Page 41 of Scoring Chance

I go to the cupboard above the counter for some more salt. I glimpse into Lena’s backpack, and my eye gets caught on something. Under her notebook, I spot what I’m pretty sure is a vaping pen sticking out. I’ve walked past my coworkers vaping in parking lots enough times to know what a pen looks like.

Tanner comes downstairs—hair sleep-mussed, morning stubble on his cheeks—distracting me from my snooping. Morning stubble looks good on him.

He blinks at the scene in front of him. “What…happened here?”

“I’m a domestic god,” I say, handing him a cup of coffee like a man who had just discovered fire.

“Clearly.” Tanner laughs. “You made them omelets?”

“We were running low on Pop Tarts.”

“Those look amazing. I didn’t know you could cook.”

“Neither did I. But your kids were hungry. I’ll make you one, too.”

“You don’t have to.” He takes a sip of coffee. He turns from the coffeemaker, landing flush against me. Our faces are dangerously close, enough to smell the ocean-scented shampoo that was on my pillow last night.

“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” I shoot him a wink. “You need your energy.”

He grins, and I feel something warm bloom in my chest. Approval. From Tanner. It means more than I expected.

He takes a seat beside Lulu, who immediately leans into his side. As Dean and Davy argue about which Pokémon was strongest and Tanner pours milk for Lulu—I lean back against the counter, sipping my coffee.

I hadn’t expected to enjoy this. It was like being dropped into a movie I never auditioned for. Loud and strange and sweet.

Someone knocks at the door, breaking me out of this spell.

“That must be Matthias,” Tanner says. Lena goes to meet this mysterious Matthias.

“What do we know about this guy?” I whisper to Tanner as I hand Dean his omelet. “Okay Lulu. You’re next!”

A moment later, Lena and Matthias join us in the kitchen. She grabs her backpack. Matthias is tall, skinny, with the mophead hairstyle all the young guys are wearing that I absolutely hate but totally would’ve had. He wears a navy sweater vest over a blue button down shirt and clean pair of jeans, looking somewhere between a normal kid and a missionary.

He is the very definition of clean-cut. I eye him suspiciously.

“Good morning, Mr. Chance.” Matthias shakes Tanner’s hand. “Hey guys!” He waves to the other kids.

“Matthias! Great to see you.” Tanner claps him on the back.

“How’s your morning treating you?” Matthias asks. He takes the coffee pot and refills Tanner’s mug.

He’s polite and certainly more gregarious than most teens.

“Off to a late start, but we have omelets,” Tanner says.

“I love omelets!” Matthias says with strong conviction. “The tomatoes are starting to come up in my garden. I’ll have to bring some over next time.”

“Please do. I wish I had time to garden,” Tanner says wistfully.

I do another brilliant fold and slide Lulu’s omelet onto a plate.

“I’m making omelets,” I tell him. I hold out my hand for a shake. “I’m their Uncle Des. I’ll be staying here for a little bit. Matthias, was it?”

“Uncle Des, it’s great to meet you!”

I shake his hand firmly. He doesn’t wince. Being close to him, I get a whiff of his very strong cologne. I forgot how insecure young men are about BO.

“How long have you two been dating?”