Page 59 of Finally Home

Choking back tears at my boyfriend’s ability to always know what I need; I hug the sweatshirt to my chest. “I love it, babe. I love you.” I glance at the clock and cringe. We lost track of time again. “I’ll be cheering you on from the couch for every game, and on Monday, I’ll be at the airport to pick you up.”

He sighs happily, his eyes barely more than slits. “I love you, Starling. Get some sleep, and I’ll see you soon.”

I make my way into Rhodes’s bed a few minutes later and breathe in the scent of cypress and vetiver, letting the gentle spice of his cologne lull me to sleep. My career and things with this cyber stalker feel kind of up in the air right now, but as long as I have Rho on my side, I know everything will be okay.

CHAPTER 36

WREN

This weekend without Rhodes has been so much more fun than I expected. Friday night, I met up with all the parents for dinner at a food truck festival and since it was outdoors, I was able to bring Finnegan along, much to Mama Gray’s delight. I even invited Lyla, and everybody loved her.

Then today, Lyla and I spent the whole day together. It’s been a while since I’ve had this much fun with a girlfriend. She and Finn are thick as thieves, and she’s taken to calling herself his ‘Auntie Lyla.’

We’re in my dad’s kitchen debating on what to do tonight when Lyla’s phone starts to ring incessantly from an unknown number. She blanches and drops her glass to the tile floor where it shatters.

“Oh my God,” she gasps. Her eyes gloss over as her breaths quicken. “Wren, I-I-I’m so s-sorry. If you c-can point me to the broom, I’ll clean it up!”

I’ve noticed that Lyla can be a little flighty and nervous, but this is the first time I’ve seen her freak out like this. Gently grabbing her hands with mine, I stop her before she can step on the glass. “Lyla,” I say softly. “It was an accident. I promise everything is okay, and nobody is upset.”

Her face turns fire-engine-red, and she quickly averts her gaze. “Can I help you clean it up?”

The more time I spend with her, the more I wonder if she’s running from something or someone. She’s always anxious and on high alert, and her classes are online, so she could live anywhere if she needed to hide. Plus, the ring tan line that’s now starting to fade. I’m not going to pry though. I have a feeling that would ruin our budding friendship.

“Tell you what,” I say with a small smile. “I’m gonna clean this up really quick, and you’re gonna go home and pack a bag to come spend the night at Rhodes’s house with me. Bring your comfiest pajamas and your favorite blanket, and we’ll make it a sleepover. He’s not home, so we’ll have the place to ourselves.”

That gets a quiet laugh out of her. “A sleepover? Aren’t those for little kids and like…middle school girls?”

I snicker. “They are, but we’re adult women, so who’s going to tell us we can’t have a sleepover? Rho’s pantry is stocked with snacks; his couch feels like a freaking cloud, and we can order takeout and get ice cream. Let’s stay up all night, watch movies, and then get a late brunch tomorrow. Seems like the perfect bonding opportunity, if you ask me.”

She seems skeptical until a wide smile breaks out over her usually solemn face. “Can we get Chinese food?”

Grinning, I pull up the number on my phone for Lotus. “I’ll do you one better.”

“I know you wanted to get brunch, but what if we went and got more of those life-changing dumplings instead?”

Lyla’s whines have me cackling in the driver’s seat of Rhodes’s SUV. We had the best night and did everything we talked about, like ordering and eating way too much food. “Lyla, we had four orders of dumplings. I’m pretty sure if we have any more, we’ll turn into dumplings,” I say between heavy breaths. “Quit makin’ me laugh, or I’m liable to crash the dang car.”

She chuckles in the seat beside me as she fiddles with something in her bag.

Glancing at her out of the corner of my eye, I see the flash of an orange cap and feel my eyes widen. “Lyla, do you have allergies?”

A startled look crosses her face until she realizes she’s been playing with her epi-pen. “Umm yeah, I do. It’s kinda weird though.” Her nose scrunches up as the apples of her cheeks turn pink. I wait her out curiously. “I’m allergic to artificial cinnamon. So things like flavored alcohol, gum, candy, certain snacks and foods.”

“Wow, that is weird.”

Lyla leans across the console to gently smack my arm as I snicker. “Hey!”

It’s really nice to see her joking around with me so freely after the glass incident, and I tell her as much.

Her face goes a bit pale as she heaves a deep sigh. “I left a really bad situation back home in Maryland.” She shudders. “My family, my friends, my ex. I couldn’t trust anyone, so I ran. My job is cash-only, under the table and so is my apartment. Nobody can know I’m here, Wren. Please, don’t tell anyone,” her voice is barely audible.

The day I met Rhodes comes back to me like no time has passed, bringing a smile to my face as I hold out a pinky. “Did you ever make pinky promises as a kid?”

She nods warily. “Yeah as a kid.”

I nod back but keep my expression serious. “Excellent. So in our family, we take these very seriously. You make a pinky promise, and you’re takin’ that promise to the grave. Make sense?”

“That’s kinda cute,” she says with a small smile.

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