Once Upon A Half-Time 1(33)
“But I know you like chicken.”
“No, I don’t.”
“I’ve watched you eat it for Mom.”
“Na-uh.”
“Yes-huh. You’re in the lava.”
Lachlan edged back onto the rug. I hopped from the counter and played along, dropping a paper towel to the floor so I could poke through the pantry without getting lava’d.
For a man who hired a private chef, he had a ton of pre-packaged food. Unfortunately, it was the same junk found in a college dorm, and it should have stayed there. I tossed Lachlan a blue box guaranteed to please a kid. He thunked it on the island.
“Here,” he said. “What about mac and cheese?”
Sebastian shook his head. “Nope.”
“Why not?”
“It’s yucky.”
Lachlan stared at the box. “It’s cheese and butter. How can that be yucky?”
“It’s orange.”
I bit back a laugh. The kid was lucky he was cute or he would have starved to death by now.
Lachlan tapped his fingers on the counter. “You don’t eat orange foods now?”
“Nope.”
“Little man, I watched you eat an actual orange. Yesterday.”
His little shoulders shrugged up to his ears, but he didn’t bring them back down. “That’s different.”
“So you won’t eat mac and cheese?”
Sebastian didn’t seem as distressed as his brother. “Can I play on your phone?”
“Let’s feed you first.”
Now he groaned. “But I’m bored.”
Lachlan returned to the fridge. “And I’m hungry. But I don’t have much. I’m cutting now, not eating carbs or sugar.”
Ew. I scrunched my nose. “Sounds like a boring dinner date.”
“For you, I’d cheat.” He winked. “Besides, you’d help me work off the calories after dinner. Couple special exercises.”
Sebastian tilted his head. “What kind of exercises?”
“Yeah, Lachlan,” I said. “How did you plan to exercise?”
“A vigorous game of tag.” He pointed at me. “And I’d be chasing you. A lot.”
“Sure I couldn’t outrun you?”
“I’d love to try.”
“I’ll play tag!” Sebastian slapped Lachlan’s arm. “You’re—”
He caught the rug-rat before he bolted out of the kitchen. Sebastian groaned, but Lachlan plunked his butt on the stool.
“Want a salad?” Lachlan asked.
“No.”
“Why? It’s good for you. Lots of vegetables.”
Sebastian faked gagging, cupping his throat. “I don’t like veggietables.”
“That’s crazy, little man. You gotta eat your veggies.”
“Why?”
“So you can grow up big and strong.”
“Why?”
“So you can play football one day.”
Sebastian’s toothy grin matched Lachlan’s. “Why?”
“So you can make lots of money and be a tight-end like me.”
“Why?”
Oh, this could go on all night. “Show him your muscles, Charming. That’ll convince him.”
Lachlan nudged Sebastian. “She wants to see how strong we are. Show her your muscles.”
They both grunted, flexing their arms and curling their biceps with a roar.
“Very impressive,” I said.
“I got nothing on the little man.” Lachlan pointed at the kid. “How about spaghetti?”
“Yeah!” Sebastian forgot himself and actually agreed, though he was careful to warn his brother of his preferences. “But not the stuff from a jar.”
“What?”
“The sauce from the jar. It smells like Uncle Bowie.”
I hid my smirk. “And what does Uncle Bowie smell like?”
“Bad,” Sebastian said. “Like Lachlan’s stinky feet!”
Lachlan sighed. “It’s true. Genetic condition.”
“Your feet or Uncle Bowie’s smell?”
“Wanna give me a foot rub and find out?”
“After you make us spaghetti so we don’t die of hunger.”
Lachlan shrugged. “With what? All I have is a jar of the smelly feet sauce. What about a grilled cheese, Bast?”
“I want spaghetti.”
“Of course you do.” He looked at me. “Do you know how to make spaghetti?”
“Uh…” I checked my phone, typing in a generic search for any homemade marinara sauce. “Maybe we can fake it.”
“Let’s get this straight right now,” Lachlan said. “No woman has ever faked anything with me.”
“A bold claim.”
“Help me make the spaghetti, and I’ll prove it.”