The sound of the door opening caught my attention, and I pushed thoughts of Dean aside. I stood, Anthony stirring in my arms. He hadn't really been asleep yet, so as Dalton and Juliette came into the living room, he peeked over my arm.
“There's my boy,” Juliette said as she reached for him. “I've missed you.”
“We had some fun aunt and nephew time,” I said as I handed him over.
“You know,” Juliette said, “you're welcome to babysit anytime.” She winked at me.
“Be a bit of a drive just to babysit,” Dalton said as he ran his hand over his son's head.
If that wasn't a sign to share, then I didn't know what it was. “Actually,” I said, “it wouldn't be long at all.”
My brother gave me a surprised look. “You're not going back to Cambridge?”
I shook my head. “Better than that. I'm moving here.”
“To LA?” Still surprised, but at least he didn't seem annoyed.
I shrugged. “You know how it is. I want to make my own way but figured it'd be nice to know some people.”
“Well, I think it's great,” Juliette said. “You're welcome to stay here as long as you need.”
Dalton didn't look too happy at that, but I couldn't blame him. He and Juliette hadn't had the most traditional relationship, what with her getting pregnant before they'd even dated. They didn't need his little sister hanging around right after they got married.
“I don't need to,” I said. “I found a place.”
“Already?” Now it was Juliette's turn to sound surprised.
“I had some time on my hands this week.”
“I'll want to check the places out with you before you make a decision,” Dalton said, his big brother face firmly in place. “Make sure they're safe.”
I couldn't resist. “You already did.” I kept my expression bright. “There was a great place available one floor down. I'm moving in tomorrow.”
“Here?” Juliette glanced at Dalton. “Not that we won't be glad to have you close by. It's just...”
“Where'd you get the sort of money for a deposit?” Dalton put it out there.
“I've been saving,” I said, hedging the truth. “I worked a lot during school, and I had a good scholarship.”
He still looked worried. “If you need any help–”
“I'll ask.” I tried not to sound as annoyed as I felt. I knew he just wanted to help, but he could look less like I was some clueless kid who was in over her head. “I lived on my own back East. I'll be fine.”
Dalton opened his mouth like he wanted to say something else, but Juliette put a hand on his arm, and he closed it.
It looked like I did have an ally in my sister-in-law, and I was looking forward to getting to know her better. Yet another reason why staying in LA was going to be good for me.