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Janae felt her cheeks heat, but she ignored the warmth in favor of plating some pasta, slathering it with meat sauce. When she turned to hand it to him, he was close again, his wide boyish smile making her heart flutter uncontrollably. This man was clearly bad for her health. When he looked up at her, she could almost taste the gratefulness rolling off him, and for the first time she wondered what his story was.

They had been talking here and there, slowly getting to know one another beyond the quick hellos and goodbyes of before. But there was still something so incredibly mysterious about Aiden. As if he were hiding something behind his “good guy” persona, something that he was keeping secret. And it made her want to dig deeper to find out what it was.

Chapter 14

Aiden tried to focus on his food, but his eyes kept drifting back to Janae. She wasn’t doing anything really; just sitting there enjoying her plate of spaghetti like him. Aiden had gone to the Williams house a lot to eat dinner, but somehow this felt different than those times. Maybe it was because Janae wasn’t a pseudo-sister to him like Vini and her sisters were. Or maybe it was because he and Janae were sitting alone with only tension between them.

Earlier, Aiden had acted on concerned instinct when he heard Janae hiss out in pain. He truly hadn’t meant to startle her. It was just nice to see someone doing something for him with no concern for getting anything in return. Growing up, he had always known that if his father or stepmother did something for him, it was with the expectation that the next time they asked for something, he’d better not say no.

His sister, Rowan, hadn’t been that way, but then again, she’d left home years before he could even dream about doing the same. By the time he’d made it out and was set up on his own, she was across the country with a husband and no time to concern herself with a kid brother.

“How do you like it?”

Aiden looked up to see Janae gazing at him. He smiled and lifted his fork. “It’s the best damn spaghetti I’ve had in a while.”

She giggled and shook her head. “You can tell the truth, Aiden. I know I’m not the best cook so . . .” Her voice trailed off, and he frowned slightly.

“What do you mean?” He glanced down at his plate before looking back up at her again. “It’s delicious. It might be better than Vini’s dad’s, and I horde those leftovers like a ring of power.”

Janae huffed out a laugh and shook her head. “I would hardly call this ‘ring of power’ worthy, but it is most appreciated. I’m glad I could make you dinner.”

Aiden wanted to ask why she was pushing back so hard on the idea that he was enjoying her food, but he somehow could sense that maybe there was a story there she wasn’t ready to talk about. Instead, he asked her a simple question about her day, enjoying the way her fingers danced as she talked about some of her rowdier students. Listening to her was just as riveting as watching her paint. Aiden had accidentally on purpose stumbled over to the sunroom once or twice when he knew she was in there. The first time, she wasn’t doing anything other than staring at a blank canvas, and he’d tiptoed away before she caught him watching her. The second time, she had actually been painting, and he hadn’t been able to look away as her arms moved this way and that, colorful streaks appearing before her like magic.

“And I swear he knows just what to say to keep me from failing him. Well, not failing him exactly. I don’t think I’ve ever actually failed a student before unless they just never turned anything in, which has thankfully never happened.” Janae shook her head and then froze. “I’m sorry. I’ve been rambling on, and I didn’t even ask you how your day was.”

“What? You weren’t rambling at all,” Aiden insisted. “I enjoy hearing you talk.”

Janae chuckled softly. “Aiden, that’s really sweet of you, but seriously. If I’m talking too much, you can tell me.”

He frowned. “I would, but you aren’t. I’m not lying when I say I like hearing your stories. It’s nice to have someone to talk to. I used to have a plant I talked to, but that was before the . . . you know.” He twirled his fork in his pasta. “Vini and I chat here and there at work, but mostly we’re just face-first under the hood, you know? We might go hours without saying anything to each other.”

“That sounds boring.” Janae slapped a hand over her mouth, a look of mortification stealing over her face. Immediately, Aiden found himself laughing hard enough to shake the spaghetti noodles off his fork. She slowly dropped her hand but still looked horrified at her own words. “I am so sorry. Sometimes my mouth doesn’t let my brain think things through before it opens and bullshit comes out.”

Aiden snorted. “Trust me when I say I completely understand. But you’re right. It can get boring sometimes. I keep telling Vini we need a TV in there, but she shoots down my idea every time.”

“That’s so unfortunate.”

“Truly.” His grin was wide. The answering smile on Janae’s face nearly sent him into orbit and he finished his food with happiness baked onto his face.

By the time they were done eating, the sky outside had softened to a dark rose, the colors of magenta and purple not far behind. Aiden stood and picked up both their empty plates.

“You don’t have to—”

“Oh, yes I do,” Aiden countered. “You cooked, it’s only fair I clean.”

Janae followed him to the sink. “I don’t remember making that rule when you moved in.”

“I don’t think you made any rules, honestly,” Aiden pointed out as he glanced over at her. He flipped on the water and paused to think about it. He’d had a roommate back when he was in school, but their schedules had been so different that they’d barely seen each other. They never really became friends, and after they moved out, Aiden never saw the guy again. It had been a fine arrangement if not a little lonely. After that, he’d rented rooms here and there until he moved into his last apartment to live alone. “We can if you want. I mean, you can since it’s your house and everything. I don’t mind.”

Janae bumped his shoulder. “Come on. We’re both adults here. I don’t think I need to make rules about when to shower or how to wash your clothes.” Her smile captured Aiden’s eye even as he tried to focus on the dishes he was washing. “Besides, we’ve kind of lucked into a schedule that seems to work as it is.”

She wasn’t wrong. Somehow, without having explicit conversations about it, they had managed to coexist in the space for a couple weeks now. That didn’t mean there hadn’t been moments when Aiden needed to use the bathroom only to realize it was occupied. But there hadn’t been any major issues either, at least on his end.

“True. Unless you’ve been keeping your complaints about me inside,” he replied. “And I really hope you haven’t. If I do something you don’t like, you’re more than welcome to tell me.”

“I don’t think there is much you could do that I would dislike,” Janae said, her voice sounding so incredibly earnest that it brought heat to Aiden’s cheeks. “You’re a very likeable guy.”

He swallowed hard and tried not to let it show how much those words affected him. Being told by Janae that he was not just likeable but very likeable was doing more for him than he was sure she’d intended. But his brain—and heart—couldn’t help but latch on to those words, trying to find hope in their meaning. But it was hope that he didn’t need.