Late morning sunlight slanted through the blinds Stephen had forgotten to close the night before. Stretching at leisure, he realized he had slept soundly despite being alone. But to be honest, although he and Emmett had shared the same bed, they’d still slept separately. So maybe the break-up had been fermenting longer than Stephen thought.
He found the coffee maker and made only half a pot, ignoring the pointed reminder that he no longer shared anything with anybody. While it was brewing, he considered checking his messages to see what Emmett’s reaction had been. But why? He didn’t need to hear it. So he shoved the phone in a drawer, and hoped he could put Emmett away as easily. He poured himself a large mug of coffee and walked out the sliding door to the patio.
Wooden steps led down t
