“This is me,” I say as we stop outside my door. I unlock it and gesture for her to go in first. She steps inside, glancing around while I drop my bag by the door and kick off my sneakers. Laney does the same, then stands there looking a little unsure.
“Make yourself at home,” I tell her. “Want a drink?”
“Sure,” she says, moving over to sit on the sofa. “What’ve you got?”
“Let me check.”
I head into the kitchen and open the fridge. There’s an open bottle of wine staring at me, but remembering how Ben reacted to her drinking at Eden, I figure I better not risk it.
“There’s water, soda, or orange juice,” I call out.
“Soda, please.”
I grab two cans then join her on the sofa, handing her one. “What kind of pizza do you like? I’ll order and then we can raid my closet.”
“I’m easy,” she says, taking a sip. “I like everything.”
“How about pepperoni?”
She nods, and I grab my phone to call in the order. Once they promise it’ll be here in thirty minutes, I hang up and grin at her. “Come on. I’ll show you my closet. Bring your drink.”
She follows me down the hall to my room. As I step inside, I notice the pile of clothes I tossed on the bed earlier and quickly scoop them up, stuffing them into the laundry basket.
“Sorry for the mess.” I chuckle. “Didn’t get a chance to tidy up.”
She laughs. “This isn’t messy. You should see my room. Drives my dad nuts.”
I grin and swing open the double doors to my closet. “Go wild,” I tell her, dropping onto the edge of the bed.
Her eyes widen as she takes in the sheer amount of clothes crammed inside. “Wow, Ash. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many clothes in one place.”
I laugh. “Yeah, it’s a problem.”
She pulls out a sleek black bodycon dress, the tag still hanging from it. “This is gorgeous.”
“That one’s from the boutique on Main Street. They’ve got some great stuff.”
“I’ve never even been in there.”
“You should. Try it on,” I encourage. “I’ll wait in the living room.”
Before she can argue, I slip out and grab my phone from my bag in the entryway. I promised Ben I’d call once I picked up Laney, and I didn’t. I scroll to his name and hit dial. He answers almost instantly.
“Hey, baby. You home?”
“Yeah, I’m home,” I say, keeping my voice low.
“Did Laney behave?” There’s an edge of uncertainty in his tone.
“She did. I think Wyatt helped,” I add with a soft laugh.
Ben exhales a breath. “Good.”
“Actually,” I say, lowering my voice further. “She’s here with me. At my place. We’re having pizza and she’s going through my closet. She’s trying on a dress right now. I’ll drop her home later.”
There’s a pause. “Really?” He sounds surprised.
I smile. “Yeah. We’re getting along.”
