26. Theo Fairview
Alyssa was the most efficient person I’d ever met, so I was packed and moved into the penthouse by four. Which meant I had a whole three hours to kill before Cass came home.
I’d spent that time YouTubing how to make vegan burgers, and I had prepared some black bean patties for us with a can she’d already had in her cupboards.
Everything was ready, and the patties just needed to be reheated by the time she arrived.
When I’d shown her what I’d done, the look of absolute astonishment that flitted across her face was something I would cherish until the day I freaking died.
She’d been so stunned, and although she didn’t outwardly gush or shower me with praise… the way she just stared at me like I was a complex puzzle she couldn’t seem to figure out was better than any words of gratitude could ever be.
After we’d eaten together, she’d asked me what game I’d been playing when she came in, and that was when I learned she’d never heard of Super Smash Bros before, which rocked my whole fucking world.
“No frickin’ way. You’ve never played Smash Bros?” I gaped at her as she studied the screen, looking adorably confused.
“Should I know this game? I didn’t exactly have access to game consoles growing up.”
Remembering exactly how Cass had grown up, I forced back the blinding rage that always seemed to overcome me whenever her evil bitch of a mother was brought up in conversation.
“Well, I’m about to blow your mind, princess.” I grinned, changing the topic to something that didn’t make me want to murder the woman Cass had already killed at the tender age of thirteen.
I patted the couch next to me and got my spare set of Joy-Cons set up for her before explaining the mechanics of the game.
“Basically, you just want to beat the crap out of anything that moves and try to die less than everyone else does. It’s pretty simple.”
“Got it.” She nodded firmly, and I chuckled at how seriously she seemed to be taking this.
The way she was frowning at the screen and clutching her controller to her chest was so goddamned endearing.
I just wanted to squeeze her till her little head popped off.
Unsurprisingly, she was terrible at it. Her character was basically a ping-pong ball on the screen for the first hour of play time, and she was so furious about it that I could barely keep it together.
By the time we were ready to call it a night, my abs literally hurt from laughing, and I had tears in my eyes.
“You’ll get better. It just takes practice.”
“You bet your ass I’ll get better,” she snapped, shooting me a glare. “You’d better watch out, Theodora. I’m going to get so good at this game, you’re going to fucking hate playing with me.”
She said it with so much determination and ire.
It was adorable.
I could barely stand how cute she was.
“I have no doubt, princess,” I murmured, reaching out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
She tilted her head into my hand, and her gaze met mine.
We stared at each other for a moment, and I marveled at how her lashes fluttered delicately across her flawless cheekbones.
“I guess we should probably get ready for bed. We have an early day tomorrow,” she murmured.
My heart sank slightly, but I nodded, dropping my hand away from her face.
“Yeah. You’re right. Jerry will kick my ass if I’m late again.”
Cass frowned at that, and she bit her lip.
“Why don’t you see if Jerry wants to come over here to meet you in the morning? That way you won’t have to get up as early. I have that espresso machine I can’t figure out how to use, but I’m sure if you can get it working, it’ll be just as good as the stuff from the cafe.”
My eyebrows rose in surprise at her offer.
I’d honestly been planning on making myself as scarce as possible while I was staying here. I didn’t want her to feel like I was encroaching on her space.
It never occurred to me she’d allow me to have guests over, let alone be the one to suggest it.
“Uh, you sure about that? I don’t want to just invite people over to your place, Cass.”
She scowled at this.
“As long as you’re living here, it’s your place too. I expect you to treat it as such.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I whispered, feeling all shivery and weird again, much like I had that morning when she’d ordered me to be here waiting for her when she came home.
“Okay, good. Now, let’s go to bed.”
I nodded, getting up.
“Alyssa had the movers put all my stuff in your room when we got here, but I moved most of it into the guest room once she was gone. I think there’s still a box or two in there, but I can grab them tomorrow.
I just wanted to make sure I had time to make dinner before you got back, so I was a little rushed,” I explained as I followed her out of the living room to the hall that led to the bedrooms.
Her steps faltered slightly, which caused me to pause. She glanced over her shoulder at me, and I bit my lip in concern when I realized she was frowning.
Shit. Should I have prioritized moving the boxes over dinner?
Cass’s condo was spotless.
I should have thought of how much she would hate having those boxes in her room, even for a short while.
My stomach churned with anxiety.
I was supposed to be making her want me to stay here, not annoying her with all my unpacked shit crowding her space.
“I-I can move them right now, if it bothers you. Sorry, I’m just still new to making vegan food, and I didn’t want you to come home and have nothing to eat if I fucked it up and had to go to the store or something, so I just–”
“Theo!” Cass barked, and I immediately shut up, snapping my mouth shut with a click.
She was staring at me with that odd look on her face again, like she was trying to figure me out. Which was the strangest thing, because I thought I was pretty much the most boring person on the planet.
“I don’t care about the fucking boxes, Theodora. It’s fine.”
“You’re sure? It’s no problem if you want me to move them –”
She cut me off again, this time with two fingers over my lips.
“I’m sure.” She hummed.
I opened my mouth to speak again, but she didn’t let me.
Instead, she leaned forward and pressed a soft, affectionate kiss to my lips, and like every time Cassandra kissed me, the world melted away, and I immediately felt myself settle.
Unlike our previous kisses, this one was gentle, almost chaste, but it seemed to linger. My lips continued to tingle long after she pulled back.
She met my gaze, and a small, lazy smile crinkled the corners of her brown eyes as she hovered there, mere inches away.
“Good night, Theodora,” she whispered, then she left me standing there–disappearing into her bedroom and leaving nothing but a warm cloud of vanilla in her wake.