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“I have no idea what to do. Henry Dale can’t afford to move. Neither can Rowan or Mira. And I don’twantyou or Sally to go.” She inhaled shakily, trying to fight off tears. “Can we keep this between us while I…figure things out?”
Crying wouldn’t do any good, but she was trying so hard not to freak out that it felt like her eyeballs might explode. Eli sat beside her on the bed and pulled her into a hug, his hands moving in gentle strokes down her back. That was the last straw; she burst into noisy, messy tears that proved how woefully unprepared she was to own a home or a be a landlord or even complete the most basic of adult tasks. She had notes on her calendar to do certain things like pay the bills, and then she set alarms to remind her to check her calendar, or she’d just make jewelry all day.
Eli said gently, “Henry Dale already knows. He was with me when I answered the door last night. And…I don’t know if secrecy is the answer. Maybe if we put our heads together, we can come up with a solution.”
She sighed. “You’re right. I’m no good at hiding how I feel, so everyone will know something’s up. Better to deal with it up front, I guess.”
He kept petting her. “These things take time. I’m sure that the city has limited personnel, so one approach would be for two of us to make ourselves scarce while the inspector is here. I could take Henry Dale on a road trip or something.”
Iris shook her head. “No, that doesn’t address the problemlong-term, and I don’t want to solve this with lies. Susan will keep complaining unless we find a legal remedy.”
“That’s true. If we knew what wasreallybothering her, we might be able to address the root issue and talk it out.”
Shrugging, Iris said, “I figure she’s allergic to other people’s happiness. She liked it better when my poor auntie lived in the house alone.”
Eli snapped his fingers. “Oh! I can talk to Liz. She looks over—” Suddenly, he stopped talking, paused a beat, then said, “My friend Liz is a lawyer. She doesn’t live in St. Claire, but she can definitely look at the housing laws here and advise us.”
“That would be amazing. You don’t mind asking her? What about her consultation fee?” Iris asked, dreading the thought of how much an email would cost. She’d seen the hourly rates billed to her great-aunt’s estate, and while she was doing better, she still had credit card debt to pay down along with old student loans.
Why isnothingever easy for me?This whole situation felt tremendously unfair, as Susan’s enmity made no logical sense.We didn’t even do anything.
“Don’t worry about that,” Eli said.
She should protest, as she’d taken a lot of help already—from Eli especially, but from everyone else as well. Henry Dale had done reno while Sally filled the freezer with food she never asked anyone to pay for; Mira was casting spells to fix up the house while Rowan worked fulfillment on Iris’s jewelry business. Iris had wanted to be independent, but instead, she’d assembled a team.
No idea what that says about me—probably nothing good. Maybe I’m biologically incapable of succeeding on my own.
But Eli didn’t seem to think there was anything wrong with her. And she’d smeared her tears all over his hoodie and he was still here, still cuddling her like he had nothing else to do for the rest of the day. God, he smelled fantastic, all woodsy and crisp, so much that she wanted to roll around with him.
Then he kissed the top of her head, and the tingle ran straight down to her toes. That gave her the courage to…try.
“I guess we need to have another house meeting,” she said softly.
After Eli sent an email to Liz explaining the situation, along with some pertinent links to local housing regulations, he ran some errands.
Dish soap. Laundry detergent. Toilet paper.
He never mentioned buying this stuff, mostly because he honestly enjoyed making everyone’s lives easier. Nobody else seemed to notice when they were about to run out, and he liked being the detail person, the one who made it so Iris didn’t have to worry.
I wish I could spend my life doing this for her. For everyone, really.
On the way home, he stopped by Pablo’s and ordered a bunch of tacos for dinner. They had the good kind here—his favorite, tacos al pastor. Gamma had introduced him to them on a vacation in Florida; she’d tried her best to give him a little Mexican culture, but he’d still lost a lot when his mom had passed so young, losing touch with her side of the family. Several times a year, he thoughtabout looking for them—it probably wouldn’t be that tough—but he always hesitated over taking that last step.
Would they be glad to see him, or would he be an outsider there because he only spoke a little Spanish? He’d tried to keep it up because he’d spoken it with his mom as a child, but his dad hadn’t been fluent, and neither was Gamma. Eli had always felt that he wasn’t quite one thing or another—that he only fit when he was flying, far above the treetops, away from the pettiness and problems that came from other people. Though he wouldn’t admit it, he’d also been lonely.
I’m not lonely anymore.
While he waited for the food, he checked email on his phone. There was an urgent one from Liz, and he read it with a frown.
What is up with you? This is the third message I’ve sent. AroTech is talking about going with another candidate on this project. They said you came across lukewarm in the videoconference, and I can’t say I disagree. Are you really letting go of this much money?
Don’t make me fly over there.
I’m doing my best to reassure them, but they’re insisting on a face-to-face to hammer out the particulars. They want your signature and a handshake by the end of the week, or this isn’t happening. Get your butt to Seattle! Don’t disappoint me.
Before he could type a reply, the counter guy shouted, “Tacos al pastor!” and Eli went to grab the piquant-smelling bags. Currently,there was just too much going on for him to worry about a deal he wasn’t even sure he wanted. Pushing the issue to the back of his brain, he drove home in a hurry, keen to check on Iris.
The others greeted him at the front door, Rowan eagerly pulling the bags of food from his hands. “What did you get? Oh my God, it smells fantastic.”
