Chapter 487: Chased Away!
The morning light spilled softly through the curtains, pale gold kissing the edges of the wooden floor. Alric stirred first, his hand instinctively seeking Nora’s warm, bare form. But she was already gone, the space beside him cool. For a heartbeat, panic flickered in his chest—but then, the faintest sound of movement, soft humming, and the scent of something being chopped drifted in from the kitchen.
He smiled to himself.
Alric pulled on a pair of loose pants and padded barefoot across the stone floor, following the trail of warmth and something that smelled faintly of garlic and spice. He stopped at the doorway, resting a shoulder against the frame. There she was—his Nora—standing at the counter with her hair loosely tied, wearing one of his shirts that fell nearly to her knees. The sleeves swallowed her hands as she awkwardly tried to chop red peppers.
He chuckled quietly.
"You’re going to slice your finger if you keep holding the knife like that."
Nora turned, caught mid-motion. "And you’re going to scare me to death if you keep sneaking up like that," she said, but her voice was light, a smile tugging at her lips.
Alric walked up behind her, gently taking her hand to adjust her grip on the blade. "Like this," he murmured, his fingers lingering just a moment longer than necessary. "You need to control it. Like you do with everything else."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "Except you."
He smirked, brushing his lips over her temple before he turned toward the pan already heating on the stove. "I don’t mind being your exception."
Together, they worked in quiet harmony. She chopped vegetables while he stirred them into a sizzling medley of onions, peppers, and thinly sliced meat. The kitchen filled with the comforting sounds of breakfast being made—pans clinking, the soft scrape of the knife on wood, her laughter when he teased her about her uneven slices.
There was something rare in it—something sacred. A peaceful silence that didn’t demand to be filled. As if the house itself had settled into the rhythm of their new morning.