“Are you sure? Your eyes are red.”
“Actually…Actually, I…” She sniffed and blinked through the pricking in her eyes. Now was not the time to lose her composure.
“What’s happening?” Zach asked, his arms twitching like he might have to make a run for it at a moment’s notice.
She was not fine, but she wasn’t about to admit defeat just yet. She could still hold back the tears. She could prevent them from coming.
Except, they spilled out of her eyes anyway. They slid down her cheeks without her consent, leaving searing evidence in their wake.
“I just…I just wish I had a…”
Zach stepped closer, waving his hands around. “A what? What do you need? Tell me what it is so I can make it stop. I don’t know what to do.”
Great. She’d put him in yet another unfamiliar situation. There was no way she could have made his transition out of prison any worse.
She sniffed and wiped her face with the sleeve of her sweater. “I just wish I had a donut or something good. This day was crappy, and I’d love one thing I couldn’t mess up.”
Zach’s brows rose. “And you can’t mess up a donut?”
“Of course not. Donuts are perfect just by existing.” A stray laugh escaped from deep in her chest as she wiped her eyes with the backs of her hands. “I need an emotional support donut.”
“You’re saying Dawson Keller isn’t the only one who has a thing for donuts?”
The laughter began anew, but it veered terribly close to producing tears again. “I guess so.”
Zach jerked his head toward the back of the house. “Let me show you what I did today.”
He was clearly trying to distract her, but she would allow it. He’d been working too. Judging by the sweat stains on his shirt and the stiffness of his short hair that stuck out in all directions, it hadn’t been an easy day for him either.
She followed him through the house, setting her tear-streaked face to rights as they went. How humiliating. The last time she’d cried in front of Zach was during the trial. It had taken all of one day in their new dynamic to show him just how little she could handle.
He stopped in front of the laundry room and propped his shoulder on the door frame. Was that a grin on his face?
Of course it was a grin. A third of the new subflooring was installed, and it looked as perfect and sturdy as if a professional had done it. The joists were squared and solid in the exposed part, but it was a good start.
“Zach, this looks great. You said you didn’t know how to do this.”
He glanced at his handiwork and shrugged one shoulder. “The videos I watched were helpful.”
“And you didn’t think to watch a video about how to make spaghetti?” she asked.
His head tilted marginally lower as he fixed her with a hard glare.
“Too soon? Okay. Oh, I bought you a razor. I don’t know anything about men’s razors, so I just picked one.”
Zach’s expression softened, but he didn’t take his gaze off her. “You didn’t have to do that. Actually, I need to borrow your car because I need to pick up some other things.”
“I think we established you don’t have a license. Also, most things in town are closed now.”
“Relax, angel. I still know how to drive. I’ll obey all the rules of the road and bring your minivan back in one piece.”
“The minivan was a rental. I drive a Civic.”
Zach straightened, studying her again as if she were a puzzle. “What was wrong with your car yesterday?”
“The check engine light was on. I had a friend look at it yesterday, so I rented a car. I just got lucky with a super cool minivan. Plus, if you were going to abduct me again, I wanted there to be a paper trail.”
Zach grinned, a seemingly insignificant expression that did all but light a fire in her chest. “Smart girl.”
