me one of his warmly enthusiastic grins, and an odd little wobble runs through my gut. August was the first man to help me discover the hidden pleasures of my body. I’m still not totally sure how to act around him.
He seems capable of acting as if nothing is at all different, though. He appeared downcast during Kellan’s funeral, but he’s back to his usual energy now. “I was thinking pancakes for breakfast,” he says, pouring pale purple flour into a mixing bowl. “How does that sound to you?”
My stomach chooses that moment to gurgle its approval. August laughs. “Worked up an appetite in your dreaming, did you?”
More like after my dreaming, but I’m not going to mention that. I hop onto my usual stool. “Pancakes sound delicious.”
“And you’ve never had them made with fallowrot flour before, I’ll bet. Fluffy as clouds but full of flavor. Have a sniff.”
He thrusts the bowl toward me, and I lean over it to inhale. A creamy, savory-sweet smell like hazelnuts fills my nose. My mouth starts to water. “Two thumbs up from me!”
“You can be my stirring assistant, then.” He sprinkles a couple more powders over the flour and passes it to me along with a spoon. “All the dry components need to be evenly distributed to get the best effect.”
“Aye, aye, chef.” I grip the spoon, and he flashes me another grin. Even after the experience I just had with Sylas, and as much as I wanted Sylas from the moment he loomed over me last night, that grin manages to wake up a familiar flutter in my chest.
Is it normal to be this attracted to two men at the same time? Maybe it’s something about them being fae.
As I get to work stirring, a sense of loss creeps through my chest. I should have had friends I grew up with, or new ones I met at high school or college, who I’d be able to talk to about this sort of thing. Maybe I’d even have felt comfortable discussing men with Mom once I’d gotten older and out of the goofy puppy-love crush stage where I got the giggles after just locking eyes with a classmate I thought was cute.
August cracks several eggs into a different bowl and whips them into a froth with a whisk. I watch the muscles shift along his shoulders and chart the fall of his dark auburn hair against the nape of his neck.
Sylas has already had a proper mate—a fae woman. Maybe fae men only marry once and that’s it. August must want to find someone he could really share his life with, which obviously can’t be me.
Whitt strolls into the room with his usual languid nonchalance, glancing over both August and me as if the sight of us amuses him.
“Breakfast won’t be for a little while yet,” August tells him. “You’re up early.”
Whitt yawns. “I’m not really up. Just grabbing something to ease along the rest of my sleep. Pretend you never saw me.”
He heads into the pantry. A clink here and a rustle there follows. August shakes his head, his mouth forming a crooked smile, and returns to his preparations. I do the same.
The flour mixture is giving off an even more powerful—and saliva-inducing—perfume now, which seems like a good sign that I’m doing my job right. August splashes a little liquid from one bottle and then another into his bowl, whisks it one last time, and leaves that to check on me.
“Let’s see how you’re doing, Sweetness,” he says, leaning over by my shoulder.
The second I realize that’s a nickname he’s given me—and what a nickname it is—a deeper flutter shivers against my ribs. At the same moment, August stiffens beside me.
I glance down at the bowl, afraid I’ve screwed up the mix in my distraction, but he shifts closer—not to the bowl, but to me, with a sharp inhalation. A current of air tickles over my skin, and I realize he’s taken a whiff of me, his nose nearly grazing my hair.
He yanks himself backward, his muscles tensed and his golden eyes fiercely bright. I stare at him, my own stance going rigid, utterly bewildered about what’s going on.
“You… and Sylas…” he says, his voice hoarse. His hands flex at his sides as if he’s trying to restrain himself from clenching them into fists.
Heat courses over my face. I washed myself before I got dressed, more thoroughly than I usually would, but I didn’t have anything like a full bath. And