Page 78 of The Moment He Couldn’t Walk Away

“I’m real sorry about your mom and everything else that’s going on with you.”

She made herself smile up at him. “Thanks, Lynx. I’m doing the best I can, and right now I just want to sleep for a week,” she added, yawning loudly.

“Amen to that, and it’s something I plan to do shortly,” he said, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “Remember you have people who care close.”

With those words, he left, and she was alone again.

“Get a grip, Nina. This has been your life for years,” she muttered, unlocking the front door she’d taken to locking after the break-in.

Nina stepped inside and heard the welcoming meow as she switched on the light.

“I have you, and don’t need anyone else. Isn’t that right, Mabel?”

Mabel gave another loud yowl, but the cat didn’t rush forward to greet her, which was odd. She was usually right in Nina’s face when she came home, demanding food. Moving through the living area, Nina headed to the kitchen, and the yowling got louder.

When she opened the pantry door, a ball of white fur streaked out.

“What are you doing in there?”

Nina was sure Mabel had been on the sofa when she left for girls’ night and that the pantry was closed. She always shut her cupboard doors—it was a thing with her. Cill left everything open, which drove her crazy.

But her head was all over the place, so maybe she had shut the cat in there and not realized it. Anything was possible now.

Exhaustion had her pushing all thoughts but sleep aside. Heading down the hallway, Nina washed, and then stripped off her clothes and fell into bed. If Finch came over, he came, and if not, that was okay, too, she told herself, because her only priority now was sleep.

Chapter 21

He’d watched Nina leave and felt something heavy settle in his chest. That woman was becoming important, and he wasn’t ready for that. It wasn’t the right time for either of them.

Mindless sex? Hell yes, he wanted that, but it could never be mindless with her, so he needed to back away.

She’d just lost her mother, and there was plenty of other shit she was dealing with, so he should leave her alone. Nina had plenty of friends who could look out for her, she didn’t need him.

“Don’t know about you, man, but I’m exhausted. Give me a wall to build any day because this barman shit is hard,” Ryder said around a yawn as they finished in the Rollaway.

“Amen,” he said, shrugging on his coat. “But shouldn’t you have said, ‘cake to bake’? Aren’t your big brothers the builders?” Finch asked.

“I can still do it, I just don’t choose to.”

“Nice,” Finch said. “I sure wish everyone in this town would ask you to build their crap for them then and not me.”

“I have my shit together, unlike you, so they think you need their help to get yours sorted,” Ryder said. “Nice coat.”

“Does everyone in town know that June Matilda forced me to buy Caleb’s castoffs?” Finch asked.

“Pretty much. Not sure about Mrs. C.’s son because he can’t see past the end of his nose, but everyone else is aware,” Ryder said.

“I hate this town,” Finch muttered.

“Nah. You love it. It’s just like a really tight shirt that’s hard to shrug off sometimes, especially when they think you need their support,” Ryder said.

“I really don’t,” Finch added.

“Nice work, boys—anytime you want to be barmen, just let me know,” Red said, joining Ryder and Finch. He handed them each some cash. “Go and sleep now. I can tell it was hard on you.”

“No stamina,” Dee said from behind the bar. She looked as fresh as she had when she’d entered.

Maybe fresh wasn’t the word, Finch thought, looking at her face slathered with makeup. But the same.