SASHA’S POV
The morning light peeked through the blinds, warming my cheeks as I blinked my eyes open.
The space beside me was empty, the sheets cool where Sebastian had been, and the hollow feeling that crept over me was instant.
I closed my eyes and pressed my head deeper into the pillow, half-hoping if I stayed still, I might feel him beside me again.
But the silence in the room only seemed to echo back my disappointment. After all that we’d been through, I thought, he’d just gone without a word.
It hurt, especially after how he’d made me feel so cherished yesterday. I wanted him to be here, just this once, so we could wake up in each other’s arms and let the world wait.
But then I noticed something, an unmistakable smell filtering through the door, something warm and rich. Coffee, bacon, a hint of vanilla.
My disappointment turned to curiosity, and I pushed myself up, pulling his t-shirt, one of my favourite things to sleep in closer around me as I moved toward the source of the aroma.
The scent was stronger in the hallway, and as I stepped closer to the kitchen, a small smile began to tug at my lips.
There, just a few feet away, Sebastian stood with his back to me, his shoulders strong and relaxed, an apron tied over his shirt, looking completely at ease in a way that I hadn’t seen before.
I stopped in the doorway, just watching him. There was something so endearing about the way he moved, his hands carefully flipping pancakes, his gaze focused on the task as if he were handling something precious and fragile.
I’d never imagined him like this, so… domestic. It was a side of him I didn’t know existed, and it made me feel like I was glimpsing a part of his life he didn’t share with just anyone.
Before I could second-guess myself, I crossed the kitchen and slipped my arms around his waist, resting my cheek against his back.
I felt him stiffen slightly under my touch, but he didn’t pull away. Instead, he placed the spatula down slowly, then leaned back into me, relaxing as my hold tightened around him.
“I thought you’d left me alone,” I murmured, my voice muffled against his shirt. The words came out softer than I’d intended, but the vulnerability in them was real.
He chuckled quietly, the sound vibrating through his chest. “Leave you alone?” he repeated, turning around to face me, his arms circling my waist.
“I’d never leave the woman I love first thing in the morning without saying goodbye. Where did you get that idea?”
I looked away, feeling slightly foolish. “It was just… waking up and not seeing you there. After yesterday, I thought…”
He tilted my chin up, his thumb tracing over my cheek. “Hey,” he said softly, his gaze intense.
“I’m right here. I wouldn’t dream of going anywhere without you seeing me off.” His voice held a tenderness that made my heart skip a beat.
He leaned down, brushing a soft kiss against my forehead, his lips lingering there as if he needed the touch as much as I did. When he pulled back, his gaze softened, and a playful smile tugged at his lips.
“Now, are you going to let me get back to cooking, or are you planning to distract me all morning?”
I laughed, stepping back but still close enough to feel the warmth of him. “I guess I could give you a break. This smells amazing, by the way. I didn’t know you could cook.”
“There are a lot of things you don’t know about me yet, Sasha,” he teased, reaching over to grab a plate and piling on a stack of pancakes.
He gestured to the table with a small nod. “Go sit down. Breakfast is almost ready.”
I moved to the table, watching him from my seat as he finished up, pouring coffee into two mugs and setting a plate of fluffy pancakes in front of me.
As he took his seat across from me, he reached over to slide the syrup closer, an easy smile on his face that felt so different from the guarded man I’d come to know.
It was like he’d let his guard down just a little, and I found myself wanting to see even more of this side of him.
We started eating, and somehow, conversation flowed easily between bites. It started with little things,
him asking me how I liked my coffee, me asking him what his favourite breakfast was, neither of us overthinking it.
It was like we’d known each other for years, as if we were sharing a morning together like any other couple.
“Do you always do this?” I asked, lifting my fork with a bite of pancake halfway to my mouth. “Make breakfast for… someone?”
He raised a brow, a hint of amusement in his gaze. “Only for special occasions.” He leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice. “And only for special people.”
I rolled my eyes, though I could feel the heat rise in my cheeks. “Smooth, Sebastian. Very smooth.”
He chuckled, taking a sip of his coffee. “I will try. It’s good to see you smile like that.” His voice softened, the teasing dropping away as he looked at me with a sincerity that left me speechless.
The warmth of his gaze made me look down, focusing on my plate as I tried to gather my thoughts.
“I just… I guess I never thought we’d get to a place like this. Everything with you always feels so intense. I didn’t know you could be… I don’t know… light.”
“Are you saying I’m too serious?” he asked, mock-offended, his eyes glinting with mischief.
“Maybe just a little,” I replied, laughing. “But I don’t mind it. I think… I think it’s why I trust you.”
His expression shifted, growing more thoughtful. “Trust isn’t easy. Not for people like us. You know that as well as I do.”
I nodded, my heart tightening at the truth in his words. “It’s just… when I’m with you like this, it makes me feel like maybe things don’t have to be so complicated all the time.”
He reached across the table, taking my hand in his, his thumb tracing small circles against my skin. “It doesn’t, Sasha. I don’t want it to be complicated. Not with you.”
The simplicity of his words, the way he said them with such quiet confidence, made my heart feel both heavy and light at once.
There was something so grounding about the way he looked at me, as if he truly meant it.
We fell into an easy silence, just holding each other’s gaze. There was a peace in it, a kind of understanding that didn’t need words. It was then that I realised just how far we’d come,
how he’d gone from being this mysterious, unreachable man to someone I could actually imagine a future with.
After a while, he broke the silence with a small smile. “I’d say we make a pretty good team in the kitchen.”
I chuckled, squeezing his hand before letting it go. “I don’t know. I haven’t tasted your cooking skills in action yet. Pancakes are the easy part.”
“Oh, is that so?” he replied, feigning offence. “Alright, Sasha, challenge accepted. Next time, I’ll make you something more… complex.”
I smirked, leaning back in my chair as I raised a brow. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
He laughed, shaking his head. “You’re impossible.”
“And you love it,” I shot back, grinning.
His gaze softened, and for a moment, he just looked at me, his eyes warm and unwavering. “Yeah,” he said quietly. “Yeah, I do.”
Hearing those words made my heart skip a beat, and I felt that familiar warmth settle over me again.
This was it, I realised. This was what I’d been searching for with him all along this connection,
this ease. I’d found it in the simplest of moments, over breakfast and laughter, with the man who was finally letting me in.