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“Move in with me?”
His words stun me. The freezer door shuts on its own and I spin back to see if he’s joking. There’s an earnest expression on his face. He’s completely serious.
“I can’t do that.”
He stands, and his long legs eat up the distance between us in a few short strides. “It can be like when we first moved to LA.”
Back when we arrived in California, we shared a small studio apartment until we were both making enough money to afford our own places. I think he wanted to continue living together, but I pressed the issue, using the excuse that I’d never been on my own and I needed to know I could do it.
I’d lied because I was sick of sneaking around behind his back. Having my own place meant I could come and go as I wished and do what I wanted without the guilt that I was doing something wrong.
“I’m a terrible roommate, you know that.”
“You’re not so bad.” He strokes his thumb along my cheek, making me feel delicate and special in the way only he can.
My eyes drift closed as I enjoy his intimate and loving gesture.
“Please. Just stay for a little while. I’m worried about you.” He tucks my hair behind my ears and kisses the tip of my nose.
I open my eyes and stare into the depths of his chocolate-colored ones. I wish I could be the person he wants me to be. Maybe I could be? If I’d try for anyone, it’d be him. “I don’t know…”
The hopeful look on his face bolts over the walls I’ve built around my heart and hits its mark.
“Fine. I’ll move in for a bit. But only until I find a decent place of my own.”
The smile that transforms his face relieves the lingering doubt inside me. It’s rare lately that I get granted a Jimmy smile, and I forgot how special they are.
“Thank you.” He pulls me in for a hug,
I snuggle into his chest, purposely turning my face away from his so he doesn’t smell the alcohol on my breath. “I should be the one thanking you.”
His heartbeat is music. His smell is home. His warmth is safety.
“You know I’d do anything for you, Lilah.”
His words spread joy throughout my veins, before the shame overtakes my elation.
“So what do you want to do with the rest of our night, roomie?” I ask with a smile, changing the subject.
His hands dip to my hips, and he hoists me onto the counter. “I don’t know about you, but I’m starved. Since the extent of your cooking skills is opening the door and paying for takeout, why don’t you sit here while I whip us something up?”
I slide down to a stool at the large island, my hands under my chin and a smile on my lips as I watch him pull vegetables and meat from the fridge. When he’s finished cutting the vegetables, he pulls out some metal skewers for shish kabobs.
Sometimes I wonder how he’s so well-adjusted when we both came from the same poverty-stricken upbringing and screwed-up childhoods where we suffered abuse of one kind or another. We were both there that fateful day more than a decade ago…
“You okay?” Jimmy gives me a strange look.
I force a smile. “Of course.”
I push that memory away. That day revisits me enough in my dreams. I don’t need to let it haunt my waking hours too.
Chapter Nine
JIMMY
After a long day on the set ofThe Regulator,I return home, wanting nothing more than a hot shower, a cold beer, and my bed.
Being the lead actor means I’m on set almost daily and working out between my scenes to keep in peak physical condition. Not that I’m complaining. My costars are easy to get along with—there’re no big egos and everyone’s really positive.
