hear some vague banging in the main area of the loft. Pushing off the heavy satin coverlet, I get up and pull one of Erik's black T-shirts on over my head. Then I pad barefoot over the cool stone floors, my eyes widening when I realize that Erik is already in the kitchen.
He looks up at me from spreading preserves on toast, his face lighting up a little. God, the way that he looks at me just now, his warm green-brown eyes and his cool yellow hair against the backdrop of his big muscular body… I feel lucky suddenly.
I have warm shivers all over my body and I beam at him.
"Hey," I say, shoving a hand through my thick sinuous hair. I look at him, trying to decide whether or not to tell him that it is my birthday. It feels a little ridiculous to make a big deal out of it but there's a part of me that definitely wants to.
"Hey. I thought I would surprise you with a little breakfast in bed. After all, it is your birthday."
My eyes widen. “How did you even know that?"
He finishes coating the toast with some kind of glossy fruit preserves and smiles up at me, bringing a plate full of eggs and toast over to me. Then he presents me with a little white vase with a single white rose inside of it, placing it beside my breakfast with a flourish. "I'm a mind reader, that's how."
I roll my eyes a little, but I can't keep the stupid grin off my face. "Well… Thanks. Not to be ungrateful, but is there coffee?"
He nods. "There is. Sit down and I'll pour you a cup."
I noticed that there are mylar balloons and several gift boxes on the far counter. I nod at them as he delivers a fresh cup of coffee. "What are those?"
He smiles lately. "I think they are all gifts and notes from your family. Kal made a special gift too, and I had it all delivered here."
I arch my brow. "Nothing from you?"
He rolls his eyes. "I didn't get you anything so tame. You can't unwrap my present. Hope it wasn't crazy, not getting you designer jewelry for your birthday."
Shaking my head, I shoot him a shy smile. "You're not wrong."
I pick up a piece of toast, biting into it. It's crispy and buttery and sweet. I close my eyes, enraptured for a moment.
I don't know how I'm going to tally that in my calories for the day but damn if I'm not glad that I tasted it.
When I open my eyes, Erik is staring at me. His expression is intent.
"What?" I ask.
He shrugs. "You're just beautiful when you enjoy yourself, that's all." He pushes off the counter and starts heading toward the bedroom. "You should open Kalindi’s present first. Then hurry up with your breakfast because we have a lot to do."
I shoot him a questioning look, but he is already gone, vanished into the hall where the bedrooms are. I stuff another half piece of toast in my mouth, crunching happily, and I stand up to head to the presents.
True to form, Kal's present is perfectly decorated. It's the one with the mylar balloons attached, balloons that probably are supposed to be for a younger girl's birthday. But they are the right shade of hot pink with big white bubble letters that say happy birthday. I pick up the hot pink and pale green polka-dotted box that the balloons are attached to. Untying the perfectly knotted green ribbon, I find an assortment of toffees and other sugar free sweets. Under that, there is a picture of me and Kal at age 11, attached to a very heartfelt poem.
It makes me smile. My best friend has my best interests at heart, no matter whether we see each other on our birthdays or not. Something about that makes me very happy.
All the other gifts are from Momse and my parents and other palace officials.
A matching diamond tennis bracelet and diamond necklace. That would be from Momse. I sigh and shove it to the side, rifling through the remainder of the presents. Everything else is neatly wrapped and obviously a luxury item, but there is little evidence that any thought was put into it aside from ‘would a twenty year old girl like this?’.
It's not surprising. And I am grateful. But I soon move on, finishing up my toast and eating a couple bites of the eggs. I slurp down half