“I don’t want to put you out.”
“Nonsense. It’s fine. You should at least eat breakfast before you go.” He guides me back into the house with a warm smile. I can’t deny the blush on my face. Leo is an extraordinarily handsome man. “I should buy you some new clothes. These old ones are… Where did you get them anyway?”
I run my hands over my shirt self-consciously. “My mother gave them to me. They were all I had.”
“What about your father? Surely he helped provide for you.” Once we reach the kitchen, he opens the refrigerator and pulls out scones. “Eat.”
I nibble at one of them. My stomach is grateful for the food. “I’ve never met my father.”
“You’ve never met your father?” He sounds more shocked than I would have expected.
“Yes. That’s what I said.”
“So it was just you and your mother?”
I frown. “Yes.” The last thing I want is to talk about my mother and the way she kept me locked up my entire life.
“And you don’t know who I am,” he says softly. “You’re an enigma, Emma. You’re not at all what I expected.”
“I don’t understand. We just met last night.”
He smirks. “You’re innocent. That much is obvious. But is anyone truly this innocent?”
“I’m sorry?” My face is on fire. I don’t want Leo finding out how sheltered I was my entire life. It’s a source of shame for me.
He waves a dismissive hand. “Never mind. You’re just surprising.”
“Thank you for the food but I should get going. I need to find a way to make money.”
“You don’t have a job? No money?”
“None. I… I don’t even have an ID,” I admit.
His eyebrows raise high, somehow making him look even more handsome. “You don’t even have an ID. What kind of life did you live?”
“That’s personal.”
“Fair enough.” He sighs, staring at the floor before he nods and looks me in the eye. I try to hold his gaze but I’m not strong enough. He’s just too handsome. “I can help you, Emma. Help you make money. You can stay here. I’ll let you live here for free. Nothing in exchange. I’m just being generous.”
“You would really do that?” To think that I found such a kind man my first night in the city. It’s like a dream.
“I would,” he says, smiling. It’s an easy smile like he does it often. “I can get you a job. And you can stay here. No running away.”
I awkwardly laugh. “Why would I run away?” I already did that.
Leo shrugs. “No reason.”
“Why are you so kind to me?”
My question seems to startle him because he goes still. “Call it fate, I guess. I don’t need to be mean to you to get what I want. I can be kind.”
“What do you want?”
Leo leans in closer to me, making me catch my breath. He smells like peaches and pine. “I want you to stay here. Let me help you. It’s the least I can do. You were in desperate need last night.”
“Thank you,” I breathe out.
“First, let’s go buy you some new clothes. You could use them.”
