Of Cookies and Bets
Caroline glared at her boyfriend as he sat in her kitchen with a smug shit-eating grin on his face. If only she didn't love him, life would be so much easier. But she did; she loved him so much. She had to; why else would she endure this torture?
"Nope, they're too small." She groaned, taking the weird concoction in her hand and stretching it out.
"Is this big enough for you, Mr. Lockwood?" Tyler laughed at Caroline's annoyance.
"Hey, babe, you knew the stakes. If you can't take the heat, don't play with fire."
"I didn't think it would be this though," she said, noting the baker's hat and apron he was making her sport, complete with the phrase "I heart wolves" on there.
"Hey, this is what I wanted. I won, fair and square." Caroline stuck out her tongue.
"Fine! I am baking your dumb ass chocolate chip cookies! Do you have to sit there and critique the way I do it?" Her back was still facing him. Asshole. He was doing this on purpose. As great of a guy he could be at times, he still had remnants of old Tyler there. Making her squirm was one of those traits. Just like when they were kids on the playground.
"What can I say, Forbes? I'm very particular."
"You think? I mean, look at this list. I don't think the president has takes this much exception to his cookies." Tyler just shrugged. "You are so mean sometimes." Tyler laughed out loud, a long bellowed laugh.
"Shall we go over what you were going to make me do if I lost?" Caroline's smiled widened.
"I happen to think a pedicure would have suit you just fine." Tyler got up from his chair and put his arms on the counter, blocking Caroline in.
"Yes, well, good thing I won." Caroline blushed.
"Yeah, well, it wasn't a fair bet. You know how crazy you make me. Sometimes I can't control it when I vamp out. I knew I'd lost this stupid bet when we made it. Like your wolf side would come out. You had like a month of crazy intense yoga/meditation to deal with it." Tyler just shook his head.
"You just can't admit to losing. You never were good at that." Stupid bet. It had been Tyler's idea, of course, to see whose side would come out first during sex. And, of course, it had been Caroline's. But the good thing is he wasn't freaked out when her fangs came to the surface. She could never forget that, how Tyler accepted her as easily as he breathed. She put her floury hands on each side of his face and pulled him into a kiss.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For everything. For not running away the first chance you got." Again, Tyler shook his head.
"You really amaze me, Caroline. I should be thanking you. You've been there for me every step of the way. You put up with me being an ass most of the time, and for making you do this ridiculous thing in an apron and a baker's hat. And you know what gets me, I mean really gets me? You look perfect. You are perfect."
Caroline just smiled and hugged him. Then she shooed him away.
A few hours later, and more bugging from Tyler and the cookies were complete. She was completely exhausted from baking, which is how she found herself falling asleep next to Tyler in her bed.
In the middle of the night, he pulled in closer to her, wrapping his arms tightly around her, and whispered in her ear. "Thank you Caroline, for not running away the first chance you got."
Caroline sleepily replied. "You're welcome."
Before he could let himself fall back into the tranquility of being with the woman he so dearly loved, he needed to thank her once more. "And thank you for the cookies."