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“You and Aiden will get along well. There’s some lentil stew he made last night still in the fridge. I’ll heat some up when we get home. What do you say?”
Although I was 8 inches taller and outweighed her by a hundred pounds, she looked me in the eye and said, “If you try any funny business, I will kick your ass.”
“Scouts honor. I won’t lay a finger or anything else on you.” She pulled the door shut, and I gave a sigh of relief, then started the car and told her to buckle up. We rode to the house in silence.
CHAPTER THREE
Ember
The fire guy pulled away from what remained of my home. The apartment had not been fancy or large, but it had been mine. Tears tried to well in my eyes again, but I forced them back. I had cried enough for one day. Crying is a sign of vulnerability, and I did not want him to think of me as weak. See me as someone he could take advantage of. I was done letting men use me.
There is a line in this black and white movie I saw years ago that has always stuck with me, ‘I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.’ My mother, like the woman in the movie, always relied on men or the government to provide for her. From a young age, I promised myself I would not end up that way.
I studied hard and got good grades. It was not easy. There never seemed to be enough money to cover rent, so I changed schools a lot. As soon as I was old enough, I got a part-time job waitressing. By the time I was 18, I’d saved enough to afford the security deposit on an apartment with the guy I was dating. He was five years older than me and, like Reggie, an unemployed mechanic. I guess you could say I have a type.
The problem was, he seemed to know when my payday was better than I did. By the time I kicked his broke ass out, I had to get a second job to pay off the bills he’d run up on my credit card. Apparently, I was a slow learner. Over the next three years, I continued to fall for the wrong guys. When I broke up with Reggie, I promised myself I was done with men. But here I was in the car of a total stranger, on the way to his place.
I looked at the man in the driver’s seat of the fancy car and tried to not notice how sexy he was. What’s his game, I wondered. This was twice he had come to my aid, seemingly to expect nothing in return. But I had been fooled by nice guys before and was not about to let my guard down.
“This is it.” He pressed the remote on the visor and pulled in to the garage of a cute two story brick home. The door shut behind us, but convinced I was making yet I another mistake, I did not get out of the car right away. To his credit, Logan did not rush me.
But both of us knew I had no choice. As a kid, my mother and I had spent more than a couple of nights in shelters. I knew they would require identification. Identification I no longer had, thanks to the dickhead that stole my car. I took a deep breath, opened the door, and stepped out.
When we entered the house, Logan offered to take my jacket, but I told him I would keep it on. The thin tank top beneath might give him ideas. He gave me a tour of the home. It was nicer than any place I had ever lived.
“This is a nice place the two of you have.” Although it was a bit too masculine for my tastes. “You could use a little greenery. “I had a bunch of plants in my apartment.” I took a deep breath, not wanting him to see me cry again. He reached out and squeezed my hand. “Nothing fancy, ferns mostly. But whenever I walked through the door and saw those plants, it made me feel like I was home.”
I followed him up the steps to where the bedrooms were. “This is my room. You can sleep here. I will take the couch.” I asked why he would sleep on the couch instead of in the other bedroom. “That’s Aiden’s room.” He blushed. “This is his house. I just live here.”
“And?”
“He’s kind of particular about people messing with his stuff.” I could relate to that, not that I had any stuff left. “Plus, he might freak out if he came home and found a woman in his bed.”
“What is he, gay?”
“Something like that,” he said and blushed again. “The bathroom is down the hall, if you would like to clean up before dinner.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Maybe you should go first. Not to be rude but, you smell a little ripe.”
He sniffed his armpit. “It’s that damn Tyvek suit. They are supposed to be breathable, but every time I put one on, I sweat like a pig. The soup is in the fridge if you want to eat while I shower.”
I went downstairs and found the kitchen. Like the rest of the house, it was neat and tidy. I took a couple of bowls from the cabinet and filled them with lentil stew. While they were warming in the microwave, I sliced a couple pieces of herb bread from the loaf on the counter. When Logan came down wearing a baggy pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, I had just set the table.
His hair was still damp, and he smelled much better. A spicy scent, as masculine as he was. He looked at the table. “You didn’t have to go to all of this trouble. Usually when Aiden’s not around, I just eat in front of the TV.”
“It was no trouble.” I told him. “If you would prefer to eat in the living room, I won’t mind.”
“No. This is nice. It will give us a chance to get to know each other better.”
I was still not sure I trusted this guy, and even under the best of circumstances, I dislike talking about myself. So, as we sat down, I took control of the conversation. “How long have you and Aiden been living together?”
His cheeks flushed again. It was cute the way he seemed to embarrass so easily and seemed at odds with the tough guy personality I had seen at the diner. I considered the possibility I had misjudged him. Then he spoke.
“It’s been about six months. Ever since I came out of rehab.” Damn it. Of course, he was another drunk or druggie, the only type of men I seemed to attract. I decided I would take my chances on the streets and started to get up.
He must have seen my expression, because he quickly clarified, “Physical rehab.” I eased back into my seat. “I used to be a firefighter, just like Aiden. But there was an accident, and I got hurt. The doctors said it was questionable whether I would ever walk again. But I busted my ass just to prove them wrong.” He dipped a slice of bread into his stew. “When I could walk again, the doctors were willing to release me, but only if I had help at home.”
He took another bite of bread, and I tried to not notice the chiseled line of his jaw as he chewed. “I lived by myself, in a third-floor walk-up. Aiden knew this and told the doctor’s I could stay with him.”
