Is that what this is? Kevin moving in?
Another sound from the living room—Kevin shifting on the couch. And once again I'm aware that he's right there. Ten feet away. In my space, in my life, making coffee in my kitchen and folding blankets on my couch and looking at me like I'm something precious.
This was supposed to be simple. A lie to get Elliott to back off. A fake relationship with clear boundaries.
But nothing about this feels fake anymore.
And I don't know what to do with that.
I roll over, pulling the blanket up to my chin, and close my eyes.
On the other side of the wall, Kevin's breathing evens out.
And despite everything—the fear, the confusion, the way my heart won't stop racing—I feel safe.
For the first time in a long time, I feel safe.
Chapter 6
Kevin
I'm three days into living with Steph, and I'm pretty sure this is what purgatory feels like.
Not hell—because being close to her, making her coffee in the morning, hearing her laugh at something stupid I say, watching her curl up on the couch in those sleep shorts that are destroying my self-control—none of that is hell.
But it's not heaven either. Because at the end of every day, I walk away. I close her bedroom door and take the couch and lie there in the dark, listening to her breath through the thin walls, knowing she's ten feet away and off-limits.
So yeah. Purgatory.
I'm folding the blanket she gave me—neatly, because old habits die hard—when my phone rings. Rachel's name lights up the screen, and I brace myself.
"Hey, Sis."
"So," her voice is warm, knowing. "You've been living with her for three days now."
I sink onto the couch. Of course she knows. This is Evergreen Lakes. "Who told you?"
"Lottie saw your truck outside Steph's apartment at six-thirty in the morning. Then Belinda confirmed you've been driving her to and from work. Then Mrs. Paisley saw you two at the Sip N’ Sit looking very..." She pauses, and I hear the smile in her voice. "Domestic."
"We're just—"
"Kevin." She cuts me off. "I won two hundred dollars betting on you two. And I've been watching this slow burn for months. I know what I'm seeing."
The guilt settles heavy in my chest. "Rachel—"
"I'm not calling to tease you." Her voice softens. "I'm calling because I'm proud of you. You've been so patient with her. So steady. I know it's been hard watching her heal and not being able to tell her how you felt, but you did it. You waited. And now you get to be with her, and I just..." She pauses, and I hear the emotion crack through. "I'm so proud of you, big brother. You deserve this. You deserve to be happy. Mom and Dad would’ve been thrilled about this." Her voice softens when she mentions our deceased parents.
It’s hard because they were a love story for the ages, and I was always skeptical about how they used to always tell us once we met our person we’d fall instantly. It happened to Rachel, but I still didn’t believe it until Steph opened her door and I set eyes on her for the first time. Then I understood.
My throat closes up. Because she's talking about something that isn't real. Thai relationship. Something I'm faking. And she's genuinely happy for me; it feels like a knife between my ribs.
"Thanks, Rach," I manage.
"And Steph—God, Kevin, the way she looks at you? Like she's believing good things can happen again? That's all you. That's the man you are."
I close my eyes. Maybe that part isn't a lie. Maybe Steph is starting to believe. Maybe the way she's been laughing more, relaxing into my touch, falling asleep against me on the couch—maybe that means something.
Or maybe I'm just seeing what I want to see.
