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Keyton grasped my hand. “Relationships are hard. Trusting someone else with your heart is hard. Even if you’ve been practicing at it since your fucking tween years.”
She glance toward Wade, and found him looking at her. “Fuck,”she mouthed under her breath, and he raised an eyebrow at her when she swore a second time.
Carla giggled. “Geez, he looks like someone’s getting a spanking tonight. No one gets him worked up like you.”
“Good thing since he’s my—um, since he’s mine.” She turned to me. “So…are you afraid Felix isn’t actually serious because it’s been so long that you’ve dated? I’d say getting you put on his skin is pretty significant, Starfish.”
“Starfish,” I whispered to myself, reaching for my drink. He’d named me that after the story about the little boy saving starfish. He couldn’t save them all, but he could savethis one. Felix always said, he saw me that way.
At first, I’d thought he was trying to save me from my rocky home life, especially since his was perfect. But then he told me, no, that wasn’t it. I was the one doing the saving, whether it was kids who got pushed around at school, or saving a puppy, or helping my elderly neighbor. Or even working as a lifeguard as I did now. I’d argued that it was just what you do. Helping. Being a decent human. He didn’t see it that way.
And since then, he’d always called me starfish.
I didn’t think he realized, this time, he was the starfish being saved.
Chapter Five
~ Breezy ~
My head throbbed just a smidge from last night. Wade had brought me home before he and Keyton headed to her place. When I got up this morning, I hadn’t been surprised to find my Jeep outside. Wade was a caretaker that way.
I appreciated it. Especially since I needed to run over to Sizzle Grocery. I was one-hundred percent sure Felix didn’t have much in the way of healthy food at his place. So, an hour later, laden down with a couple full grocery bags, I headed toward his apartment.
Deja vu smacked me sideways as I parked. AnnMarie had just exited Felix’s building. Not seeing me, she walked to a blue Honda Civic parked in the side lot. Frozen, I watched her start it and pull out onto the street.
What the…
“Fuck,” I whispered, dropping my head to my steering wheel. Was I being a fool?
“Two sides. Not necessarily what it seems,” I muttered to myself, repeating what the girls had said to me last night somewhere around drink number three. Keeping myself from over-analyzing, I climbed out of the Jeep then grabbed the groceries from the back.
If nothing else, I’d promised I’d come over today so we could talk. We could talk; then I could leave, if it seemed necessary. But…maybe…AnnMarie lived here in this building. While I knew her—and all the people in town, the locals, seemed to be in each other’s pockets—I had no idea where she lived.
By the time I got to Felix’s door after lugging up the groceries, I didn’t care where she resided. I just kinda hated his building. The damn place needed an elevator, and if we stayed together—which we weren’t—he’d need to move. Especially if he wanted me to live with him.
Why was I thinking of living with him? Apparently, I’d lost my damned mind.
Rolling my eyes, I knocked on his door. After a long wait, I knocked again, louder and longer.
“Hang on! I’m coming!” he grumbled from far enough away from the door I barely heard him. When he answered, he wore a rumpled, unbuttoned shirt and jeans that were zipped but not buttoned. A scandalous amount of chest and groin were displayed for me, but his groggy look and wild sleep-mussed hair made it clear no one had been here before me.
“Breezy…?” He scrubbed a palm over his eyes.
“Hi. Brought you some food. Thought maybe I could make breakfast.”
He nodded, staring at me as if I were the Christmas morning gift he’d dreamed of. And maybe, I was.
“How are you feeling?” I asked as I lugged the bags inside. He took them from me and carried them toward the kitchen, giving me a chance to look around. Felix’s place had always been decorated in homage to the bachelor pad, but this was a disaster. A mess with the slight smell of neglect.
“I’m okay. I think.” He followed my gaze. “Yeah, I know it looks like a bomb went off in here.”
Worse, but I didn’t say so. I followed him into the kitchen. At least, it was basically clean for some reason.
“You think you’re okay? What are your numbers like?”
He shrugged.
“Felix,” I chided.
