smile. He did like her.Veryobviously.
“Destiny.” He reached across the table, resting his hand on hers. “Did I go too far? I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”
“Too far?” She set down her spoon and finally gathered her courage. Flashing a playful grin, she laced her fingers with his and looked into his eyes. “You didn’t go too far. I was ready for you to fall down my rabbit hole.”
His brows shot toward his hairline, and she ate a spoonful of yogurt, holding his gaze as the butterflies in her stomach choreographed a lively ballet. Yep, she just said that. Out loud. To the Easter Bunny.Holy fuzz balls.
He grinned and tugged from her grasp. “It’s a shame I passed out. I’d have hopped right to it.”
“‘HereComesPeter Cottontail’ would’ve had a whole new meaning.” She bit her bottom lip as he cringed.
“Too corny. Forget I said that.” She shoveled a mound of granola into her mouth to stop herself from talking.
“No, I like a little corn as much as the next guy, but…” His brow furrowed as he stared into his bowl. “I don’t like that name. I hate it, actually, but I don’t know why.” He lifted his gaze to hers, and the knot in her gut untied itself.
“A memory! That’s good!” She grabbed her phone from the charger. “Maybe if I play the song for you, it’ll knock something loose.”
“Don’t—”
Too late. She found the song on YouTube half a second before his protest, and it auto-played. No commercial first, since she paid extra for the app to be ad-free. Pete sighed and closed his eyes, his mouth tightening in annoyance as the tune continued.
She swiped the app away before the song could finish. “Anything?”
“Just that I really,reallyhate it. The nickname and especially the song.” He spooned another bite into his mouth.
“Interesting.” She drummed her fingers on the table. “I wonder what else might stir up something from your past.”
She glanced at the wall clock. “Heavens to Beelzebub. I need to get to work.”
Yes, there were things far more important for her to deal with than cake, but what else could she do? If neither a witch nor a goddess could make Pete remember how to be the Easter Bunny, her only choice was to try something mundane. Maybe if they just chatted as she fell into the rhythm of her work… She took two massive bites of her breakfast and carried her bowl to the sink.
He followed and placed his bowl next to hers, gripping her hand as she reached for the faucet. “I’ll take care of this. You’ve got cakes to bake.”
“I…” She started to protest that he was a guest in her home and shouldn’t be doing housework, but she was short on time. “Are you sure?”
“Yep, and who knows? Maybe I’ll remember I hate washing dishes too.” He winked, and her butterflies danced again.
“Thank you.” She laid a dishtowel next to the sink.
“Mind if I hop in your shower before I come down to help you?” He turned on the faucet and rinsed a bowl.
“Of course. Your clothes are still in the dryer. You might set it to the freshen-up cycle if they’re too wrinkled.” She hesitated at the top of the stairs, turning toward him.
He shut off the faucet and dried his hands on the dishtowel. “I’ll be down in just a minute. Everything’s going to be okay.”
She really,reallywanted to believe him.
* * *
Pete showered and changed out of his borrowed clothes, folding them neatly and laying them on the bathroom counter before heading downstairs to help the beautiful, sweet, incredibly stressed-out angel who had taken him in.
The staircase ended in the kitchen, and he found Destiny in front of an industrial-sized stand mixer filled with green icing. She angled the mixing paddle up and used a silicon spoon to scrape the frosting off it before twisting the bowl and unlocking it from its base.
“That’s a lot of frosting,” he said, peering over her shoulder and making her jump.
