"Eat." Another one-word command from the master general, and my eyes shoot up to find the clear glass of his. He holds my gaze and slides scrambled eggs and toast in front of me.
"You're bossy," I say, but pick up my fork anyway. Like the coffee, breakfast is delicious.
"Why baking, Piper? Why Lilyfalls? Why Justin?"
I stop chewing, startled by the deep concentration of his gaze on my face. "You're also inquisitive," I mumble through a mouthful.
"It's in my nature and makes me good at what I do. One mistake and people die."
His words sink like an arrow into my heart-his, too, if the faint flutter of his lashes is any indication. He sighs and rounds the island with his coffee, pulling the second stool over so he's close enough for our arms to touch. I dive into my toast for something to do, anything to ignore the sparking knowledge that a half-naked, seriously cute guy is in my kitchen, sitting next to me as I eat his eggs. My compass is off track, and I'm headed in a weird direction.
Caden bumps my shoulder. "Yesterday, you said you were pissed at the world. Give me some of your universal truths. Why Lilyfalls, Piper?"
I swallow toast and my nerves. He's just a friend. I've been alone and without male company for too long. Dax doesn't count because he's a goofball and attached to my Lilyfalls best friend.
I clear my throat and spill my life story. "I have a MBA, and I hated every second of every class I took to capture that damn piece of paper. My parents wanted it; I didn't. My whole life I followed their path when I wanted to create, breathe life into the world through art. Painting was my passion. I'd sneak classes in as my electives. I loved it. When I graduated, my mom insisted I go home and marry Morgan Lockman and if I didn't, I'd lose my million-dollar trust fund." I shrug and turn to find Caden's hand resting on his unpainted bicep, his chin resting on top of that with his turquoise eyes trained on me.
"I was tired of living for them. So I declined their crazy scheme to meld my dad's business with Lockman's through marriage and started driving. Stevens Lockman would've been the biggest manufacturer in the U.S., and my parents wanted me to make it happen. At that moment, I hated them. San Francisco wasn't big enough to find separation so I kept going until I found a place I liked. And I liked Lilyfalls." I smile at the memory. "I stayed in the motel on the highway for a few weeks, and then I found this place. You and Justin came home a month after I moved in and that's it. I liked him, he liked my ass. History was made."
"Why don't you paint, if that's what you love?"
I prop up my cheek with my hand. "Because it's too expensive. Canvases aren't cheap, and oils aren't either. One day, though. I have a whole lifetime to make beautiful pictures. Until then, I'll use my creative genius to plump up the backsides of Lilyfalls' residents." He laughs as I ask, "What about you? Why the military?"
"A lot of reasons, I guess. Opportunity, drive-the thought of sitting behind a desk repulsed me. I love my country and what it stands for, helping the underdog, making a mark in the way I know how. Getting Justin out of Dodge because he needed to leave, and this gave us a direction."
My heart sinks because I heard what I think was a watered-down version from the source months ago. "Was it bad?"
Caden's breath puffs out. "As bad as an abusive situation can get. His father whipped the shit out of him the night we graduated, for some asinine reason I can't remember now. Justin was a big guy, but Mr. Weber was bigger and meaner, and when he drank he took out his frustration on his son. Justin started on alcohol, which we all did, so I didn't say too much. But it led to pot, and then some other stuff that messed with his head something good. At that point I intervened, and twelve hours later we had enlisted."
One decision, one moment that altered the course of many. "Parents are real fuck-ups," I say, rubbing my stomach at the same time.
"Were yours?"
I smirk and stare at my eggs. "They didn't beat me; they ignored me. On top of being a mistake, I'm different. Pink hair, piercings, 80s pop-rock. I . . ."
"Hold up. Piercings?"
"A few."
"Okay, ears, bellybutton-are we talking body piercings?"
I huff out a breath. "Do you want to hear the rest?"
He sips his coffee, his eyes on mine the whole time. But he nods for me to continue.
"I hated my parents' money and the false security of social status. Their answer to my rebellion-ship me off to boarding school. That's where I met my best friend, Maisie. She's the only person who really understands me, besides Justin, and he was short-term. A bright flash and gone."