“You don't need to cook,” Ryan answered without lifting his head.
The last few nights, she was too exhausted to eat, let alone join the guys in the kitchen. Her last meal was usually a snack in bed Ryan brought her before she conked out.
“Do you mind?” She didn't want to step on anyone's toes if someone, like Seok, would have a problem with it.
“It's fine,” Ryan began slowly. “…but you were having trouble walking down the stairs...” He let the rest remain unspoken.
Pushing to stand, and waving first Ryan, and then Matisse away when they tried to help her, she stood proudly next to the fridge. “I’ll get the ingredients and then work from the table.”
She opened and closed drawers, considering and then dismissing recipes. They had eggs, potatoes, and... “Why do you guys have so many hot peppers?”
Matisse snickered. “Apollo went grocery shopping.”
“He must really like them.” She gathered the peppers, potatoes, eggs, and an onion, and brought it all to the table before grabbing a cutting board and knife from their place on the counter.
She eased herself into the chair, glad to finally have a task, something she could do to contribute.
Matisse went back to his phone and Ryan to his work, and she chopped and sliced happily.
“What are you going to make?”
Matisse looked at the piles of onions, potatoes, and peppers.
“Frittata,” she answered, walking to the counter. She opened one of the doors and started to lean down before stopping abruptly. Stepping back, she tilted her head, but it was no use. She could not bend over to see what was in the cabinets.
“What do you need?” Matisse's voice next to her made her straighten hastily.
“Um, a bowl, and a skillet.”
Moving to the other side of the kitchen, he got her the items she needed. He was out of place in the kitchen, somehow too sophisticated and graceful for something mundane like getting a cast iron skillet from under the counter. He had on another, or maybe the same, pair of black jeans tucked into his scuffed motorcycle boots. His hair was greased back from his face, exposing a high white forehead, and he wore a tuxedo vest over a white t-shirt.
“What can I do?” He eyeballed the chopped ingredients.
She thought about what was left to do. “Could you beat the eggs? I’m…” She lifted her arm and made the mixing motion. It pulled at her side, zinging nerve endings and making her grimace. “Yup. That’s going to hurt.”
He sat next to her, pulling the bowl to him and then the eggs. “How many?”
“All of them.”
Smiling, he cracked each one, putting the empty shells back in the carton. He followed her directions perfectly, and before long, the kitchen filled with the scent of food.
Matisse was very helpful, doing all the heavy lifting she couldn’t do, and he didn’t seem to mind leaving whatever he’d been working on to help her.
Ryan put his books away and got plates and forks, setting the table with an extra spot. As Matisse brought the skillet over to the table, she heard the slow tread of feet on the stairs and then the creak of the door. Seok frowned when he saw the assembled group.
“What’s happening?”
“Nous mangons des oeufs. Nora cuit pour nous,” Matisse informed him.
Peeling the kerchief from his head, Seok went to the sink. He washed his hands before turning around. There was something about the set of his shoulders, which made her uncomfortable. Laying her fork next to her plate, Nora waited, her appetite gone.
He crossed his arms and leaned his back against the sink. “It’s my night to make dinner.” Even though he spoke to Ryan and Matisse, she knew the words were meant for her. “We have a schedule.”
Embarrassed, she stared at her plate.
“If you are going to take over someone’s responsibilities,” he continued. “It is polite to inform them.”
“Seok.” Ryan’s voice held a warning.
Ignoring Seok, she pushed away from the table. “Thank you for your help,” she said to Ryan and Matisse.
Ryan stood. “I’ll help you.”
She wanted to wave him away, but the truth was, she was shaky and needed his help back to her room.
“I apologize, Seok,” she said, before taking Ryan’s arm.
Silently, Ryan helped her to her room. He didn’t say anything until she was comfortable on her bed. “I’m sorry.”
Rather than answer, she started to bite on a hangnail, but Ryan stopped her.
“I should have asked.”
“You did ask. You asked Matisse and me. I’ll talk to Seok.”
“No,” she answered quickly. “It’s his house, his rules.” It was how she learned to survive in each of her foster homes; figure out the rules mistake by mistake and then fall into line.
Putting his hand under her chin, he forced her to lift her eyes to his. “It’s not how it goes here.”
“I’ll start searching for a job tomorrow.” She shrugged like it didn’t bother her. “I’ll try to get out of here soon.”
“No. You need to heal. That’s final.” His voice was firm, there would be no disagreeing.
Exhausted, both mentally and physically, she found she couldn’t argue. “I think I’ll rest for a while.”
“Okay, Nora. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Swallowing the lump in her throat that was part mortification and part pissed-off, she nodded. She hated how with one sentence Seok managed to push her right back into the role of unsure kid.
She felt Ryan’s finger at her temple, sweeping her hair back and tucking it behind her ear. He left her, wide-awake but drained, and alone with her thoughts.
Ten
Grocery Shopping
The next day began like the previous ones had, except Apollo met her as she and Ryan came out of her bedroom. He wore a wide smile and reached for her immediately, gently tugging her hand from Ryan’s arm onto his own.
“I’ve been waiting for you to wake up.”
“Is it late?” She couldn’t remember checking the time.
“Late for Apollo,” Ryan filled in.
“I have things I need to do, and I want to take you with me.” He kept his steps in line with hers.
“I don’t know…”
“She might not be ready, Apollo.”
“We’ll take it easy.” He kept his eyes on her while he spoke. “If we need to stop; we stop. If we need to come home; we come home.”
They stood in the entryway now. She could hear the other guys in the kitchen, laughing. At ease with each other. She really didn’t want to go in there and watch the mood shift.
“Right now?” she asked Apollo, who nodded so enthusiastically he had to push his glasses back in place.
“Okay. It’s a date.”
He suddenly looked so happy she giggled.
Quickly, he grabbed his keys off of the sideboard and opened the door.
“You okay with this?” she asked Ryan before following him.
He shrugged, pushing her hair behind her ear. “I don’t want you to overdo it.”
Not giving her a chance to respond, Apollo reached for her hand, pulling her a little so she was forced to step after him. “I promise she won’t, Ryan. Trust me. I’m practically a doctor.”
She laughed again, but Ryan didn’t. He got a worried crease between his eyes. Still, he stepped back from them. “I’ll see you this afternoon.” To Apollo, he asked, “Cardio?”
Walking backward, he tugged Nora with him. “We’ll be back by lunch.”
“See you later, Ryan.” She trailed in his wake. He gave her a small smile, and shut the door.
He led her to one of the many cars in the driveway, a green hatchback with a set of tires in the back. He unlocked the door for her and helped her in, pulling out the seatbelt so she didn’t have to reach back before buckling it.
“So where are we going?” she asked as he backed out of the drive.
�
��Breakfast, and then grocery shopping.”
“I saw the results of your grocery shopping yesterday.”
Apollo smiled, stopping at a four-way stop before continuing into town. “The frittata was great by the way. I loved that you used the peppers. There wasn’t much left by the time I got to it.”
Nora bit her cheek, remembering the awkwardness making dinner caused. “I’m glad you liked it.”
He reached across the back of the seat to cup her neck in his hand. It was warm, and the way he rested it there eased her tension.
“Mat told me about Seok.”
“Yeah. I overstepped.” She cracked her knuckles.
“No.” His voice was hard, reminding her of Ryan’s the night before. “You did nothing wrong. Ryan and I had a chat with Seok and I wouldn’t be surprised if he apologized today. He saw he was out of line.”
She swallowed a groan. “You didn’t have to do that.”
Idling at the stoplight, he glanced at her. “Yeah, I did. It’s not anything we haven’t done for each other a thousand times before.”
If Apollo and Ryan had already spoken to Seok, either he would reflect on how he felt about her, or he’d come to resent her more. She didn’t know what to say, but thankfully, he didn’t push for her to talk.
The restaurant where they stopped was one Nora recognized, but had never been. Two surfboards framed the doorway with another repurposed as an outdoor seating area.
Apollo helped her out of the car. “You got it?” he asked. He held onto her until she nodded and then stepped away.
The surf theme continued into the restaurant. Pictures of surfers decorated the walls, and a large, salt-water fish tank served as the backdrop to a sideboard for milk, cream, and sugar.
“Hi, Apollo.” A waitress came out of the kitchen and gave him a small hug. “Two?”
Tilting her head to the side, she studied Nora. “You look so familiar.”
Nora didn’t recognize her. “I work at the college, maybe there?”
“Maybe.” She shrugged, and grabbed two menus from the counter. “Specials are on the board.” She gestured to yet another surfboard displayed behind her and left.
Everything on the menu sounded delicious to Nora: the Kahlua dipped french toast, the Da Kine eggs Benedict, the Kahuna rancheros.
“What are you getting?” She couldn’t choose.
“The Aloha.”
She read the description. It contained almost everything else on the menu: eggs, french toast, potatoes, toast, fruit, bacon. It was a lot of food. Taking in his physique, Nora decided he burned a lot of calories. He covered his mouth with one hand, and started to laugh.
“What?”
He shook his head. “What are you thinking right now?”
“You burn a lot of calories to look like you.”
He laughed out loud, making some of the other diners turn their heads.
“What?” She chuckled even though she didn’t get the joke.
“It’s fine.” He waved away her question, and changed the subject. “What are you getting?”
She let him and went back to the menu. “The Mahalo breakfast sandwich.”
A second later the waitress arrived again. “Coffee?”
“I think we’re ready to order,” Apollo answered. He ordered for both of them, but instead of coffee, he ordered Nora a frappe. “It has coffee, but Giselle adds caramel and whipped cream.”
Her eyes glazed over. “Sounds perfect.” After a moment of coffee-fueled fantasy, she asked Apollo, “What do you need at the grocery store?”
Reaching into his back pocket for his phone, he found his list. “A bunch of specific stuff for dinner, and then the usual: cereal, eggs, milk.”
“Do you always do the grocery shopping?”
“It depends. Sometimes Seok will go to the Asian market when he’s cooking dinner.” Apollo smiled. “The dude can cook.
“I’m sorry…”she began again, but he stopped her.
“That better not be an apology for yesterday. I thought we already worked this out—” He cut off quickly when Giselle put their coffees/desserts in front of them. She forgot about everything as soon as she took a sip.
“Like it?”
Unwilling to remove the straw from her lips, she nodded.
The conversation flowed easily, but it didn’t take long for their breakfast to be delivered. “Thank you,” she told Giselle. The waitress smiled at her, but it was a lot less natural, and she didn’t linger at the table. Entirely focused on his bacon, Nora couldn’t check with Apollo about her impressions.
With their mouths full, they finished the meal in silence. She’d almost forgotten about Giselle until the bill was dropped on the table. Instead of the waitress, it was a man wearing his hair back in a tiny bun.
“Hi, Cliff.” Apparently Apollo knew everyone at the restaurant.
“Hey.” The man stood there a moment longer and the mood shifted uncomfortably.
Apollo studied the bill before taking cash out of his wallet. “What’s up?” His tone was nonchalant, but he drew his brows together.
“Giselle’s brother goes to Twilight. She recognized your friend.”
Frowning, Apollo nodded. “Nora works there.”
“She does more than work there, man. What is she doing here?”
Apollo stood, blocking Cliff with his body so the man had to take a step back. "What the hell do you mean?”
“Her picture is all over the news.” Cliff crossed his arms as if he was willing himself to stay in place.
“She didn’t have anything to do with that. Nora was shot four times.” Placing a hand on her back, he guided her to the door.
He followed them. “Doesn’t matter. I don’t want her back here, Apollo.” His voice was low, but in her mortified mind, he used a bullhorn to make his pronouncement.
Ignoring the discomfort in her side, she reached back to hold Apollo’s hand tightly. The last thing she wanted was for him to lose a friend on her account. “Let’s just go.”
Features tight and angry, he only nodded. After helping her to the car, he slammed the door shut. Each of his movements were rough; he threw himself back in the seat, shoved the car into drive, and squeezed the steering wheel so hard the leather creaked.
And the entire time, he was silent, and Nora’s heart was in her throat. When she went over the events in her mind, they took on different proportions. Cliff yelled; everyone stared at her; Apollo was embarrassed.
She braced herself for his blame. It was her fault. She never warned him the police suspected her of involvement in the high school shooting.
“They’re idiots,” Apollo began, shocking her. “No. They’re worse than idiots. They’re judgmental dicks. I’m sorry I took you there. If I had known it was how our breakfast date would end, I’d never have gone there.”
“I didn’t… Did Ryan tell you?” It would be worse, somehow, if he felt compelled to defend her without really knowing she was innocent.
“He did. I know you didn’t have anything to do with what happened.”
“Did he tell you about my foster brother?”
He reached out quickly and took her hand in his before shaking his head. “I…No. I’m sorry, Nora. Is he the one who shot you?”
“I think so. I mean… I assume it was him. Who else would it have been?”
“The police?”
She never considered the rescuing officers shot her. “Wouldn’t they have told me?”
“Maybe, maybe not. It would be pretty bad if the cops shot a bystander.”
“I don’t know,” she allowed. “I saw him; he saw me, and then I was shot.”
He was silent, watching the people go in and out of the store.
“Do you want to take me back?”
“No! Unless you’re not feeling well.”
“I’m okay. I can walk some more.”
His slight smile buoyed her. “Okay, then. Good. I’m not done with our date.”
***
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Apollo shopped like a frenetic ping-pong. He didn’t start on one side of the store and then go up and down aisles. He free-styled. First, it was cereal. He picked box after box and tossed it in the cart. Then he went to the ethnic food aisle, grabbing fish sauce and curry, spaghetti and canned tomatoes.
“Is this on the list?” She combined the items in her head to make out what dishes they were for, but she had no idea.
“Oh gosh, the list.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “This is more of a guide than a prescription,” he finally said after perusing it.
She giggled, and he smiled at her. Happy, she trailed along with him, one hand on the cart to help her in case she felt weak.
After stopping at the deli to order meats and cheeses, he looped his arm around her. “How are you doing?”
“I feel good. I’m not going to keel over.”
“I’m almost done. Do you want anything?”
“I’m fine. If you have bread, I have a meal.”
“Let’s go to the bakery and get good bread, then.”
She nodded excitedly, thinking about crusty bread and butter, or crusty bread and cheese. Beelining for the bread, she left Apollo the deli.
“Miss Leslie?”
It was Chloe Hamilton, the girl who’d been sitting next to Pete on the day of the shooting.
“Are you all right?” She studied the girl for injuries.
Chloe nodded before saying quietly, “Peter died.”
Her legs wobbled. “I thought he got out.”
“He came back.” Chloe bit her lip. “I think he was checking on us.” Her eyes filled with tears and they began to trail down her cheeks. “I…I was with him.”
Throwing herself into Nora’s arms, Chloe cried noisily on her shoulder. She rubbed the girl’s back, attempting to comfort her, and stay upright at the same time.
“You didn’t have anything to do with it, did you?”
At a loss, she could only shake her head.
“I didn’t think so. You were as scared as me, but everyone is saying you did…”
“Chloe!” Hurrying toward them was an older woman who must have been Chloe’s mom. “Are you okay? What happened?”
Finding Honor (The Searchers Book 1) Page 7