Sterling paused at the sound Eden made. She had hiccuped just a few minutes ago, after he’d told her not to say “make me.” And now she was doing it when he pulled her shirt up? What was that all about…?
“You are an interesting girl, E,” he chuckled softly, shaking his head. “Do you hiccup every time I do something that flusters you?”
Eden immediately shook her head, holding her breath to keep the hiccup away. God, he was probably joking, but he was right. He was so right.
“Of course not,” she protested, shaking her head. “It’s a hiccup, Sterling. Have you ever heard of someone hiccuping when they’re flustered?”
“I have not, but you are a fascinating creature, babe. For all I know, that could be something you do,” Sterling said, casting a quick smile at her.
Cheeks still flushed, Eden shook her head. “You think too much,” she muttered under her breath. “I do not hiccup because you fluster me, Sterling.”
Sterling chuckled, shaking his head in amusement as he turned back to the stove. “Whatever you say, sweetheart.”
“How much longer?” Eden tilted her head to the side, diverting the conversation away from the truth.
“Just a few minutes. It looks like there’s only another pancake or two left on the batter,” Sterling said as he flipped the ones already on the pan.
Eden yawned, closing her eyes and covering her mouth with her hand as she did so. “M’kay…”
“Tired?” Sterling murmured softly, turning to look at her while he waited for the batch to cook.
“Mhm,” Eden nodded, stretching her legs. “Tired. But it’s nice seeing you like this.”
“Like what? Slaving over a hot stove to make you happy?” Sterling teased, quickly turning to check on the pancakes. He flipped them before looking back at Eden with a grin. “Yeah, I’m sure you love it, don’t you?”
“Are you calling me a slave-driver?” Eden quirked an eyebrow, pressing her palms on the counter again. “Well then, slave, cook faster otherwise there will be punishment.”
Sterling raised an eyebrow and stepped closer to Eden. He set his hands on either side of her again, smirking down at her.
“Punishment, sweetheart? How so?” he murmured, eyes flashing mischievously.
Eden bit down on her lip, peering up at him bashfully. God, he had such a dirty mind, didn’t he? She couldn’t deny that the glint in his eyes made her shiver.
“We’ll see when the time comes,” she breathed, fisting her hands. “Won’t we?”
Sterling hummed as he leaned down even closer to her. Their noses touched, and he stopped.
“I suppose we will…” he whispered.
A burning smell hit his nose, and his eyes widened as he pulled away. He turned to the pancakes, cursing under his breath as he took them off the pan.
At first, Eden had stilled, waiting for his mouth to find hers. But then he was scrambling away, removing the burning pancake from the stove. Eden blinked before she burst out laughing.
“That is why you should never remove your eyes from the stove,” she chuckled, shaking her head. “You’ve failed, Sterling! F!”
Sterling spun around and shushed her, gesturing toward the hallway and Lucas’s door. “You’re going to wake your brother up, and he’s going to be upset with us,” he reminded her, still breathing heavily from the surprise of burning pancakes.
Eden immediately quietened down, pressing her hand to her mouth to stifle her laughter.
“Ah, yes, my brother,” her eyes wrinkled playfully. “If my laughter didn’t wake him up, then the burning smell definitely will. And let me tell you, he’s like a bear when his sleep is disturbed.”
Sterling sighed and tore a hand through his hair, turning back to the pan. “This is going to be real fun,” he muttered, scraping off burnt pieces of pancake from the pan.
“You’re a failed chef, Sterling,” Eden teased him, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “A failed chef. Just pour water in the pain with some soap and let it soak. The burnt part will soften after a while. It’ll be easier to remove then.”
“I only failed because of you, and you know it. Ms. I’ll-tease-my-boyfriend-while-he’s-cooking-and-distract-him-from-what-he’s-doing,” Sterling sighed, shaking his head as he turned the stove off. He pulled the pan over to the sink and poured some soap and water onto it, then set it in the sink.
“First rule of cooking,” Eden hopped off the counter to walk over to him, poking him in the chest. “No distractions. Do not get distracted at all. Second—“
“What are you doing?” an annoyed voice cut her off and Eden looked to the hallway, finding her brother with an irritated, sleepy look on his features. The shirt he wore was inside out, and Eden knew he didn’t bother checking it before putting it on. He slept shirtless. His hair was ruffled and messy, probably from running a hand through them. “It’s three in the morning. Are you seriously trying to burn down the house?”
Sterling has been looking down at his girlfriend heatedly and was about to grab her hand when Lucas walked into the room. The former sighed and looked over, resting his hands on Eden’s waist.
“Sorry, Lucas. I got distracted and accidentally burned some pancakes. Thankfully, they were out last ones,” he said with a shrug. “We didn’t mean to wake you.”
Lucas blinked, shaking his head. His eyes fell on the hands on his sister’s waist before he sighed.
“Be careful next time,” he yawned, covering his mouth and turning away as he did so. “You didn’t get hurt, did you?”
“We did not,” Eden responded slowly, following her brother’s gaze. Why didn’t he… look disapprovingly? Why wasn’t he upset at having Sterling here?
“All right,” he muttered, shaking his head again and rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m off to bed. Turn on the exhaust fan or something. It smells horrible.”
“Sure. Sorry again for waking you,” Sterling said, nodding at the younger man. When Lucas was gone, he turned to Eden and raised an eyebrow at her. “Naughty girl…” He chuckled and kissed between her brows. “Help me finish up so we can eat.”
“Why am I naughty?” Eden furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Did something happen between the two of you? Is there something you’re not telling me?”
“You’re naughty because you very nearly got us in trouble with your brother,” Sterling laughed softly, letting her go. “He came in earlier to check on you, not long after you fell asleep. We had a nice talk in the living room, and he basically said he approves of me now.”
“…oh,” Eden fell silent, eyes back on the hallway. “He did, huh… if you hadn’t ended your sentence like that, I would have asked you to define ‘nice talk.’”
She pulled away from him to grab the dishes he used, taking them to the sink. Of course Lucas had come to check up on her…
Sterling watched Eden carefully, eyebrows furrowing slightly. “Is something wrong, E?” he asked softly, resting his hand on her arm. “We good?”
“No, it’s just,” Eden shook her head, sighing. “I’d forgotten what happened yesterday. With… him.”