A Perfect Fluke

Three

Despite being curt with me during dinner, Liam seemed nice. I learned that he was a veterinarian, and he used to breed miniature donkeys a while ago, that's why there was a barn. Now, he owned a small clinic in town.

One thing was clear, he was a devoted father. When I left my room before dinner, I saw them playing soccer in the garden. I supposed he was trying to make his son feel better after the rough days they'd both been through.

I didn't want to impose, so I woke up at dawn to cook for them. I felt like I needed to do something. The house felt eerie as I walked through it.

However, the kitchen felt homely. There weren't any appliances on sight, other than the coffee machine to my left, but there was a fruit bowl on the counter with brown-spotted bananas. They were perfect for homemade banana bread. If only I can find the rest of the ingredients.

I didn't venture to search through the cabinets, but I did find milk and eggs on the fridge, so I made my favorite vegan, gluten-free pancakes.

The pan was sizzling as I was about to finish the last batch. While they cooked, I started to wash the dishes I used to prepare everything. Big mistake.

When I opened the faucet, nothing came out, so I unscrewed the spout to clean it. I tried to place it back in, but it didn't screw. Cursing, I tried it again, but it didn't fit correctly. I turned on the faucet to try it again and the water streamed out from the edges making a mess. To make things worse, I scrunched up my nose from the burnt smell.

I forgot the stupid pancakes over the stove.

"Shit!" Smoke filled the room. I opened the window, praying that the smoke alarm wouldn't go off when I heard loud steps coming closer.

"What's going on?" Liam's rough tone of voice loomed from behind me. My cheeks felt hot while my pulse raced.

"I tried to make breakfast. Key word on tried." I glanced at the burnt pan. "I also tried to wash the dishes but something is wrong with the faucet." Liam's lips twitched as he pressed his lips together, trying to suppress a smile, making me blush even more. He was already dressed in jeans and a red plaid shirt. "I'm really sorry."

"Pancakes?" He grabbed one from the pile and bit on it. He started to chew, but then slowed down, looking at the pancake with a frown.

I bit my lip. Shit. "Vegan pancakes." I shouldn't have made them. Eggs would have been a better choice.

He nodded before swallowing. He left the unfinished pancake on the rim of the plate. "Right. I remember about the blog thing. Let's see what happened with the faucet, then."

I creased my brows as he studied the faucet. Why would he know about my blog?

"Looks like you broke the aerator."

"The what?" I asked as I rubbed the back of my neck.

He unscrewed the little lid from the spout and showed it to me. "This."

Noah appeared by the kitchen door, rubbing a palm across his face. His spiky hair was even spikier right now, and he was rocking his Bob Sponge Pj's. "Dad? What's that smell?"

My shoulders sagged. "I burned our breakfast," I grabbed the plate with the pancakes and threw them in the trash. "I also broke something there," I gestured to the thing Liam had in his hands.

"How about we go to Rosie's?" Liam gazed at his son with a smile, before glancing at me.

My whole body went still. His smile wasn't lopsided like Caiden's, but he had dimples. Dimples. My lips parted, and I averted my eyes as I looked down. The floor was splashed with water all over the place. Oh for God's Sake.

"Yes Daddy, yes! I want blueberry waffles like last time!" Noah was jumping up and down quite alert now.

"Go change, Noah. Ella and I will clean up here."

I grinned at the little boy before he ran away to get ready. My smile faded as he disappeared. "I'm so, so sorry." I grimaced at the mess I managed to make. "I can clean up by myself."

"I'm just making sure my kitchen survives around you." His tone was lighter than the night before. It was as if he was teasing me, which was improbable, but I was thankful that the one-word conversations were over. At least for now.

He walked to the closet and took out a mop and a garbage bag. "I'll mop and you can throw the pan here."

Sighing, I grabbed the garbage bag. "How do you know I blog?"

He snorted. "Caiden wouldn't shut up about it."

I stood still for a moment, forgetting my task at hand and turned to him. "What?" I had no idea that Caiden followed my blog. I started it after him.

Liam's caramel eyes locked on me. "You were his favorite topic. He talked about you all the time."

Touching my throat, I opened my mouth and closed it. I opened it a second time. "Me?"

Liam studied me for a moment. He furrowed his brows, and turned back to mop the floor. "Yes, you."

I was about to ask why when Noah showed up with the black furry beast behind him too. Out of instinct, I moved closer to Liam, who was almost finished moping. He suppressed a smile again.

"Ready?" he asked to his son. Noah nodded. "Let's go."