“Sorry,” Laiken murmurs when I startle. “I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”
I turn, finding him closer than expected. Close enough to see the dark shadow of stubble along his jaw and the green flecks dancing in his eyes. Close enough that the scent of him—smoke, leather, and an innately masculine note—wraps around me, teasing my senses.
I curl my fingers around the water bottle just to have something to hold on to. “Thanks.”
He steps back, immediately giving me space again. The air feels cooler with the loss of him. We stand there for a moment as an awkward bubble expands between us. I twist the cap off and take a sip I don’t need, anything to keep my mouth busy so I don’t blurt out something I’ll regret.
He clears his throat, and his gaze drifts to the city before returning to me. “So,” he says slowly, as if choosing his words with great care, “I was thinking.”
“Sounds dangerous,” I say before I can think better of it.
One side of his mouth twitches. “Funny.”
It’s unsettling to realize how much I like making him smile.
Another beat passes, and his expression shifts, the faint crease between his brows deepening. “Why don’t you live here?”
I nearly choke on my water. “Excuse me?”
“I mean—” He lifts his hands almost defensively. “While you’re taking care of Elody. It would keep her routine consistent. And you wouldn’t be running back and forth. You wouldn’t have to worry about walking around alone at night. Or…” His lips tremble with a smile. “Walking in on Oliver and Rina while they’re getting it on.”
Heat rushes to my face as that image flashes in my brain. “I am never going to be able to look my brother in the eye again.”
“You’re not the one who has anything to be embarrassed about,” Laiken says dryly.
I stare at him, trying to process the offer. He wants me to live here. In this penthouse that smells like dinner and his cologne.
“It’s just a thought,” he mumbles when I don’t respond. “If the idea doesn’t work for you, we won’t do it. Easy as that.”
Easy.
Nothing in my life feels particularly easy right now.
“I don’t know,” I say, gesturing vaguely around the penthouse. “Wouldn’t that, you know, cramp your style?”
His gaze dips to my mouth for half a second before lifting to my eyes. It’s enough to make my heart stutter.
“I don’t see how.”
“Well,” I hedge, “I suppose you’d be free to go out more. Date. Do whatever you want. I’d be here with Elody, so you wouldn’t have to worry about her…”
I trail off when his eyes widen.
“Go out?” he repeats.
Already I can feel heat crawling up my neck. “I didn’t mean… I mean, not that it’s any of my business if you?—”
“I don’t,” he says abruptly.
The words land like a grenade between us.
“I don’t date,” he quietly clarifies. “Not since Sarah left.”
Silence stretches until it becomes painful. It feels like I’m tiptoeing through a verbal minefield.
“I’ve been too busy for that,” he adds, gaze fixed somewhere over my shoulder. “Elody comes first, and making sure she’s okay is my priority.”
Of course it is.
