Starfire (Grim Gate 2)

“You’re too good to me.” I stretch and sit up, keeping the blankets pulled over my naked body. Ethan gets back into bed, slipping under the covers. The material of his sweatpants is cold against my skin, having come in from outside. He kisses my neck, and a rush goes through me, thinking back to last night.

“That’s not possible.”

I pick up my coffee and take a small sip. “I bet you have breakfast ready too.”

“I might have put cinnamon rolls in the oven, but they were from a can. Didn’t require too much effort.”

“Still, though. Thank you.” I take another drink of coffee and set the mug back on the nightstand so I can cuddle with Ethan, resting my head on his chest. “I slept well last night. I didn’t even hear my alarm go off this morning.”

“I did wear you out.”

My lips curve into a smile just thinking about it. “It was quite a workout.”

“Speaking of, do you want to go to the gym with me today?”

“Uhh,” I start and Ethan laughs at the look on my face. “I think you’ll murder me. Literally. Or I’ll drop a weight on myself or something.”

“You’re in better shape than you give yourself credit for.”

“I know,” I say, still occasionally struggling with body image. Overall, I eat healthily, but I’m not one to diet. I have it in my head that I’m not in good shape unless I look like an Instagram fitness model, which isn’t true, I know. “I’ll go. When are we going?”

“An hour or so after we eat.”

“Can we just have sex again and call it a cardio workout?”

“I can live with that.” He grins and kisses me but only a second later, the timer on the oven goes off. I take my time getting out of bed, putting on pajama pants and another one of Ethan’s sweatshirts. Taking my phone and coffee with me, I go down the back staircase and into the kitchen.

Two plates are already at the island counter, and I join Ethan, digging into my cinnamon roll. My phone vibrates with a text, and I gasp when I see who sent me the message.

“It’s Rene!” I trade my fork for the phone and read her text.

Rene: Hey, Anora! Want to grab dinner and drinks this evening?

Me: Sure, sounds fun!

Rene: Great!! I have to be at the store around 7:30 to do inventory, so we’ll have to be lame and eat at like 5 LOL is that okay?

Me: Haha yeah, I’m good with that.

Rene: Yay! Do you like Mexican? There’s a restaurant by the university that has the best veggie tacos and cheap margaritas.

Me: Two of my favorite things. What’s the address?

She sends me a pin of the location and I set my phone down, smiling.

“You’re cute when you make friends,” Ethan says, playfully nudging me. “And you were worried she’d flake out and not follow through with dinner plans.”

“It’s one of my charming personality traits: to assume I annoy everyone and they’re just saying they want to hang out to be nice.”

“I mean, that’s all I’m doing. You do have nice tits at least.”

“They’re not the biggest but they are perky.” I look down at myself, unable to see much of my figure through the oversized sweatshirt. “I’ll leave here around four-fifteen-ish. She owns a clothing store with her sister and is doing inventory this evening. I’ll be home before eight.”

“Sounds like a crazy night.”

“Hah, right?”

“You’ll have fun.” He gets up and puts another roll on his plate.

“I hope so. She has a boyfriend. Maybe we could double date sometime.”

“Maybe. You know I like showing you off.” He flashes a grin and comes back to the counter. It’s another freezing cold day, and after we get the kitchen cleaned up, we end up lighting a fire in the library fireplace and snuggle up together on the couch. Well over an hour later, we go to the gym. It’s crowded with “New Year’s Resolution people,” according to Ethan. I feel awkward and self-conscious at first when I start on the machines. It doesn’t take me long to realize no one cares what I’m doing and if anyone is staring, they’re checking out Ethan. He is in incredible shape.

We shower together once we get back to the house, and I make it a whole twenty minutes in the attic before I’m too cold. I didn’t come out empty handed this time at least, having found an old photo album. The photos were taken before I was born of Aunt Estelle and Nana, her sister, on vacation at some sort of lake house. My mom and uncle Noah were little kids, and some man who wasn’t my grandpa is there with them. Maybe he was Aunt Estelle’s boyfriend?

I have no way of identifying him. Though, if he was the same age as Aunt Estelle, there’s a good chance he’s dead too. I slide the photos in between two books on the shelf in the library and busy myself the rest of the day with house and barn chores until it’s time to get ready to go back into Paradise Valley.