“Millie,” Gavin stammered, spilling the coffee onto his hand and burning it. “Damn it!”
Taking a deep breath, I decided this was inevitable. I mean, we were living in the same house. Sooner or later, we were going to be alone together. Might as well rip the Band-Aid off and get it over with now.
Walking over to the sink, I flipped on the cold water and said, “Run it under the water. It will take the sting out of the burn.”
Without questioning me, Gavin approached the faucet and placed his hand under the running water.
“Do you mind if I have a cup of coffee?” I politely asked, as I moved toward the cabinet with the mugs.
“Of course not,” Gavin quickly approved, watching me with a guilt-ridden expression the entire time I filled my cup.
“Gavin,” I began, needing to do something about how awkward things had become between us or else forever be doomed to more of these types of encounters in the future, “We need to talk about what happened the night we met.”
Switching off the faucet, Gavin joined me at the kitchen table and took a seat. “I’m so sorry, Millie. You can’t imagine how embarrassed I am about how I behaved. I’ve never met a female ware before you and I reacted like an absolute animal. I’ve got everything under control now, and it will never happen again. I swear.”
Despite everything, I believed him. “If you’re willing to start over, so am I.”
Blowing out a pent-up breath, Gavin nodded. “Thank you. I really appreciate that, Millie. I don’t deserve a second chance, but I’m grateful you’re willing to give me one.”
We sat in painful silence for a few seconds before I said, “So what gets you up so early in the morning?”
Thankful for the change in conversation, Gavin smiled. “I’m so used to the schedule at Cascia House that I can’t shake it. I used to get up early to help the younger kids get ready for school. It was my favorite part of my day.”
Despite all that had happened, I sensed that Gavin was actually a very sweet and kind person. While I definitely didn’tfeel bad about judging him for the way he’d reacted to me that first night, I might have to admit that was quite out of character for the seemingly shy, thoughtful boy in front of me now.
Well, boy might be a bit of a misnomer. Gavin seemed to be about eighteen or nineteen years old. With his light brown hair and sparkling blue eyes, he was conventionally good looking, with a slim but muscular build. The dimple in his right cheek lent him a particularly boyish charm that was hard to ignore. I’m sure he’d turned quite a few heads back in Alaska. Like all the men of Cascia House, he had a mysterious quality to him that made a girl want to get to know him better.
Blowing on my coffee, I asked, “Do you have a job here in Montana?”
Worrying his mug between two large hands, Gavin nodded. “Yeah, Ethan got me one working construction over in Karlsville. Not that I have to tell you as much, but Ethan’s the best. He’s offered me a place to stay, money in my pocket, food in my belly, and a chance to earn a pretty decent living. Without guys like him from the group home, I’m pretty sure I would have ended up on drugs and stealing to make ends meet.”
I swallowed the large lump in my throat that had formed over his honest statement. He was right. Once you lost your family, it was so easy to become unmoored and lose your way in life. I know it felt like that for me after losing my dad. Some days, it was still hard to get out of bed. Ethan coming back into my life helped alleviate that crushing agony more than I could ever say.
“I didn’t know your pops, Millie, but I hear he was a lot like Ethan. Kind. Caring. Would lend a helping hand whenever one of us Cascia Home boys needed him. Without people like him and Ethan, most of us would end up on the streets or dead,” Gavin darkly prophesied.
My eyes blurred with tears that I had to fight to hold in. “Yeah, my dad was pretty great. The best,” I said, taking a long sip of my coffee.
Flint entered the house through the front door then, cutting our conversation short.
“What’s this?” He asked, looking between both me and Gavin. “Is Ethan aware of this little tete-a-tete?”
“Gavin and I are just getting to know one another, Flint. Don’t start trouble,” I warned, giving the brash ware a knowing glare.
Luckily, Ethan had finished up his shower and was already on his way downstairs before Flint could start harassing Gavin further.
“I see you’re dressed in your work uniform,” My mate observed, kissing my cheek before going to retrieve himself his own mug of coffee.
“Yes. As we discussed yesterday, I’m working three days in a row this week,” I explained matter-of-factly. “I know you’re busy, so don’t worry about hanging around today. I’m confident everything will be fine.”
“Not a chance,” Ethan returned, coming to sit beside me with his steaming mug. “One of us has to be with you at all times. That’s why Flint is going to do coffee house duty today.”
Oh, joy. Flint and I were going to get more time together. “Flint?” I repeated, like he’d just dropped a prison sentence on me.
Ethan frowned, though I know he secretly enjoyed my sass. It gave him yet another reason to spank me, which I knew he loved. “Yes, Flint. We’re all going to be taking turns protecting you at work. That’s why everyone came home.”
Great. Now I felt like an ungrateful brat. Here everyone was, uprooting their lives to help me out, and I was whining about it.
“It’s just going to be you and me, kid,” Flint said then, a sly grin on his handsome face.
