Contracted To You-Chapter 65: Sunlight and Cinnamon

Ezra woke first.

The golden light of dawn poured through the half-open curtains, casting soft stripes across her sleeping face. Her hair was tousled, strands clinging to her cheek, and she appeared completely peaceful.

He remained still, studying her. The slope of her nose, the curve of her lips—all of it captivated him. Last night replayed vividly in his mind—her laughter under the stars, the way her fingers brushed his when she passed him a grape, the surprise and delight on her face when he kissed her mid-sentence.

"Stop staring," she mumbled sleepily, eyes still shut.

He chuckled softly, his voice low but firm. "Can’t help it."

Evie cracked one eye open and blinked. "Is this what being your girlfriend means? You wake up and just loom over me like some Greek statue?"

Ezra smirked. "Greek statue? I’ll take that as a compliment."

"Annoying," she corrected, turning to bury her face in the pillow.

"Nope," he said, leaning down to brush his lips against her bare shoulder. "You’re stuck with me now."

She let out a soft groan but didn’t pull away. "What time is it?"

"Early. But I was thinking... cinnamon pancakes and coffee. Then we can lounge around and pretend we don’t have responsibilities."

She peeked at him, intrigued. "You’re going to cook?"

"For you, I’ll do anything." His words made her heart race. Who knew he could be this romantic?

He gently took her hand and kissed the back of it, locking eyes with her to remind her of yesterday.

Evie smiled back, drawn to his gentle nature and sweetness.

"Alright," he concluded, standing up. She sighed internally, wishing he could stay just a little longer, but she wouldn’t ask him to.

"Meet me downstairs for breakfast," he murmured before leaving the room. And Evie nodded in agreement.

Once alone, Evie lingered in bed before tossing off the duvet. Sitting up, she yawned and swung her feet to the floor, heading toward the bathroom.

Staring at herself in the mirror, a smile broke across her face. Everything was aligning perfectly; and she wasn’t going to let anything or anyone come between her and Ezra again.

Now she was his official girlfriend, and she still couldn’t quite believe it.

"Yes, I’m his girlfriend," she affirmed to herself, grounding herself to that reality.

She spotted the cup for their toothbrushes. Ezra had combined their brushes into one cup, it was unlike before where they had separate cups. All her belongings were in the same place as his, and her towel was neatly arranged. She couldn’t help but smile at the thought.

In no time, Evie finished brushing her teeth and washing her face before stepping out of the bathroom.

She contemplated her outfit, then confidently strode to his cupboard and retrieved a white shirt. It wasn’t that she didn’t have her own clothes, but wearing Ezra’s had always been a fantasy of hers—and now she was living it.

Her hair cascaded down her back as she descended the staircase.

Evie entered the kitchen barefoot, enveloped in Ezra’s oversized white shirt, the sleeves engulfing her hands.

The mansion exuded a calm stillness, only interrupted by the rich aroma of brewed coffee mixed with the enticing scent of something sweet sizzling on the gas.

Ezra stood at the counter, clad in joggers and a black tee with the sleeves rolled up, flipping pancakes with an expert hand. His dark hair was tousled in that effortlessly appealing way, and he looked—unreasonably—handsome.

Leaning against the doorway with her arms crossed, Evie observed him in silence until Ezra’s gaze shifted toward her as if he could sense her watching.

He paused for a moment, his eyes sweeping over her, and Evie felt the heat rise to her cheeks under his intense look. "You’re going to burn it," she teased, her voice light, reminding him of the pancake on the fire.

Ezra redirected his focus to the pancake cooking before him. "Great choice of outfit," he smirked, clearly appreciating how well she pulled off his clothes.

In that moment, he couldn’t help but think — she should have everything.

If anyone had suggested that a woman would end up wearing Ezra’s shirt, he would have dismissed it with a glare or a bemused laugh, but here was Evie, claiming it for herself, and he felt a sense of pride that she wore it so comfortably.

Evie grinned at him. "I know, right?" she quipped as she approached, her eyes taking in his progress on the pancakes. She couldn’t suppress her broad smile; he was mastering pancake-making even better than she had taught him.

But cooking without a touch of fun in the kitchen? That was unthinkable.

"What can I do to help?" she asked, her gaze sweeping across the kitchen until it landed on the flour, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Yeah, you can go sit while I handle this," Ezra replied smoothly, as she would have guessed.

Evie didn’t leave as told. She just stood there, her gaze directed to him and watching his now serious expression.

"You’re always looking so serious," Evie muttered under her breath as she reached for the flour behind her back.

"No, I don’t," Ezra replied, glancing at her.

And immediately he did, she blew flour into his face.

He blinked, his face covered in white cloud, and watched as she burst into laughter.

He covered his mouth, coughing.

Casting her a mock look of annoyance, he said, "You’re lucky I like you."

"You love me," she corrected confidently.

"Debatable," Ezra replied, playing along.

"You said it last night," Evie teased as she took the mug he handed her. "Don’t make me pull out the voice notes," she added with a smirk.

"That was the rooftop wine talking," Ezra said as they made their way to the dining table. He settled close to her, wanting to feed her pancakes while she accepted each bite happily like a baby. He enjoyed pampering her, and she was going to savor it.

In the midst of their pancake feast, Ezra suddenly asked, "Do you want us to visit your mom?"

Evie almost choked on her pancake. "Huh?" she responded, narrowing her eyes.

Visit her mother?

Did he really intend to take things further?

They were only a day and a few hours into their real relationship.

Ezra’s expression turned serious. "I overheard you calling her name in your sleep last night. I thought you must really miss her."

"Oh," Evie thought, understanding. He just wanted to arrange a visit. "Yeah, sure..." she said, trailing off and furrowing her brows.

"What date works for you?" Ezra asked.

"Anytime is fine," she replied, and he nodded in understanding. His hand slipped around her waist, sending her heart racing. She realized how close he was and felt his touch against her skin. "What were you thinking earlier?" he asked, curiosity evident in his tone.

"What?" Evie replied, feigning ignorance.

His gaze sharpened. "You didn’t think I wanted to propose marriage in front of her, did you?" His words caught her off guard.

"No, no," she laughed, still caught in the moment.

"Not a bad idea, Evie..." Ezra began, but she cut him off.

She picked a pancake from the plate and popped it into his mouth to silence him. "Just shut up, Ezra," her voice playful.

He chewed, protesting, "I’m supposed to be feeding you."

"I can’t let you be the only one pampering me. You deserve some pampering too," Evie smiled sweetly, offering him another piece of pancake. He hesitated but then surrendered to her charm and ate.

***

"So, you’re back with Ezra?" Ruby asked, glancing at Evie before refocusing on their game at the arcade, where Evie had filled her in on everything happening in her life.

"Yep," Evie confirmed, her fingers expertly maneuvering the controller as she fired at the on-screen enemies.

"Ooh," Ruby grinned. "Look who insisted they didn’t want anything to do with him," she teased, genuinely happy for her friend. Evie seemed content, and that’s what mattered.

"I was just..." Evie shrugged, a smile unfolding. She had her doubts then, but now she knew she’d return to Ezra no matter what.

"Hush now," Ruby interrupted as the game ended, Evie scoring higher than her.

"What about you and Shane? Haven’t you been texting him?" Evie asked, a teasing look on her face.

Ruby sighed. "You know how he is. He hasn’t responded to my texts," she admitted, feeling the weight of uncertainty. But a part of her couldn’t let go, clinging to her feelings for Shane.

"Maybe he’s genuinely busy. Shane wouldn’t just ignore you," Evie reassured her, aware that he was likely tied up with a film project.

"You sound like you know him too well," Ruby rolled her eyes.

"Or I’m just making excuses for him..." Evie shot back playfully as they linked arms and left the gaming area, heading to order their usual ice creams in their favorite flavors.

Evie and Ruby were enjoying their ice creams when Evie spoke up, "Did you know that Ezra asked us to meet my mom?" She realized she hadn’t mentioned this to Ruby before.

"I thought he was planning to propose!" Evie added with a chuckle.

Ruby laughed as well, "That’s way too soon. I doubt that’s his intention."

Evie nodded in agreement, "You’re right. I completely misunderstood. He just wanted to take me there because he thinks I miss her."

"And don’t you?" Ruby inquired. Evie confirmed with a nod, feeling the weight of missing her mom. "Ezra’s gesture could mean he’s serious about you. Who knows, maybe marriage is on the horizon," Ruby suggested.

Evie smiled at the thought, but a more pressing concern gnawed at her. They were about to visit her mom.

But what he didn’t know was that her mother had passed away a long time ago.