Page 159 of The Defender

His smile widened. He tipped his head in silent thanks and turned back to Greely, implicitly giving me more alone time with Vincent.

“I think my dad has warmed up to you as my boyfriend,” I said, facing Vincent again.

“I should hope so because I plan to be your boyfriend for a very, very long time.”

“That’s mighty presumptuous of you.”

“Maybe.” Vincent’s eyes gleamed with mischief. “But am I wrong?”

“No.” I brushed my lips against his, my heart fluttering. “You’re not.”

We kissed again, and for the second time that night, the world fell away until it was just the two of us, here, together.

VINCENT

Six Months Later

“Brooklyn! You’re missing the opening credits!”

“I’m coming! I’m coming!” She ran into the room, cradling a giant bowl in her arms. “Your popcorn machine is a pain in the ass. You couldn’t have bought a nicer model?”

“Youchose that model.”

“Well, couldn’t you have told me to buy a nicer model?”

“No, because we’d been shopping for two hours and I would’ve let you buy an inflatable toaster if it meant we could leave.”

“It hadnotbeen two hours.” I scooted over so she could squeeze onto the sofa next to me. “Now shhh. This is an important episode.”

Tonight was the season finale ofThe Great British Bake Off, which meant our cell phones were on silent and all interruptions were discouraged.

Brooklyn rolled her eyes, but she smiled and quieted as the episode kicked off. I draped an arm over her shoulder while she tucked her legs beneath her and curled into my side, our movements easy and effortless after months of practice.

Her hair smelled faintly of that coconut shampoo I loved. The warmth of her body pressed against mine, reminding me that she was actually here and she wasn’t leaving.

It was November—five months after Haley placed second at nationals, four months after Brooklyn moved back to London, and one month after she cleared her remote work probation period.

There was no more uncertainty or waiting. She was here to stay.

My heart twinged. As invested as I was inBake Off’s finale, I couldn’t stop staring at Brooklyn.

Instead of having her rent another flat post-Chicago, I’d asked her to move in with me. I’d never lived with a girlfriend before, but I loved waking up next to her in the morning and listening to her breathe at night. The anxiety I’d felt over being at home was long gone now that Seth had been apprehended and tried for attempted murder, amongst other things.

Long story short: the former kit manager was going to be in prison for a long, long time. Everyone at Blackcastle had been stunned by the news, but life moved on. We’d hired a new kitman—one who had to undergoextensivevetting and evaluations—and we were already deep into our season. Brooklyn and I both also started therapy again, which had been extremely helpful in dealing with the Seth trauma.

Spike wasn’t working for me anymore since the intruder threat had been neutralized, but I’d kept his security plans in place just in case. If Seth had taught me anything, it was that I needed to be more careful. His unfettered access to the players meant he was able to steal my house key and make a copy of it. He’d also hacked into my devices and found my security codes, so now everything was locked down per Spike’s instructions.

“What are you thinking about?” Brooklyn asked during a commercial break.

“Hmm?” I traced an absentminded circle on her shoulder.

“You’re too quiet, which means you’re thinking hard about something.”

“I’m thinking about how good those pancakes on the show look.”Bake Offdidn’t feature pancakes often, but when they did, man, they looked incredible.

Brooklyn lifted her head to stare at me in horror. “Don’t tell me you want to make pancakes again. Are youtryingto die?”

After last fall’s fire, Brooklyn and I were equally convinced that I was cursed when it came to pancakes. I wasn’t allowed to make them ever again, not even with professional supervision. She did, however, make them for me every Sunday. In return, I made her her favorite smoothies every day. Blenders were one of the least fire-prone kitchen appliances, so I felt confident I could operate one without summoning emergency services.