It was Rowan.

    He’d clearly just showered, dressed now in deep blue loungewear–a far cry from his usual tailored suits. The edge in his demeanor remained, but there was a new, almostzy ease about him.

    Elissa let out a quiet breath of relief and opened the door. “Not staying at the manor tonight?”

    Rowan shot her a sidelong look, his toneced with obvious disdain for her halfhearted question. “When have I ever stayed at the manor?”

    Right. That was a pointless question. He’d moved out eight years ago and hadn’t spent a single night back there since.

    Knowing how particr he was, Elissa had set out a brand–new pair of men’s slippers by the entrance.

    Rowan nced down, his voice cool. “Whose are these?”

    She headed for the kitchen, not bothering to look back. “Yours.”

    The faintest hint of a smile tugged at his lips as he stepped inside, moving with the casual confidence of someone who belonged there.

    He spotted her holding a box of beef pie and seemed unsurprised. “Midnight snack?”

    Elissa had never once felt satisfied after a meal at Murphy Manor–especially not after tonight’s disaster. She hadn’t had the appetite for it.

    “Yeah,” she replied, flicking on the kitchen light as she nodded.

    Rowan pulled out a chair and sat at the dining table, issuing his request as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “Make one for me too.”

    Elissa paused. She wanted to ask, Didn’t you eat enough either? But remembering the tense atmosphere at the manor’s dinner table, she wisely kept quiet and disappeared into the kitchen to heat up another

    b17.13 /b

    beef pie.

    She wasn’t much of a cook, but baking a beef pie was easy enough.

    Since she lived alone, Elissa rarely turned on the main lights in the living. room–just enough low lighting to get by. The kitchen, though, was bright as day, the overhead light illuminating her as she worked. Fresh from the shower, she wore a floral nightdress that swayed softly with her movements, hershes casting delicate shadows over her cheeks.

    Rowan’s gaze was fixed on her, drinking in every detail.

    Funny, how the same house feltpletely different with just one other person bustling around the kitchen–just reheating a simple beef pie. Yet somehow, it felt both grounding and electrifying.

    Elissa could feel his eyes on her, but it wasn’t the sharp, cutting stare she’d grown used to at the manor. There was something gentler there–a warmth she’d never imagined possible from him.

    When the beef pie was ready, its golden crust filling the kitchen with a mouthwatering aroma, Elissa swallowed hard, resisting the urge to dig in immediately. She ted the pie, adding the usual seasonings for both of them–an old habit. Years ago, Rowan had preferred his food nearly nd, but after a while, he’d picked up her tastes, their ptes blending until they were practically identical.

    She set out the tes and cutlery in front of him. Just as she took her seat across the table, Rowan dragged his chair closer and brought his te and utensils over beside her.

    They ate infortable silence.

    After a while, Rowan paused, a faint note of recognition in his voice. “Where’d you get the beef pie?”

    Elissa replied, “A grandma down the street makes them.”

    Rowan’s mind wandered–he thought of Janice, who’d tried to set him up with that doctor she knew. Janice had mentioned the woman was divorced now. ol start="12"li12i. /i/li/ol

    His tone grew more curious, following Elissa’s lead. “A grandma?”

    bChapter /bb237 /b