?Chapter 360:

Ignoring her, I turned to Ryder. “Can you make me a fresh stack? I think I overcooked these.”

La burst outughing, and even Ryder cracked a smile as he stepped in to take over. “Sure,” he said, his voice softer now. “Why don’t you sit down and let me handle it?”

I didn’t argue. Instead, I wandered over to him and, without any warning, slid my hands under his shirt and pressed my ear against his chest.

“Jasmine,” Ryder said, startled but not moving away.

“Shh,” I murmured, closing my eyes. “I want to hear your heartbeat.”

His hands paused on the spat, and I felt him exhale slowly. “You’re unbelievable,” he muttered, but there was no real annoyance in his voice.

“I just… like it,” I said, trying to exin the inexplicable. “It’sforting.”

“You know what else isforting?” La chimed in. “Not interrupting the chef while he’s cooking.”

“La, please,” I said, not even bothering to lift my head.

“Don’t mind me,” she said, her tone positively dripping with mischief. “I’ll just be over here wondering when your pregnancy brain is going to demand a side of melted tires to go with those pancakes.”

I didn’t dignify that with a response.

Over the next few days, my cravings became even more erratic. One morning, I woke Ryder at dawn to ask if he could find me strawberries in the middle of winter. Another time, I demanded pickles, peanut butter, and marshmallows—together. And yet, through it all, Ryder stayed patient. Amused, exasperated, but patient.

“You’re spoiling her,” Lamented one evening as Ryder rubbed my feet while I lounged on the couch.

“Of course I am,” he said simply, not even looking up.

La rolled her eyes. “You’re going to regret that when she starts asking for diamond-studded potato chips or something.”

“I think I’d prefer those to the peanut butter-pickle-marshmallow abomination from yesterday,” Ryder muttered, earning augh from me.

“You love it,” I said, grinning.

Stay tuned for more g??lnoνe??s.c?m

“I love you,” he corrected, his tone firm and sincere.

And just like that, all the sass drained out of me. I reached out and took his hand, squeezing it gently. “I love you too,” I said softly.fna96c Discover more novels at fin?novel/fna96c

The moment was interrupted by a sharp knock on the door, and Kade stepped in without waiting for an invitation.

“Ryder, we’ve got a—” He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes flicking to me. “Is this a bad time?”

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