“And guess what?”I pause as she peers over her shoulder at me.“I don’t hog the covers.”
She laughs, covering her mouth with a hand, and the warmth of her joy spreads through my chest.Joy can be a dangerous, dangerous thing.Especially over something make-believe.
“Zach?Paige?”Morgan says from inside.
“Out here.”I scowl, displeased at the interruption and not bothering to hide it.
“Hey, if I’m going to be a third wheel, I can stay with Nan.”Morgan steps onto the terrace and just like that, I feel like an ass.
She doesn’t visit that often and I love having her stay with me.She makes my place come alive and here I am giving her the exact opposite impression with an uninviting glare.
“No, stay,” Paige and I say in unison.Our gazes meet and she returns my smile with one of her own.
“I feel like I’m intruding.”Paige sits up straight as if ready to bolt.“I’m the one who should be going so the two of you can catch up.”
Not this again.
“You aren’t in the way.”My voice is crisp, almost edgy, not wanting to revisit our earlier conversation.She hasn’t agreed to stay but, for me, no other option is acceptable.
“No.You could never be in the way.I actually like having another woman around.Zach is a workaholic and it gets lonely.Besides, I’m not used to theeasylifestyle while I’m here.”She adds a wry grin to her jab at how spoiled she thinks I am.“At home, I’m usually grinding.”
“And where’s home?”Paige sips from her glass.
Morgan pours herself a glass and leans against the bar.“Florida.I’m in Miramar at the moment.It’s about twenty-five minutes north of Miami—without traffic—but I’m thinking about heading further south.We’ll see.”
“And what do you do?”
“Right now, I don’t have a job.”She’s nonchalant, and it strikes me again just how unalike we are.We both had the same opportunities growing up, yet she’s never wanted anything to do with the wealth and power afforded her by the Rothwell name.
“Morgan likes to live paycheck to paycheck.”Now it’s my turn to take a jab at her nomadic ways and, at times, hard lifestyle.
She willingly goes from job to job when she has options and opportunity most would kill for.Even without her inheritance, she’s had a good education and could find a challenging and well-paying profession.
“Hey, don’t knock it.Some of us like to work for what we have.”
“I work hard for what I have.”My tone is unforgiving and it’s too late when I realize I’ve taken the bait.
After graduating with a physics degree—which if you ask her why physics, she’ll say just for kicks—Morgan took off for parts unknown and hasn’t looked back.Somehow, she feels unworthy or reluctant to live off the family money and uses her trust fund sparingly.The only time she’ll grudgingly accept our lifestyle is when Nan insists she come home for a visit.
Morgan tilts her head back and laughs.Our differing lifestyles are a running debate between us and neither is willing to see the other’s side.
“Anyway, I’m off.Don’t wait up.”She downs the last of her wine and deposits the empty glass on the bar.For someone who claims to have no friends and nothing to do when here, she always has someplace to go or someone to see.
“Have a good night.”
“You, too.And Paige, let’s do something one night this week.”
“Sure, sounds good.Bye, Morgan.”
Paige stands, placing her glass next to the other empty one.“Zach,” she says and I can see she’s picking up where we left off.
“Listen.Stay until you find a permanent place.You’re already moved in.JP has already made arrangements to bring over your car and clear out your furniture.He’ll put the things you don’t need in a storage facility for the time being.”
“What?”
“Don’t freak out.I have the means to help and that’s all I’m doing.You don’t owe me anything outside of our deal.Stay.”
“I guess this helps our arrangement.”
