Page 20 of June 7

At twenty-four years old, she hadn't hit that old age of thirty yet—in the kids' opinion.

Sierra hopped down. "I'm on a break."

"Well, I'm going to check on Tara and see how she's doing." She made her escape.

What she really wanted to do was hurry toward the glass enclosure at the end of the pool and see if she could catch sight of Bane walking back to the building next door.

With a cup in hand, she scanned the sidewalk, but her conversation with Sierra must've kept her from seeing him. She finished the donut, more settled than before. The food gave her energy and soothed the worry away.

Every time she lifted the cup of coffee to her lips, she thought of Bane, and hid her smile from everyone else.

Chapter Nine

Bane tossed the shrimp tail in the white container on the table and leaned back in the chair on the patio. "I need to buy some outdoor furniture."

Daisy hoped that meant he planned to stay longer than the six months on the lease.

"You can always borrow my chairs and table if you need them." She crossed her legs, rubbing the top of her bare thigh.

"I'm sure the landlord had something to say about staying on our own sides of the patio in the long agreement paper I had to sign," he said.

"You didn't read the lease?"

"No one has time for that." He picked up another shrimp. "I needed a place to stay and could pay the rent. That's all that matters."

She used a napkin to wipe her lips. "You do know I own the duplex, right?"

He cocked his brow. "Still not going to read the agreement."

She laughed. For some reason, she expected that of him.

Leaning back in the chair, she brushed the sand off her bare thigh. She'd showered at the pool after work but only had shorts and a t-shirt to change into.

Soon, the sun would dip below the water's surface, the temperature would drop, and they would be forced to go inside to stay warm.

She wasn't ready to call an end to their dinner, even though Bane finished the last of the shrimp. Goosebumps covered her arms. She pretended the cold wasn't bothering her.

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