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“The damage done costs more than the car is worth.”
“Oh god.” She pressed a hand to her chest and slipped out of my arms. “What am I going to do? I mean, I have money saved. I can get another car. Maybe try to find something used. Who knows? Maybe I’ll find something at a good price.”
“You’re going to keep driving my truck.”
“Then what are you going to drive? You can’t keep Laurent’s car.”
“I’m going to go to the dealership tomorrow and get something new.”
“What? Absolutely not. You cannot buy another vehicle, so I can keep driving the one you already have.”
“It makes sense. Having one vehicle has proved to be an inconvenience. If mine has to go in the shop, I have to get a rental or ask Laurent to borrow one of his. If I had a second vehicle, I wouldn’t have to worry about it.”
“Who just has money to buy another vehicle like they’re buying a new sweater?”
Rhone’s words came back to me.I imagine to someone like Quinn, it’s a big deal. He was right. I had been lucky to never really know what it was like to struggle. I’d worked my ass off since I was a teenager, but I also never went without. There were people who busted their asses just as hard as I did and couldn’t afford one car. It was easy to forget sometimes.
“I was going to offer to buy you a new car, but I figured this was an easier battle to win,” I admitted.
“Are you out of your mind?”
“No. I never should have let you leave that night.”
“You have to stop blaming yourself for it.”
I took her in my arms and drew her to me. “I can’t. I could have lost you.” I lost Rebecca, and it knocked me on my ass, but losing Quinn, I didn’t think I’d survive that.
“But you didn’t. I’m right here.” She took my hand and placed it against her cheek. I nuzzled into the comforting touch, the warmth, and allowed the calm that she brought me to spread through my body.
“Stay the night.”
“Because this morning went so swimmingly.” She laughed, and it was exactly why I didn’t want her to leave. She brought me joy without even trying.
“Gio already saw you in my bed.”
“He thinks I had a tummy ache.”
“You can still have a tummy ache,” I suggested, but Quinn’s lifted eyebrow told me she wasn’t buying it. “Or we can just tell him we’re family, and family sometimes spends the night.”
She inhaled slowly, her chest rising and falling. “But what if…?” She blinked up, her finger waggling between us. “What if this is just a summer fling? I don’t want to get Gio’s hopes up. I don’t want another woman walking out on him.”
I took her finger into my grasp and brought it to my lips, kissing the tip. “This isn’t a fling for me.”
“You say that now, but this is new and exciting. What happens when it gets old and stale?”
“I’m already old and stale.”
She poked me in the stomach, and my body bowed away from the unexpected jolt. “You are not old, and you are definitely not stale.” She leaned in, pressing her mouth to my neck. Her tongue snaked out, trailing along my skin. “You are quite yummy.”
My hand grabbed the countertop, gripping the granite. “If you don’t stop that, we’ll be in my bed way before bedtime.”
She lifted, kissing my lips before pulling back. “With Gio awake? You would never.”
“When he’s asleep, all bets are off.”
“Then I’ll just have to stay.”
I exhaled, feeling a weight lift from my shoulders. I’d lived thirty-nine years without Quinn, but the thought of being without her for even a night seemed impossible.
