AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Well…” I shrugged. “The way you said—”
“Fuck no!” Sloane exclaimed. “I came home last night and the asshole was already there!”
Valerio’s eyes narrowed. “I thought he moved out?”
“So did I,” she said glumly. “But after a week of crashing his friend’s couch, I guess he got bored. He must’ve waited up for me last night. Saw me come home.”
“Fucking stalker,” Kade spat.
“That’s what I said.”
She went on to tell us about their conversation, and how he planned on moving back in. We already felt terrible she’d left in the middle of the night. Now we felt even worse, knowing she went through this.
“So I really can’t change the locks?” she asked.
“Truthfully?” I asked. “I don’t think so, no.”
Sloane sipped her coffee, letting out another sigh. “I guess I’m screwed then,” she said. Then, looking up at us: “Even more so than last night.”
Kade gripped his mug and chuckled. “I don’t know aboutthatone.”
“Wait,” I said. “Why are you screwed?”
“Because I’m sure as hell not stayingthere,” she said definitively. “I spent most of the morning packing my things. After we finish breakfast I’ll start looking for a new place. A storage unit at first, to keep the bigger stuff, but after that…”
“Bullshit.”
The word came out harsher than I wanted it to. Sloane looked at me like I had three heads.
“What?”
“Bullshit about you looking for a new place,” I said. “Or a storage unit. Or even bullshit about you going over there to get your things today,” I continued, “if that stalker asshole is planning on moving his stuff back in.”
Kade looked at me and smirked, knowing exactly where I was going with this. Valerio followed suit, although Sloane still hadn’t caught on.
“What are you talking abo—”
“Move in with us,” I said simply. “We’ve gotplentyof room. Two spare bedrooms and an empty detached garage, in fact.”
She opened and closed her mouth in confusion. When she opened it again to protest, I stopped her.
“Don’t even,” I shook my head. “You already know you’re welcome. And it’s not the best place or the cleanest place—”
“It’s not that,” she interjected.
“But it’s good enough to stay through the holidays,” I continued, “at the very least.” I reached out and took her hand, so she would look up at me. “Do you know how hard it’ll be to find a place before Christmas?”
“Yes, but—”
“You could get your work done,” Valerio said. “Kick ass at your show. You said it yourself, you barely have enough time.”
“I couldn’t possibly impose,” Sloane shook her head. “It’s… it’s too much.”
“Please,” smirked Kade. “Spare us all that. You’ve seen the place, and you know we can use the company.” He cleared his throat. “Besides, we’re hardly ever there these days. We’ll be working fifteen-hour shifts from now until Christmas. That should leave you plenty of alone time to work on whatever you need.”
“Hell,” Valerio added, grinning. “We could even help if you wanted.”
It was all true, of course. And come January we’d get even busier running salt-spreaders and plows. Snow season could get crazy at times, but it made up for closing the masonry yard for those few dead months between New Year’s and the beginning of spring.
