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There was little doubt in my mind that he’d fill out with enough time and food. I’d heard him and Baylie talking about how a weight room/gym of sorts had been set up in the garage, and they both spent a great deal of time working out in there.
Baylie did not look a thing like Toby. He was short, squat, and very sturdy. He had short brown hair and light gray eyes, and he acted like he didn’t give a single shit about anyone other than Toby.
I didn’t personally know either of their stories, but Baylie didn’t fool me for a second. He treated Toby like he was his blood brother, and now I felt like he had acted a little bit like he gave a shit about me too.
I hadn’t wanted either of them to care about me, and I hadn’t wanted to give either of them the same in return. But here we were, and I actually wanted to build a friendship with the both of them.
I had lost my fucking mind. Clearly.
“Hey, Bells,” Toby said as they reached me.
Bells.
No one had ever called me that before outside of these two. Maybe I had been a little blind before when I came to them, too wrapped up in chasing after my obsessions to care about what else was going on around me.
Jesus Christ, what was the matter with me? Maybe my time being abused down in that hole had really messed me up more than I had originally thought. And wasn’t that a scary thought?
“You guys want to help me carry in all the stuff in the back seat?” I gestured behind me, and they both curiously peeked in through the windows.
“What is all of this?” Baylie asked.
“Baked goods, and not just your blueberry crap. I got a whole lot of everything, and it’s for all of you boys to share. I thought I’d do something nice for you.”
“Holy shit,” Toby murmured in wonder.
“Did you buy out an entire bakery or what?” Baylie asked in an amused voice. “If this is how you say thank you for covering for you, then here’s hoping you bail on work more often. Damn, girl, this is a side of you I like seeing. You should let it out more.”
Yeah, maybe, but I didn’t like opening up to people because it gave them the opportunity to hurt me.
I avoided looking at the house next door as we carried everything inside.
The house wasn’t messy, but it was definitely lived in, and there was stuff everywhere. There were piles of boy shoes in various sizes in the foyer. Hoodies and other pieces of clothing were thrown over chairs and other pieces of furniture. Underneath it all, the space was surprisingly clean.
Who knew a bunch of young boys had that in them? They were a lot cleaner than I was, but it wasn’t like I was going to check out their bedrooms or anything.
There were dishes in the sink, just a few glasses and a plate, and the countertops had a few books and things scattered on them. The boys and I sat everything down on the available space on the island.
I winced as I took everything in, finally feeling slightly embarrassed by how overboard I had really gone. It looked like maybe I was kind of a psycho.
Neither of the boys looked like they thought it made me psycho. They were too busy pawing through boxes and pulling everything out of bags. Their eyes were big and bright, and they both looked excited.
Damn, I did good.
I pulled out a stool on the other side of the island and parked my ass on it while they both started shoving food into their mouths.
Through a mouthful of what looked like something chocolate, Toby mumbled, “So you and Rain are finally sealing the deal, huh? That’s pretty cool.”
Good fucking grief.
Now I imagined it was me who had big ole eyes.
“About fucking time,” Baylie mumbled, and crumbs flew out of his mouth.
I pretended not to notice becauseeww.
Yup, I had been blatantly obvious with my obsession, but that didn’t explain… “How do you guys know about me and Rain?”
“And Romero.” Baylie snorted.
