“Safehouses...?” Emre shook his head harder. “No! I don’t know you. I can’t shelter in a place that you have the keys to.”
Did his trust issues stem from something bad? Duke winced. Nat looked uneasy and concerned.
“There’s an apartment building nearby,” Raptor said. “My little brother has a tiny place there, but he’s not the landlord. You could rent something there.”
Emre stared suspiciously at them. “I don’t have any money.”
The bundle in his arms wriggled, a tiny snout poking out. Emre hurriedly pulled the blanket back over the snout.
“Here, we’ll spot you some cash,” Duke said, opening up his wallet. “This might get you some shelter for a week.”
Raptor and Crush opened their wallets too.
Together, they piled a bundle of notes in Nat’s hands, while Emre watched in sheer disbelief.
“Get some food too,” Nat said, shoving the money at Emre. “And... Here’s my number if you need a friend.” He accepted a pen and paper from Duke, scribbling down his phone number and email address. “My name is Nat. I have some friends in Cartfalls who would love to be your friends too. We’re all single dads.”
Then Nat paused, and shared a look with Duke. Duke’s heart skipped.
“This is too much,” Emre said, his lower lip wobbling. “I can’t pay you back.”
“Just stay safe,” Duke said. “That’s all we want.”
Nat looked as though he wanted to pull Emre into a hug, but wasn’t sure of its welcome. “We can go with you to the apartment building, if that makes you feel better.”
Emre glanced at Duke and shook his head.
“Okay.” Nat’s shoulders slumped. “You have some cash, and my number. If you need help, we’ll do our best to help.”
“Th-thank you,” Emre said. He sketched a quick bow, stuffed the money into his pocket, and hurried in the direction of the apartment building.
“Do you think he’ll be okay?” Raptor asked.
“We could check on him,” Crush said.
“I’ll ask my brother to keep a lookout,” Raptor said. “Zenith’s moving back in there soon. Deadlines or something.”
“Good,” Duke said. He handed Wanda back to Nat and scooped them both into his arms. “Single dad, huh?”
Nat blushed. “Maybe not so single anymore.”
Duke grinned and held him closer, dropping a kiss on his head. “C’mon. Let’s go home.”
Nat patted his pockets. “If it’s not too much trouble... Could you help me find my phone? I think I lost it on the way.”
“I’ll see if I can sniff it out,” Crush said.
29
NAT’S FRIEND CHAT
Nat-urallyBig
Walren, was it RAPTOR’S restaurant that you broke into!?!??!!?!?
IvoFivo
Nat!! You’re okay!!!!! Ace told me you got kidnapped (scream emoji)
