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“Okay…” I trailed off, letting Kai drag me toward the townhouse.
“None of us have done anything with the place since then, and he doesn’t care if you stay here. I called him last night to make sure. You can do whatever you want with it. The older generations make the townhouses really cheap to help out the younger ones, so everything’s paid off. You’d only need to pay for the power bills, and whatever you want for furniture. I can take you shopping tonight, or tomorrow, if you want. Or you can go with Morgan if you’d rather.”
I didn’t say anything, not really sure how to respond. He was offering me a rent-free living place, one that theoretically, held no bad memories for him. It wasn’t his, and it wasn’t Elle’s.
But…
There was probably a catch. Wasn’t there always a catch?
I remained silent as he grabbed a key from underneath a faded welcome mat, and then unlocked the door.
His hand was on the small of my back as he gently pushed me inside in front of him. I found myself in a townhouse whose floor plan was an exact mirror of Kai’s, but the entire interior was different. The walls were light gray, the flooring was dark tile. The kitchen cabinets were white, and their design was different.
There was no furniture anywhere, and the stairs were also tiled, instead of carpeted like Kai’s. The place smelled like dust, and everything needed a good cleaning, but nothing was stinky or gross in any way.
I followed Kai up the stairs as we silently checked everything out.
Honestly, despite the floor plan thing, it didn’t feel anything like Kai’s house. And… I liked it.
I especially liked the price tag.
And the fact that Morgan lived next door.
“Lucas and I are coming over to clean the place with you after I pick him up from school,” he added.
My throat swelled.
“And I’m going to need you to show up with candy or some kind of toy. There are little cars for a buck at the checkout counter in most stores—give him one, and you’re his favorite person for the next hour. I’ll stop and grab something for you, and sneak it into your pocket or something,” he said.
“No, don’t,” I said quickly. “I’ll pick it out myself.”
He nodded. “Is this going to work for you, or should I keep looking?”
Wow.
There was no resentment behind the question—no judgment, either.
Just a simple, thoughtful question.
“This is perfect,” I admitted.
“Good.”
He headed downstairs as I looked around the bathroom, trying to figure out what cleaning supplies I’d need to buy on my way home from work. Everything really just needed to be wiped down to remove the dust, honestly.
When I made it downstairs, Kai had already cleaned off the countertop with a roll of paper towels that I remembered seeing in his truck earlier. He’d set my bags on the clean counter, and was wiping down the rest of the kitchen.
“Guess you don’t really need a kitchen, huh, Spitfire?” he asked me, his voice a bit playful.
“Nope. They’re nice to look at, though.” I winked at him. “And I used to be a pro at making pasta. Pasta is the way to Morgan’s heart.”
A chuckle rumbled his chest. “Mine too, if there’s steak in it.”
Hmm.
Good to know.
“Ready to head to the studio?” he asked.
