The Broken Road (The Broken Series) (20 page)

“The
sauce is a little tangy,” I admitted. “You could add some chocolate or a little
more chili powder to smooth it out.”

“Chocolate!
I forgot the chocolate!” Cenia yanked a cupboard door open. She shuffled some spices
around before pulling out a box of bittersweet chocolate. She tossed two
squares of baking chocolate into the pot, then sprinkled some chili powder into
the sauce. She stirred the chili, took a taste, and smiled. “It’s perfect.
Thanks!”

Kadyn’s
cologne wafted over me again. The heat from his body rolled along my back as he
walked up behind me. He looped his thumbs through the belt loops on either side
of my hips and rested his chin on the top of my head. “What’d I miss?”

I
froze. Kadyn was so close to embracing me, I didn’t know how to react. Aside
from his chin on my head, not a single part of his body was touching mine.
Still, my body was acutely aware of every square inch of him.

Cenia
must have sensed my unease because she flicked a kitchen towel at Kadyn and
chased him out of the kitchen. “Get out! If you’re not cooking or baking, you
don’t belong in here!” She winked at me as she strode back to the stove. She
slipped oven mitts over her hands before pulling cornbread from the oven.

I
smiled at Cenia before ducking out of the kitchen to retrieve my cookie dough
and baking sheets from the dining room table where Kadyn had set them.

Kadyn
was in the living room, talking to Phil and Troy.

I
walked back into the kitchen. “Do you mind if I put this dough in your
refrigerator until we're ready to bake cookies?”

Cenia
was pulling the cork out of a bottle of red wine. “If you can find space in
there, you are welcome to it.”

My
eyes widened when I opened the refrigerator door. I had never seen such a well-stocked
fridge… outside the one at my parents’ house. Cenia clearly liked to cook. I
shoved my cookie dough inside the vegetable drawer, since it was the only part
of the refrigerator with available space.

Cenia
stacked a small plate, which held a piece of cornbread, on top of a bowl of
chili. She handed the chili and cornbread to me, along with a glass of wine.
She grabbed the same for herself, then nudged me into the living room. She
cleared her throat, then spoke over the rest of the crowd. “I’m serving dinner
buffet style tonight, so please help yourself. Bowls, plates, and spoons are on
the counter next to the cornbread.”

Cenia
blocked Kadyn as he tried to steal my cornbread. I laughed at him as I followed
Cenia to the couch.

“I
don’t know what I was thinking, introducing the two of you,” Kadyn grumbled as
he followed the rest of the group into the kitchen.

Cenia
lifted her wine glass. “Here’s to having another girl in the group who knows
how to cook.” She tapped her wine glass against mine, and we both took a sip.
The Chianti hinted at cherry, vanilla, and oak.

Everyone
trickled out of the kitchen, balancing bowls heaped with chili and cornbread in
one hand and wine or beer in the other. Marie, Phil, and Troy snagged seats at
the dining room table. Matt eyed the couch, but he joined Shawn on the floor,
on the other side of the coffee table. Roger sat next to Cenia on the couch, and
Kadyn settled on the floor next to my legs.

Shawn
nudged Matt. He nodded toward Kadyn and me. I wondered what their silent
conversation was about. The room fell quiet as everyone dug into the chili.
When the conversation resumed, everyone began talking about the Air Force-Navy
game scheduled for the end of the month.

Cenia
nudged my shoulder. “I have an extra ticket if you’d like to join us, Kri. You
can stay with me and my friend Renee in the officers’ quarters.”

I
glanced at Cenia in surprise. I wasn’t expecting to be invited to the game,
since they had planned this trip long before meeting me. I looked at Kadyn,
uncertain as to how to respond.

He
smiled. “You should come.”

I
set my cornbread down and turned toward Cenia. “Sure. I’d love to go. Thanks
for inviting me.”

Cenia
smiled. “Great! You can bring chips and salsa.”

“Be
sure to dress in warm clothes,” Marie advised as she rose from the table. She
disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a bottle of wine.

“Phil,
Roger, and I are driving. I still have room in my car if you want to ride up
with me,” Kadyn offered as he set his bowl of chili on the table and turned toward
me.

I
nodded. “Sounds good.” I made a mental note to line up the dog walker to take
care of Cade while I was out of town. I glanced at Cenia. “What do I owe you
for the ticket?”

“Nothing,”
Kadyn responded. “I got it.”

I
glanced at him uncertainly. “Are you sure?”

He
smiled. “The coach gave me some extra tickets. You don’t owe a thing as long as
you’re cheering for the right team.”

I
pasted a serious look onto my face. “Navy, right?”

The
entire room gasped.

Kadyn
smiled when I began laughing.

Cenia
chuckled. “You had me worried for a minute there.”

Troy
rose from the table. “We still have this unresolved matter of determining who
makes the best cookies, so I’d like to see Cenia and Kri in the kitchen.”

Everyone
began laughing and talking at once. Cenia and I followed Troy into the kitchen.
The rest of the group began placing bets.

I
pulled my cookie dough from the refrigerator.

“How
are we going to serve all three batches of cookies warm from the oven without
giving away who made each batch?” Troy asked as he washed his hands.

Cenia
set the oven to three hundred and seventy-five degrees. “I’m baking my cookies
on stoneware, so they’ll stay warm while you and Kri bake a batch of your
cookies.”

I
glanced at Troy. “Why don’t we share a cookie sheet so our cookies will be done
at the same time?”

Troy
began digging through Cenia’s utensil drawer. He handed Cenia and me a spoon,
then took one for himself. “How long do you bake your cookies?”

I
set the spoon on the counter so I could wash my hands. “Nine minutes.”

Cenia
squeezed foaming hand soap into my hands as she joined me at the sink.

Troy
began dropping scoops of dough onto his baking sheet. “I prefer my cookies
under baked, so let’s just put two cookie sheets in at the same time. That way,
I can pull my cookie sheet out at seven minutes.”

Cenia
shook her head as she dried her hands. She handed me the towel as she turned
toward Troy. “If anyone gets food poisoning, I’m blaming you.”

Troy
scowled at Cenia. “My recipe doesn’t call for eggs. No one’s getting food
poisoning from my cookies.”

I
covered my cookie sheets with parchment paper and reached for my cookie dough
as I contemplated how best to join in on the ribbing. “Gee, Cenia, I think you
should let the guy compete with his half-baked eggless cookie dough…”

Cenia
burst out laughing.

I
chuckled as I scooped up a spoonful of dough and dropped it on my cookie
sheet. 

Troy
opened his mouth to object, then promptly snapped it shut. He shook his head as
a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “You’re gonna to be eating
those words after everyone votes for my cookies.”

I
shook my head. “I’m pretty sure the only thing I’ll be eating is Cenia’s
cookies.”

Cenia
glanced at me questioningly as she popped her cookies into the oven. “My
cookies? Shouldn’t you be eating your own cookies?”

I
laughed, then nodded toward the living room. “I won’t have any cookies left after
they
taste them.”

Cenia’s
eyes widened. “And I will?”

Troy
laughed. “She totally set you up with that one.”

The
smell of vanilla and warm chocolate filled the kitchen. The ribbing continued
as we waited for our first batch of cookies to bake. As soon as my cookies were
done, we piled the cookies on numbered plates. My batch was heaped onto plate
one, Cenia’s was on plate two, and Troy’s were on plate three.

Cenia
loaded the plates onto a tray. I carried the tray out to the living room and set
it on the coffee table. Troy trailed after me with a small bowl.

Cenia
gathered small strips of paper and a handful of pens and stuck them in the bowl.
She set the supplies next to the cookies as she offered up instructions.
“Sample a cookie from each plate, record the number from the plate of cookies
you liked best on a strip of paper, and toss it in the bowl.”

I
shook my head. “I love how competitive you guys are!”

Troy
laughed. “If you think this is competitive, you’re going to be in for a rude
awakening when you get to the Air Force-Navy game.”

Cenia
linked her arm with mine as we returned to the kitchen to bake more cookies. The
three of us hung back in the kitchen until Phil announced that everyone had
voted. We returned to the living room with three more plates of cookies. I
settled in next to Kadyn as Roger tabulated the votes.

Roger
shook his head and laughed. “It’s a three way tie.”

Kadyn
and I were still mulling over the results when we drove home. He parked his car
in the garage under his building and walked me back to my apartment. He joined
Cade and me for our evening walk.

I
turned toward Kadyn as we neared my apartment. “I had a great time tonight.
Thanks for including me in your circle of friends.”

Kadyn
kneeled down to pet Cade. “Thanks for baking the cookies, Kri. You and Cenia
looked thick as thieves in that kitchen. I think she likes having another girl
around.”

My
eyes met Kadyn’s as he stood. “It was really nice of her to offer me that extra
ticket to the game.”

Kadyn
smiled. “I’m glad you’re joining us. Hopefully the weather will hold out.”

An
awkward silence fell over us. We were both struggling with how to end the
evening. Kadyn shoved his hands in his pockets as he rocked back on his heels.
“Do you want to go out to breakfast tomorrow morning and hit the grocery store
afterwards? Mason and I are down to ketchup and frozen pizza, which is never a
good thing.”

I
was secretly thrilled. “Sure. Breakfast sounds great, and I have a bunch of
things I need to get at the store.”

Kadyn
walked me the rest of the way to my door. “Good. Let’s plan for nine o’clock,
so we can both sleep in.”

I
gathered Cade into my arms. “Sounds good.”

Kadyn
took the keys from my hand as I shifted Cade in my arms. He reached around me
to unlock the door. His face paused inches from mine as he pushed the door
open.

My
breath caught in anticipation of a kiss.

Kadyn’s
gaze lingered on my lips before his eyes captured mine. “Sleep well, Kri. I’ll
see you in the morning.” He handed me the keys and gently patted Cade on the
head before he walked away.

I
stepped inside my apartment, set Cade on the floor, and locked the door. I
filled my tea kettle and set it on the stove before changing into my pajamas. I
was disappointed that Kadyn hadn’t kissed me. I couldn’t stop thinking about how
much I’d wanted that kiss. I sighed as I dropped a tea bag into a ceramic mug.
Kadyn was proving impossible to resist.

By
two a.m., I was on my third cup of mint tea and still debating my decision not
to date anyone in DC.

*
* * * * *

My
cell phone rang at eight-thirty the next morning, just as I was towel drying my
hair. I tore through the house looking for my phone. “Hello?” I answered
breathlessly.

“About
breakfast….”

My
shoulders fell. “Oh. Do you need to cancel? We can always do it another time…”

Kadyn
quickly interjected. “No. Actually, my roommate just invited us to eat here.”

I
hesitated uncertainly. “Please tell me you aren’t planning to serve frozen
pizza for breakfast. Did you already run to the store?”

Kadyn
chuckled. “No. Mason’s girlfriend, Gabi, stayed over last night. She just
ordered groceries and had them delivered to our apartment. Well, Gabi was going
to order fashion magazines, orange juice, and champagne so that she could sip
on mimosas and flip through magazines while soaking in the bathtub. Mason
insisted she add biscuits, bacon, eggs, and cheese to the list, so I’m making breakfast
sandwiches for breakfast.”

“You
can do that?” I asked incredulously. I had never heard of such a thing.

“Do
what? Cook?”

I
shook my head, even though he couldn’t see me. “No. Have groceries delivered.”

He
chuckled softly. “Evidently.”

I
juggled the phone as I tugged socks on. “I thought only elderly people got
their groceries delivered.”

“Yeah,
well, you might want to add self-proclaimed Jewish princesses to that list.”

A
young girl’s voice rang out in the background. “I heard that! And, just for the
record...  everyone does it!”