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“I’m sure you could find someone to help you update this place,” I said. “I’m happy to see if I can dig up any contacts in the area, if you’d like.”

Vicky waved away the offer. “I don’t think I could trust just anyone with this place. We’ve lived here so long, you know. But thank you for the offer.”

“Let me know if you change your mind.” I leaned against the counter. “Is there anything I can help with?”

“You’re a guest, all you need to do is make yourself comfortable,” Vicky said. “Now, go on and I’ll bring the food in when it’s ready.”

I smiled warmly and nodded. “I think I can manage that.” I made my way into the dining room, where the table had been set, and found Ellis looking out the front window quietly. I pulled a chair out to take a seat.

“Don’t get settled too soon,” Ellis warned quietly. “It’ll be a little while before the food is done.”

“Ellis,” Vicky called from the kitchen. “Why don’t you and Lena show him around? Give him a tour of the place.”

“Oh,” I said. “That’s—”

“I insist,” Vicky said.

Ellis held up a hand to me and spoke quietly. “Don’t even think about arguing. You’ll never get out of here if one of us doesn't give you a tour.”

Lena came into the room then, favoring her ankle a little. “Come on. I’ll show you around.”

“You look like your ankle hurts again,” I pointed out.

She shrugged and waved away my words. “I’ll be fine.”

Ellis shook his head. “No way. Sit down. I’ll do it.” He glanced at me, and heat raced through me, butterflies in my stomach at the thought of being alone with him, even if we were surrounded by his family. “Come on.” He tilted his head in the direction of the living room.

I trailed after Ellis, a few steps behind as we walked through the living room. As we made our way through the house, I took stock of the design choices that had been made. Some of the house had clearly been updated at least in the past couple of decades, because there wasn’t any shag carpeting and the walls were mostly white, but the bathrooms were straight out of the seventies. The tile was pink in one bathroom and blue in another, and the tile didn’t stop at the floor, but covered the bottom half of the walls, too.

At the end of the hallway was a door that I assumed led to the basement, but before we got there, Ellis stopped at a pair of closed doors, one on each side of the hallway.

“This is Lena’s bedroom and that one’s mine.”

“Can I look?”

“I’m sure she won’t mind.” A moment later, Ellis pushed the door to Lena’s bedroom wide open. It was exactly as I’d expected it, light pink with gauzy white curtains and a twin bed in the middle of one wall. There were white bookshelves stuffed with books and awards, a tall dresser, and on the door to what I assumed was the closet, a full-length mirror.

“This isn’t so bad,” I said eventually. “It’s nice.”

Ellis raised one shoulder in a half-shrug.

“Now can I see yours?”

His face turned slightly pink and he rubbed the back of his neck. A moment later, he looked at me and our gazes met, sending a bolt of lightning through me, deep in my gut. “Sure. Why not?”

We made our way across the hall and into Ellis’s room. White walls, gray carpeting, nothing remarkable. There were drawings taped up all over the walls, which I was sure Ellis had done himself. Just like Lena’s room, there was a twin bed against one wall, his covered in navy blue sheets and a dark gray comforter.

“What do you think?” he asked, his voice low. A beat passed and Ellis stepped closer to me.

“It’s great,” I murmured, heat building in my stomach.

He moved closer again. “Yeah?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

Before I could say anything else, Ellis closed the space between us and slid a hand along my jaw, pulling me in for a kiss. I let out a soft hum of surprise before kissing him back with an intensity that I hadn’t realized I possessed. He slid his tongue against mine and into my mouth. I groaned softly and moved my hand between us to press against his cock, which was already half-hard.

Ellis let out a soft moan and thrust his growing erection against my hand. “Fuck,” he murmured breathlessly before catching my bottom lip with his teeth.