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Heknowsme, maybe even better than I know myself, and that makes me want to hug him and cry into his chest and never let go.
My toes are cold and wet, and when I glance down, a sad but amused laugh escapes me.
I’ve forgotten my shoes.
Twenty
The ride to Jason’s house is quick and quiet. He glances over at me every once in a while like he wants to ask me more questions, but he must sense I’m not ready to talk yet and doesn’t push it. It’s such a classic Jason thing, and it helps release the tension in my body.
I know Jason; he’s a stable presence at this time of uncertainty. The way he got out of the car and ran over to me with a big black umbrella, scanned me with that concerned look on his face, and pulled me into a hug made me feel instantly better. Even the way he noticed I was standing there in nothing but my socks and sighed an exasperated but unsurprised sigh and asked, “Why are you never wearing any goddamn shoes?” made me feel like I was right at home. I know who he is and how he makes me feel, and that certainty makes this entire messed-up situation seem less stressful.
Jason pulls into the driveway of a beautiful two-story home not too far from Dario’s and kills the engine.
“Are you sure Natalia’s okay with me coming to stay here?” I ask Jason for the third time. I feel like asking a woman to take in a girl she’s never met is a lot.
“Please, Natalia’s overjoyed to have some ‘feminine energy in the house for a change,’” Jason says. “It’s all good.”
I eye him skeptically. “Are you just saying that, or is it actually okay?” I really,reallylike Jason, so I absolutely do not want to make a bad impression on his mom by running into her in the morning wearing my pj’s and holding my toothbrush if she made it clear I wasn’t welcome there.
Jason gives a small laugh. “It really is okay. Besides, Natalia loves taking in strays,” he jokes, referring to himself and his brothers, though I guess I’ve always been a stray too. Jason gives my hand a reassuring squeeze. “She thinks the more people in the house, the better. I promise.”
Still, I hesitate before exiting the car. “And are you sureyou’reokay with me staying here?” The last thing I want to do is make Jason feel like he was cornered into letting me stay with him and have him get sick of me after the first few hours. I don’t want him to think I’m a clingy girlfriend—well, not girlfriend, butfriend-who’s-a-girl-that-he-kisses-occasionally-and-spends-lots-of-time-with.
Jason shakes his head. “Get out of the car, Siena.”
He doesn’t wait for me to reply and exits the car, grabbing my duffel and backpack from the trunk and opening my door for me all before I even have time to process what’s going on. It’s stopped raining in the short time it took for us to drive here, and the sun even peeks out a bit from behind the gloomy clouds.
“But you didn’t give me an answer,” I say, turning in my seat to face him. In Jackson’s SUV, I’m almost at eye level with Jason standing on the interlock, and he pins me with a hard look.
“Because it was a stupid question.”
“But I jus—”
He steps closer to me and pushes my door open wider. “Of course I want you here. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have insisted. Now get your butt inside before it starts raining again.”
A stupid grin slips over my face, and I try to hide it as I step down.
As soon as my feet touch the ground, Jason glares at my destroyed and muddy socks like they’ve personally insulted him. “I should’ve known to bring you shoes,” he mutters as he closes the door behind me, and my grin grows even wider. I wonder how he’s going to feel when I tell him I don’t think I packed a single pair of shoes. In fact, I don’t even remember what I packed at all; it was all a blur.
Jason carries my bags to the front door, and I squelch through the puddles behind him. The yard is perfectly landscaped, and there are some pretty purple flowers in decorative pots by the front door. It’s not locked, and Jason pushes it open, gesturing for me to enter first.
Before we go in, I pause and turn to look at him.
Like every time I see him, I’m almost physically stunned by just how handsome he is. His short hair is messy like he just woke up, and for the first time, I notice he’s in gray sweatpants and a rumpled T-shirt, like he quickly grabbed the first clothes he touched.
My eyebrows draw together, and a twinge of guilt twists my stomach. “Were you in bed when I called you?”
He shrugs a shoulder, unbothered. “It’s Saturday morning.”
“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry, Jason. I ruined your Saturday morning with my bullshit.”
“Hey, it’s not bullshit, Siena. It’s your life, and I’m here for you, no matter what.” His eyes are commanding and filled with promise. “And you didn’t ruin my Saturday. I get to spend it with you now. You’ve enhanced it.”
His crooked smile and earnest sweet talk make me laugh, and the last of my tension from the morning melts off my body.
Because I can’t stop myself, I gently run my hand over his cheek and jaw, and the connection instantly makes sparks run all the way up my arm and straight down to my toes.
“Thank you, Jason. For everything.”
