50 Ways I Know You
Chapter 2: Apples
Pushing open the door to the small apartment, Isabelle was immediately assailed by the scent of vanilla and cinnamon, the balmy air tasting spicy and sweet on her tongue as she inhaled the delicious aromas. Smiling in delight, she moved deeper into the apartment, leaning casually just inside the archway of the kitchen to take in the scene before her. She couldn't suppress a fond chuckle at the sight of Maia staring down baked goods in her pajamas.
The young Alpha stood at the center of the chaos, hands fisted on her hips, loose red tank top dusted in flour and sugar, glaring the steaming mixture on the stove into submission. Her curls were a wild halo around her head and the humidity in the air left a fine sheen of sweat on her dark skin that made Izzy want to reach out and run her fingers over every exposed inch of flesh. Around her the kitchen looked like a war zone. Apple peels littered every available surface, and at some point the sugar had flopped over like a drunken sailor, spilling its content onto the linoleum floor below. It was the most beautiful disaster Izzy had ever seen.
"At least I'm putting those apples to good use," Maia muttered, casting the Shadowhunter a quick grin over her shoulder before turning back to her bubbling confectionary concoction. She stirred it gently, sprinkling in another pinch of aromatic spices.
A couple of months prior, Maia had helped smooth the transition for a pair of brothers wanting to move to New York. They had inherited their late grandfather's apple farm but, having been recently turned, they were largely unfamiliar of the politics and customs of the Downworld and weren't sure how to start the process.
Maia had been quick to absorb them into her pack, introducing them to the important figures in the local Shadow World and teaching them about what it meant to be part of said world. In return they had gifted her with a massive bushel of fresh apples from their first harvest. That had been just a few days ago, and while Maia had already given away a large portion of her haul to her packmates and friends, she was now using the remainder to make apple pie, pecan apple crumble cake and what appeared to be cinnamon apple sauce. Izzy had a sneaking suspicion the pie was for Alec. Maia knew her brother had a terrible weakness for sweet things and even though she would never say it aloud, the wolf had developed a fond attachment to the Head of the New York Institute.
The thought made something warm and tender unfurl in Isabelle's chest and she found herself moving without conscious thought, curling her arms around Maia's middle and nibbling sweet, sticky sugar off the slender curve of her neck. "The pie's for Alec, isn't it?"
"No…" Maia grumbled, pausing to press a quick kiss to Izzy's cheek, smearing flour across the other woman's face in the process. "The crumble cake is. The pie is for you."
Isabelle considered herself many things; fiercely loyal, intelligent, dangerous…but a chef she was not, and this made her appreciate her girlfriend's cooking prowess that much more. "Mmm, you're the best," she whispered, peppering a line of hot, open mouth kisses down the column of Maia's throat, nimble fingers creeping under that loose red tank top to press against the warm, smooth skin of her stomach.
"Of course I am." Maia scoffed haughtily, though the effect was ruined by the breathy quality of her voice.
"How much longer do you think you'll be?" Izzy asked.
"Not much. The apple sauce is about done, I already shipped your brother's cake off via Daylighter Courier Service," here the Alpha grinned deviously, "and the pie should be coming out of the oven in about 7 minutes."
Izzy hummed in appreciation. "Excellent. In that case I'm going to run us a bath and you can join me while the pie is cooling." Pressing another quick kiss to Maia's shoulder, she untangled herself from her lover and left to do just that. She had the rest of the evening free and planned to spend it worshiping her girlfriend. And eating pie.
AN: I love to bake so tapping into a little bit of personal experience made this prompt an easy one. I also think Izzy and Maia have such an interesting dynamic as a couple and writing them in this warm, soft scene was so much fun. I hope you all enjoy reading these as much as I enjoy writing them and, as always, I appreciate you all!
-GPO
