He chuckled under his breath, leaned down, and kissed her, quick but searing. "Later," he promised against her lips.
They padded down the stairs, careful as thieves. In the kitchen, the pale light of dawn cut through the blinds. Euan paused at the front door, turning to her.
"You sure you want me to go?" he asked softly, searching her face like he had the night before.
Sage swallowed, her throat tight. "Only because David deserves a gentle morning, not a heart attack. He is going through a lot."
"Fair enough." He brushed his thumb across her cheek, then slipped out into the cool air.
She closed the door behind him, leaning her forehead against the wood, her heart racing. Upstairs, she heard the faint sound of David stirring. She straightened, smoothed her hair, and forced her face into something resembling calm.
But inside, she was anything but calm. Euan had promised no take-backs, and Sage found herself daring to believe him.
Chapter 40
By afternoon, the last of the boxes had been shifted. The rooms looked like a shell waiting to become a home, only spaces waiting for someone else's life to fill them. Euan had presented himself, breakfast in hand, a scarce hour after he had crept out like a thief. David gave him a knowing smile but said nothing. Sage and Euan worked side by side, dusting, sweeping, and stacking the last odds and ends. Sage found him singing a vaguely familiar song, which got stuck in her head.
But I would walk 500 miles
And I would walk 500 more
Just to be the man who walked 1,000 miles
To fall down at your door
"The Proclaimers," Euan supplied cheerfully when she complained that it was stuck in her head.
Once the cleaning was done, the three of them drove to the new place. Together, they coaxed the kitchen into something semi-usable after hunting down mugs for tea and the kettle in the unpacked boxes, enough to pretend normalcy was on the horizon.
David bounded down the stairs, his grin wide. "Patrick's waiting...and Mauve and Kira, too. We're gonna grab food and maybe hit the park." He was halfway to the door before Sage could answer.
"Don't stay out too late," she called after him.
"Yeah, yeah," came the reply, already muffled by distance.
“And stay away for those lads who were vaping, alright?”
The silence he left behind was strangely loud and intimate at the same time. Sage leaned against the counter, brushing imaginary dust from her hands, watching Euan rinse his.
"So," she said lightly, "are you looking for a place around here?"
He turned, a bashful look softening his features. "Well...not exactly looking."
Suspicion flickered across her face. "Euan..."
He rubbed the back of his neck, then gestured gleefully towards the kitchen window. "We're going to be neighbours."
She frowned, stepping closer to peer out. Across the way, past the hedges, stood a neat, detached house with white trim.
Her eyes widened. "That wasn't for sale."
He grinned, boyish and smug. "No, it wasn't. But I gave them an offer they couldn't refuse."
Sage's mouth fell open, speechless. "You... Euan!"
"What?" He lifted his hands in mock innocence. "Man's gotta protect his interests."
She shook her head, but she couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up. "Three houses down?"
