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They’d met a handful of times and, like always, he’d taken his time to figure out whether he liked the guy Leah had chosen to date. The jury had still been out, but Will was proving he was ready to be by Leah’s side whenever she needed him, like he had done these past few days. And, in truth, Keaton’s wariness of Will had nothing to do with the younger guy, and everything to do with his own baggage.
His fears that Leah would one day be heartbroken like he was. That Leah would fall madly in love and not need him anymore. That if it were to happen...Keaton would have no purpose or meaning in life.
“Hi, Will.” He nodded, though he couldn’t find it in him to smile.
Will glanced at Leah as if to say,I told you he doesn’t like me.Leah leaned in and whispered something in Will’s ear and squeezed his arm.
“I should get home and make sure my roommate hasn’t eaten everything in my cupboards,” Will said with a laugh. He leaned in to kiss Leah on the forehead and give Molly a scratch, then he was gone.
“Want to come in?” Leah asked Keaton. “We’ve got leftovers from dinner last night if you’re hungry.”
“That sounds great.”
The three of them headed inside and set about making drinks and heating up some of the fried rice and honey chicken that Leah and Will had ordered the previous evening. Keaton grabbed a seat at the table and was surprised when Molly sat on his feet.
“I never thought I would see the day,” Leah said, laughing. “My big brother and my dog acting like best friends.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Keaton said dryly. “We had our moments.”
“I saw the pictures from the photo shoot.” She laughed, her eyes sparkling. “I’ve asked August to send me the lot and I’m going to get them printed and hang them on the wall in the living room.”
“Did she tell you about the ‘talent’ portion, where Molly didn’t execute asinglecommand?” He cringed.
“No. Tell me everything!”
Fifteen minutes later Leah was laughing so hard tears rolled down her cheeks as Keaton regaled her with all the funny stories of Molly’s antics and how they’d slowly become friends over the course of the long weekend.
He’d downplayed the scariness of finding Molly and August stranded during the storm, making out like it was a dramatic tale told for her amusement rather than something that had seriously scared the shit out of him.
The moment he thought he’d lost them both...
It had almost split him in two.
But he didn’t want Leah thinking about that, so he skipped over the scary bits and focused on Molly’s hatred of tree sap and how she’d clung to him like a baby and licked his face so hard he thought he’d have to scrub it for a week to get the doggy drool off.
“Oh my goodness.” Leah’s eyes squeezed shut and she brushed the tears from her cheeks. “Stop. My stomach is hurting.”
“I’m sorry we couldn’t win for you,” he said, turning serious.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I never thought she would win.” She held up a hand. “And that hasnothingto do with your talents or Molly’s. I just know she can be a little difficult and honestly... I thought it would be fun. And anyway, August told me that the lady who runs Paws in the City wants to mentor me! Isn’t that amazing?”
Leah’s beaming smile was almost able to wipe all the darkness from his heart. Almost. “Thatisamazing. Sounds like a great opportunity.”
“I hope it might be helpful for my YouTube channel and website, too. I’ve been planning a series on why pets are great for mental health when you have a chronic illness.” She nodded. “I think it would help a lot of people.”
He swallowed and looked down.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“You’re...” He shook his head. “I wish I was half as strong and kind as you are, Leah. You’re going to change the world.”
She blinked. “I don’t know about that. But if my content can help even a few people, then that’s pretty good, right?”
“Don’t sell yourself short, you have big things in front of you.”
“Something’s different, Kea.” She cocked her head. “I mean, I appreciate your faith in me but I don’t like that you’re acting as if you’re not a strong and kind person.”
He wasn’t. He was fucking weak.
