He shrugs and grins as he rests his forearms behind his head and leans back. “That’s fine. We both know you have enough cash to pay my mortgage if I’m out of a job.”
I shrug. It’s true—I would.
I’ve been too afraid to touch what I have sitting in the bank. It feels like blood money. It’s the settlement from the suit against the tour company, the life insurance that Liam’s policy paid out, and what little we’d managed to save together before everything went to shit.
Easton slides up to me and gently wraps an arm around my shoulder. “Seriously, are you okay with all of this? I know it’s a lot, and?—”
“I’m okay.”
He frowns. “Leo.”
I meet his gaze. “Do you really think I’m that fragile?”
“I think that after working your ass off to find your independence, you lost your fucking house in a horrible fire, and now you have to go live with a guy you don’t like all that much.”
My cheeks burn. “It’s…I don’tnotlike him.”
His brow furrows deeper. “You hate his guts. All you do is talk about how annoying he is. Oh god, please don’t turn this into some hero worship and think you’re in love with him or something. I cannot deal with that right now.”
My stomach sinks into my knees. He’s not right, but he’s also not too far off the mark, which is clearly a problem. I clear my throat. “It’s not like that. I’m not in love with him. But we had a nice talk before everything happened, and I realized I was being a bit too much.”
“Of what?”
I shrug. “Myself.”
He sucks in a breath to tell me off and try and stroke my ego, but luckily for us both, a nurse appears with a small stack of papers before he can start in on me.
“You ready to get out of here, Mr. Harris?”
I feel a genuine smile coming on. “More than you could ever imagine.”
Driving into my neighborhood and skipping my street is an odd feeling. I have the window down, and I know it’s all in my head, but for a second, I swear I smell the lingering scent of the fire. It’s sort of earthy, baked wood mixed with the acrid scent of melted plastic and wires.
But I know it’s all in my head.
The neighborhood is all fresh air—the kind of crisp scent saying that the stormy season is nearly over and autumn is on the way. I breathe in and feel it fill my lungs, fighting the urge to cough as Easton turns down the street toward North’s house.
The sun’s almost set, so the streetlights are bathing everyone’s front porch in an unnatural yellow glow, and I see his place come into view.
The last time I was here, I was so angry at him, yet I wanted him with a desperation I couldn’t control. And that’s how I feel about him now, only this time, I’m allowed to touch. I’m allowed to pull him in and kiss him. I’m allowed to have him in any way he’s willing to give himself to me.
My whole body goes white-hot at the thought of what we might do together as soon as I’m feeling better.
“Easton?”
“Mm? You good? If you’re changing your mind about this, you know Teddy will?—”
“No,” I cut him off. “It’s not that.” I take a breath as he slows down and pulls into the driveway. “North’s a good guy, isn’t he?”
Easton puts the engine in park, then twists to look at me. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, he’s a good person. Like, a really good person.”
Easton glances down at his hands. “He’s been through more shit than a lot of people should have to go through. He had it rough when he was a kid, and it got worse when he got older.” He hesitates. “His family relies on him for a lot, and I think he struggles to say no or to think he deserves to be taken care of. It’s why he’s never had a relationship before.”
I jolt. “Wait. Like…ever?” I knew he was inexperienced. He told me himself. But I hadn’t realized what he was saying meant never.
Easton shrugs. “Please don’t take that as proof that he’s some kind of loser who?—”
