Page 101 of Moonlight Hearts

“Fucking hell.”Soyer stood and walked right up to me, pressing my head against his belly as he stood there, shielding me from Vico and Chef, who couldn’t have missed this, but were being nice enough to completely ignore it while washing and drying dishes in the sink.

“I love you.”

“Yes, my heart, I know you do, and I love you right back.Come, what is this, Amory?”

I cackled, snot making the sound weird.“Well, you keep asking if I’m happy, so these are happy tears.I haven’t had a Thanksgiving—friends-giving!—like this in…ever, really.It’s such a family holiday, and my family… Well.”

I heard a long, slow exhale from Soyer.He stroked my hair before gently pulling my head back from where he was cradling me against him.

“My heart, whatever are you talking about?This was a family holiday.Your family was here.The two annoying uncles are even still in the kitchen and refusing to leave.”

He was right too, and because he was right, I started crying somewhat forcefully.Chef muttered something in French, but I didn’t hear what over my tears.

I was so happy, so immeasurably happy, and I had no words for it.I wanted to share my happiness with Soyer, but didn’t quite know how, so the tears came.It was fine though.He was there, and he was happy too.Maybe not about me crying into his shirt, but the stains wouldn’t really show on all the black he wore.

After a few minutes, Vico brought me a big cup of tea.He’d found the blue Moonlight-colored tea and made that, and when I saw it, saw him smiling as he put the mug in front of me…I accidentally cried just a little bit harder.

Soyer grumbled.“Do you have to be this nice to him?Whatever happened to professional distance, huh?”

“Well, that ended when you christened me his uncle, Mr.Bennet, wouldn’t you say?That comes with a set of responsibilities.”

Soyer turned.“Eh, Martin,” he said, sounding totally French.“I thought you were a good influence on this one.”

I didn’t see Martin, but I heard him.“He’s right, and you know it.”

Soyer groaned, but he stroked my shoulders and the back of my head.I lifted my head to look at him, and with the light cresting over his head, he looked so beautiful, so… I didn’t have the words, but if belonging was a person, then it was Soyer.

I tried to clear my throat so I could speak.“Can we…maybe make a deal?With Rose?For the tea.So we can get the blue tea on the Moonlight’s menu, I mean.”

He raised his brow.“You want to put the tea on the menu?”

“Yeah.Because it’s blue.Like the Moonlight.”

Soyer huffed.“Sure, my heart.Whatever you want.Anything, anything at all that you want is yours, my love.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Wesleptinthenext morning, cuddling for an hour before the idea of getting up was even floated.Then, while I was showering, Soyer had Jules and the other house pawns as he called them take the table and chairs back, and when I wandered downstairs in my bathrobe, my hair still damp, I found him in the kitchen wearing long rubber gloves and scrubbing every surface, the dishwasher running again.

On our table, he had his laptop out and playing holiday music.He’d also set out a thermos and my coffee mug.

“Do you want me to help?”I asked, pushing up the sleeves of my robe.

He turned.“I want you to sit down and decide what we want for breakfast.I’ll take a break then.”

I chuckled as he went back to scrubbing.“You get so territorial about your kitchen, Soyer.”

“That’s not a bad thing.”

“Is it a baker thing?Is that what you learned when you learned to be a baker?”I sat down at the table and reached for the thermos, then stopped.“Uh…”

He turned, smiled brightly.“Look at you.”He put his sponge aside and pulled the gloves off with that satisfying rubber noise, then walked over to me and poured me my coffee.“There you go, my heart.”

“Thank you, Soyer.”

“You’re very welcome, Amory,” he said, and those words alone made me blush.He sat and crossed his legs.“And it’s not a baker thing.Not entirely.I simply like my kitchen just so.”

I took a sip of my coffee.His eyes brightened as if he approved.“But you meant it?About us making holiday cookies together?”