“Okay.”Savannah paid and carried her bags out to the car.She couldn’t imagine going into the store and not seeing Mrs.Pickles anymore.But then, she’d felt that way about Shayna leaving.Times changed, life moved on, and all she could do was hope the changes were good for the people she cared about.
She popped the trunk when she reached her car and put the bags inside.As she started the engine, she smiled to herself, hoping that things might be changing for the better in her own life, too.
When she got back to the apartment, Tiffany came downstairs to meet her.
“Hey.I only have a couple of bags; there’s nothing you need to carry.”
Tiffany took one of the bags from her anyway.“I know, but… don’t laugh at me, but I’ve never had this.Never had anyone I look forward to seeing when they get home.I… shit, that probably sounds stupid.”
“No!I love it.And I know what you mean.I feel the same way, mostly.I mean, it was like that when I stayed with Harvey – he’s awesome – but, well, you have an idea of what life was like with my mom.And I’ve had roommates before, but no one I was close to – not like you.”
When they reached the top of the stairs, Tiffany let them in before putting the bag down on the kitchen counter.She waited for Savannah to put hers down, then wrapped her in a hug.
“Don’t get me wrong.I love Elle – she’s been a good friend to me – but we never lived together or anything, and…” Tiffany shrugged.“I turned the oven on when I heard you pull up.Should I put the pizza in?Are you hungry?”
Warmth bloomed in Savannah’s chest as she nodded.“Yeah, let’s do that.I got a bag of salad; we can have that while we wait.”
She wanted to say more, but she already knew that once Tiff had changed the subject, she wouldn’t go back.She’d stick with her tough-girl act.And that was okay.They didn’t need to wallow in it, but little moments like the one they’d just shared meant the world to Savannah – and made her grateful for all the good people she was lucky enough to have in her life.
Chapter Nine
Jake looked around the living room and went to straighten the cushions on the sofa.The place looked fine.It always did.He wasn’t exactly a neat freak, but he liked to keep his living space in order.
Fortunately, Josh was the same way.He was maybe a little messier, but mostly he picked up after himself.More importantly, he was a good guy.The two of them had become close since Josh had moved in, and with Josh’s mom, Sadie, being with Jake’s Uncle Dom, they’d come to see each other as family.
He spun around when Josh laughed from the living room doorway.
“Don’t tell me you’re going to pull out the vacuum next.The place looks fine.I keep telling you, Savannah’s hardly likely to notice anyway.”
“I know.I’m just killing time.”
“I hope you guys have a good evening,” said Josh.“I’ll be back by eleven.”
“Don’t feel like you have to stay away,” Jake told him.“I could have taken her out.”
“I know, but it’s not like there are too many options to go out around here.And you guys are coming to The Boathouse with everyone on Saturday night, so…” Josh shrugged.“Savannah’s not the kind of girl to be going out every night of the week, and neither are you.And the thing is, with her, as you discovered on Saturday—wherever you go, people will want to talk to her.From what you’ve told me, it sounds like the two of you haven’t had a minute to be alone together yet.”
He made a face and shuddered.“And I don’t even want to think about what being alone together might imply.I just hope you’re not at that stage yet—and I don’t want to know about it when you are.She really is like a little sister to me.”
“I know.And even though part of me wants to tell you it’s none of your damn business, I get it.And I’m glad you’re looking out for her.Just so you know, we’re nowhere near that stage yet anyway.”
“Okay, well, I think we’ll both be happy to leave that subject behind us.Oh, wait, before I go—I left my rent money in the drawer in the kitchen.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Jake wasn’t entirely comfortable with the rent arrangement.This place was really his dad’s house, but his dad insisted that it was his now.Since he didn’t have to pay any rent, he felt weird about Josh paying, but Josh insisted that he was happy with the arrangement—and that he’d have to pay a lot more anywhere else.That wasn’t technically true, since rent in Summer Lake tended to be cheap.
Josh smiled at him.“I wish you’d stop worrying about that.It’s all good, you know?I’m glad we’re house sharing like this.And it’s not as though I can’t afford it, is it?”
That made Jake feel a bit better.It was true—he didn’t really understand what Josh did, only that he worked online doing marketing for people.He was always busy and never short of money.
Josh cocked an eyebrow.“And like I keep telling you, if you want to make yourself some more money, you should set up a YouTube channel—talk people through what you do in the garage.There are guys making five and six figures every month doing just that.”
“I know, you keep telling me that, but I don’t even see how they do it.Who cares enough to pay?”
“People who are trying to fix their own cars love watching that kind of thing.Even people who just scroll YouTube all day—when a subject catches their interest, they’ll watch for hours.And the thing is, they’re mostly not the ones paying you unless you come up with something you want to sell.I’ve explained it to you before.
“Advertisers pay—companies pay—to have those annoying ads displayed, the ones that always interrupt whatever you’re watching.And the channel owner gets a percentage of the ad revenue.If you ever want to get into it, I’ll explain it to you properly.
