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“I was thinking about donating a few things to some of the businesses, for their outside aesthetic.”
“You’re talking so dirty right now, I can’t even.” I fanned my face as he scaled the stairs, carrying me down each step.
He smirked but kept going until we cleared the building and headed back to his house. The dogs trailed behind us, sniffing things out as we drew near to the porch.
“I just thought it could help, and I figured I’d have to coordinate with you to do it. That way, if you dump me again, I still have an excuse to see you.”
He set me down. “I see, so really this is an insurance policy.”
“Exactly.”
I smiled, walking into the kitchen, where I pulled open the fridge. He’d made breakfast, but I wanted to prepare lunch for us. The nice thing about Davis living so far out meant he always had ingredients. He’d taken me out to the big double garage on the opposite side of his warehouse, and there werefivefreezers out there. One was literally full of junk food and vodka.
I prepped lunch while Dove and Duke watched my every move, and Davis fumbled around with something in the living room. Whenever the television was on, he watched funny sitcoms or survival shows—both of which I appreciated, so it was perfect. I liked the noise of it too, especially when Davis lapsed into his quieter side, which was more often than not. I didn’t mind that either. When I needed him to talk to me, he would, and that was all that mattered.
I curled into Davis’s side after I consumed my turkey sandwich, watching the survival show in front of us. I was still exhausted from the event, so I closed my eyes and drifted off. When I woke up, Davis was looking down at me while stroking my hair.
I stretched. “How long was I out?”
“Only an hour.”
Still longer than any other time I had taken a nap. I was about to move away from him, when he stopped me by gently holding my arm.
“Hey, I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”
My belly swooped like we’d just stepped off the tallest building. I was still terrified he’d press for the reason I had left before, and I knew without a doubt that I would eventually need to tell him, but I was still so terrified of his response that I couldn’t bring myself to say anything.
“Okay,” I replied quietly.
Davis pulled me until I was sitting on his lap and he was caging me in with his arms. I liked this position, it meant he didn’t want me to go anywhere. I watched his solemn face as the shadows from the waning daylight flickered across the room, a few slices of light cutting into his hair. On instinct, I ran my fingers through it.
His grip tightened around me as he silently let out a sigh.
“Last time you were here, you asked about my family. I know I didn’t open up or elaborate and I know that’s probably part of why you left.”
“No, it wasn’t that,” I admitted quietly, gathering the strength to say more, but he shook his head, cutting off my attempt.
“I don’t need to know, not as long as you’re here. That’s all that matters. But I still wanted to open up to you. I want you to know how…” He paused, seeming to build up the nerve to finish his sentence, “serious this is to me, Rae. I haven’t ever had a relationship. I’ve never had a girlfriend of any kind, just random hookups. You’re not that to me. You never will be, even after…if this…”
He trailed off again, and I could sense that nerves were eating away at him. To calm him, I pressed a kiss to the space next to his eye, and then on his brow. His hand moved up my thigh, and he continued. “Whatever happens after this, you’re important to me. So, I want to tell you about my family, okay?”
My heart raced and my lungs burned to return the sentiment. I wanted to tell him how important he was to me, how he’d always been, but instead I just nodded silently.
“Let’s start with the basics. I have two parents. They’re still married, and they live in Florida. I don’t see them. We…don’t speak.”
The question of why was on my tongue, but I knew he needed to get through this at whatever pace he needed to.
“I have a brother, but he lives with my parents, and we don’t speak either.”
My poor pathetic heart, it was going to erupt soon if he didn’t start explaining.
To encourage him, I stroked the hair at the back of his neck and the tip of his ear. Slow, steady, peaceful.
“As you know, my real name is Thomas. That was the name I grew up with, and my brother was Timothy. My brother and I, we’re just two years apart, so as kids we were always doing the same things at the same time. I think my mom…she had these hopes that she’d have two boys, and they’d become best friends.”
The small shake of his head told me that wasn’t what had happened at all, and my gut began to sink. Suddenly, I wasn’t sure if I was prepared for this story.
“Tim was different from me. He was peculiar…always sad. No matter what we were doing, he would be bummed about it. He hated everything, including me. I wanted to build forts in the forest, go to the pond, catch frogs… Our summers were always spent outside, but the older Tim got, the more depressed he became. It got to the point where I just stopped trying to get him to come with me. My mom resented me for it, but I couldn’t force him to be happy, and if he did come with me, he was just a downer.”
