“I thought I just needed to spend the night every few days.”
“I’d feel better if you lived with us. Just in case there’s a last-minute shift change or overtime.”
“But—”
“Unless, of course, you’re attached to doing farm chores every morning.”
She scrunches up her nose.
“I’ll pay you, of course. And there are… other perks.”
She splutters into her drink, a drop of coffee landing on her chin.
I swipe it away with my thumb and take her mug from her, placing it on the island. “Come with me.”
She hops off the stool and takes my hand, her small palm fitting perfectly into mine. It’s a simple touch, but it feels significant. I don’t want to let her go.
I guide her up the industrial staircase with the black metal railing and turn down a narrow hallway, stopping in front of two small steps leading up to a door. I tug her in front of me and wait.
She glances over her shoulder with one hand on the doorknob. I nod, silently urging her to step inside.
When the door swings open, Ruby gasps.
The room is bathed in the soft glow of sunlight, from the distressed wood floors to the cathedral ceiling with the exposed beams, but the architecture probably isn’t what has her stunned. It’s the purpose of the room itself.
Two acoustic guitars sit on their stands next to the spinet piano. One belongs to me, and the other… was Ruby’s. Does she recognize it? She left it on my tailgate nearly ten years ago, and it’s been mine ever since.
There’s a brown leather sofa on one wall, and a large area rug taking up the center of the room. The far wall is covered in a display of vintage vinyl records with a Victrola perched on amid-century table underneath. If she decides to look through the records lined up inside the table, she’d see every version of her albums from her very first EP to the deluxe edition of her latest release.
“Liam. This is amazing.” She walks over to the antique piano, her fingers sliding over the keys. A singular note rings out, reverberating through the space.
“The acoustics in here are decent, and you’re more than welcome to use it whenever you want.”
Her eyes widen. “Seriously?”
“Of course. I like to hide up here sometimes. It’s my sanctuary. It… could be yours, too.” I clear my throat. “For as long as you’re here. There’s a bedroom at the other end of the hall with an attached bathroom. You can move your stuff in there. Mine and Aiden’s rooms are downstairs, so you’ll have your privacy up here.”
She plays a few more notes, and a heart-stopping smile breaks over her gorgeous face as the small window casts a spotlight around her. I lose my ability to speak—to breathe. Whether it's from the soft lighting making her look like an angel or seeing her in myspace like this, I can’t be sure.
“Ok. I’ll move in, but you aren’t paying me, and I have one condition.”
“Name it.”
“You keep the kitchen stocked with Froot Loops and pumpkin spice coffee creamer.”
“You drive a hard bargain.”
“Take it or leave it.”
“I’ll take it.”
I’ll take all of it every goddamn day for as long as I can have you.
Ruby
Wilder waggles his eyebrows. “So… moving in with Liam, huh?” He loads my suitcase into the back of my truck.
I sigh. “It’s not like that. Liam needs help with Aiden when he’s working, and it’s just easier for me to live there. Besides, when’s the last timeyouhad to live with Mom and Dad?”
