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“Nice to meet you,” Daisy said. “Now I’m going to my room to mind my own business.”
He watched Daisy walk away and stood there in front of the living room. It wasn’t a foyer but off to the side.
“She knows?” he asked. “Which is good because Zane and Trace do too.”
“What?” she asked, her jaw dropping. “You told your friends we slept together twice? Oh my God. Lily and Violet will know now.”
“No,” he said quietly. “I’d never do that. They noticed I followed you to the bathroom and was gone a long time. That is why I’m here. I wanted you to know that. I didn’t tell them anything more. They are men, they just think I’ve got a thing for you or something. They won’t tell Lily and Violet. I trust them.”
She frowned. “A thing?”
He waved his hand. “You know what I mean.”
“No, I don’t. Take your jacket off and come in so we can find out.”
He pulled his coat off and handed it to her, she opened a door to a closet and hung it up. “This is a nice place. Do you own it?”
These weren’t rental units. He knew that much. It was a condo that people purchased and there seemed to be a lot of amenities around. Nothing he’d ever had in his life or thought he could afford before. Maybe once he started working full time as a trooper he could consider something.
Nah, too many people. He’d gotten a taste of the quiet life at Zane’s cottage and knew he’d never want anything different again.
No more shared walls or roommates.
“No,” she said. “Not sure I could ever buy anything like this on my own. At least not right now. This was Poppy’s condo. I was hired when she was getting ready to move in with Reese. She was going to sell it and then when I was having a hard time finding a place to rent, they decided to see if I wanted to rent this. It was more than I could afford and I know they weren’t charging me what they could but what Poppy was paying in her mortgage. Then when Daisy was hired and struggled to find a place, they asked what I thought of having a roommate. It was perfect really.”
“Did you meet Daisy first?” he asked. “What if you didn’t get along?”
She laughed. “I get along with almost everyone, but I did meet her. Lily would have never suggested it if she didn’t think it would work out. Those three sisters are really good judges of character. And that isn’t what you wanted to talk to me about. You could have just texted me about Zane and Trace too. So why are you here?”
He shouldn’t be surprised she put him on the spot, but he was. “I just wanted to explain why I’ve been absent,” he said.
They were in the living room now, sitting on the couch. She lifted an eyebrow at him. “You said we were going to stay in the present. You are presently working in a new career and not around much. Spending time in the car daily and then long days there, plus, knowing you, probably training more on your own.”
Funny how she got him when most didn’t. Or at least most women didn’t. “Yeah,” he said. “I’ve got a few more months to go.”
“And you want to focus on that,” she said. “I get it.”
He looked at her face. She was saying all the right things, but there was something in her eyes that said more than her words or her actions. “I like you,” he said.
“The same,” she said quietly. “Or I wouldn’t have ended up in bed with you.”
“The couch too,” he said.
She smiled. “That too. I have fond memories of that.”
Shit yeah, he wanted to say but didn’t. “You aren’t alone. I’m not sure I’m what you want or need. Or if I can give you what you might even want.”
“Since we haven’t talked all that much you don’t know what I want.”
She had a point. “What do you want? Let’s say a few months from now, when I’m stationed and if it’s close by. What would you want?”
He knew the words out of his mouth sounded insecure even though he was trying his damnedest to not show it.
His whole life he’d put on this big front to be a tough guy when deep down he just wanted to be liked. Maybe even loved.
When that thought popped into his head he felt his manhood shrink up to nothing.
“Honestly, I’m not sure.”
