Mae’s brows lifted, but she smiled. “That’s good to hear.”
He stroked his thumb along my spine. “We didn’t, uh... I slept in my old room.”
Mae chuckled. “Well, it wouldn’t have been the first time you kids were up to shenanigans in the house.” She turned her fond gaze toward me. “Darin used to live for catching Junie and Rhys getting up to something.”
I smiled, her humor infectious. She’d lost her husband a few years ago. I’d never met him, but the things I’d heard only made me envious. My dad could be... a lot.
“Are you two heading to town?” she asked.
“I’ve gotta get back to Bozeman.” Other than needing a change of clothes and a shower, all I had waiting for me was my books, but I’d intruded enough. “But soon.”
“The room’s always open if you need a place to stay,” Mae said.
“She might.” The heat of his hand chased away the last bit of chill from the morning air. “She closes the bar Wednesday and Friday nights.”
“Oh, it’s fine.” I’d been driving back and forth for months. “It’s not open that late.” Especially on Wednesdays.
She wandered past us with a pleasant smile that was almost a smirk. She shifted her gaze to Tenor. “Between your place and mine, she always has a bed.”
Tenor stiffened and I sucked in a breath.Tenor’splace?
He didn’t drop his hand from my back. “Do you close next weekend?”
“Yes. I don’t have an end date.” My chest grew tight. An overnight at Mae’s with Tenor next door had been bad enough. I’d been awake the whole night, my brain insisting that Tenor was close enough. I’d imagined him next to me, heating the bed as he slumbered. “Since Autumn and Wynter backed off on their hours for their babies and I have nothing going on...” Didn’t that sound like he’d won the fake dating lottery? “But seriously. It’s not a long drive at all.”
He led me to my car. I’d go anywhere that strong hand steered me. I was lucky my legs worked after the kiss. We stopped at the driver’s door.
“Can you stay the next weekend and we’ll go out Saturday?” His gaze skated away. “I can’t do Wednesday nights.”
“Next Saturday is fine. I can stay here Friday if that’s okay with your mom.”
“You can stay with me.”
Oh. My pulse started to climb as excitement rose to a record high tide, but his offer was only for show. Could I do that and still tell myself this was fake?
“I have a spare room,” he clarified.
My nervous laugh carried away on the light breeze. Of course he did. “Right. Yes. That’ll work. It’d probably look weirder if I stayed with your mom. Like I was saving myself for marriage.” His brow furrowed, and I realized my error. “I’m not! I haven’t... waited.” I exhaled, but my chest was so tight it ended in a squeak. That was awkward.
The ghost of a smile played over his lips. “Was Brock sloppy at that too?”
“When you said that there are times when there’s no such thing as being too wet, that’d be news to Brock.”
He laughed, his head tipping back and his Adam’s apple bobbing. My breath ceased and I was helpless to watch. His laughter also saved me from being embarrassed by what I had said.
He sobered, but the smile was still in place, wide and open in a way I’d never gotten to witness before. “We can get them an instruction manual for a wedding present.”
I grinned. “If only I was brave and vengeful enough.”
His smile faded. “My place is...” He swallowed and looked away again. “It’s a bachelor pad.”
From what I’d heard, he’d built a cabin in the hills like his brothers. I hadn’t seen their places, but the log house behind me was impressive. What would his home look like? “If you don’t want me?—”
“It’s not that.” He pushed his glasses up and shoved a frustrated hand through his hair. “It’ll be fine. You can stay with me. And I promise to keep my hands to myself when we’re not trying to sell this to anyone.”
He didn’t have to. Not at all. But it’d muddy the waters more than my brain was already trying to do. I had to be comfortable with his touch, but that didn’t mean he wanted to crawl into bed with me.
He was slouching again. What didn’t he want me to see? Did he have an especially eclectic porn collection? Was he a hoarder? Just plain messy? A bachelor pad could look like a lot of things.
