Page 24 of Extraction Play

“Sorry I got sidetracked by Kelly and Tabby,” he said, a sheepish look on his face.

“I’d say it was because of how hot they were, but you’re the only one here who wouldn’t appreciate it,” Eva teased.

Micah shook his head. “I’m still pissed you flew under the radar. How the fuck did I miss that?” He passed Pixie a ticket and then her. Together, they stepped inside.

Micah walked alongside her, so she summoned up the nerve to speak. “Not like we lived in the best household for finding yourself.”

“I managed to,” he said, a little bite to his tone. Guilt flooded Eva again at how she’d left him hanging out to dry all these years.

Truth be told, part of her had understood she was interested in women too, but why add one more thing for her mother to hate about her? Those childhood fears hadn’t been far off. Her confession had been the final straw with her parents and hadn’t just blown up her relationship with them but Micah’s too.

“Quit the who’s queerer contest, guys,” Pixie said, an impish grin on her lips. “We’ve got a conservatory to explore.”

Pixie was right, and Eva turned her attention to her surroundings.

The air was lush and fragrant, the greenness seeping into her pores. Carefully curated plant life exploded in a riot of colors. They were in the highland tropics area, amid lush flowers, trees, and bushes, some climbing to brush against the glass ceiling. Gardening and caring for plants settled her in a way little else did as if she’d been a farmer in a former life. Maybe her dreams would seem pitiful to others, but all she truly wanted was a cozy home and garden to tend to and a partner to come home to at the end of the night.

At least she still had the house. Eva sucked in a shaky breath, the humid air doing wonders toward soothing her.

Pixie had wandered past them toward a wall that trickled with water, and her gaze was transfixed. Something about seeing this woman by water felt natural, and Eva stored more of those tiny details away.

Micah tapped on her shoulder. “They’ve got a fancy orchid.”

Eva followed him. They stopped in front of a gorgeous specimen of a Dracula orchid, and a thrill rose at the sight of the delicate, rare flower. Special. Almost as special as the fact that her brother had remembered how much she liked orchids. Shit, she was being a terrible sister with the way she lusted after his best friend.

The guilt splashed over the growing embers begging to take flame.

“Fucking cool, right?” Micah said.

“Thanks,” she said, keeping her voice low. His gaze caught hers, but she didn’t need to elaborate. He would know she didn’t just mean for taking her to the Conservatory today. No, for offering her a safe place to land after her relationships had blown up—Jack, Sienna, Mom, and Dad. The dominos had clattered down, and she stood staring at the wreckage.

“It’s just an orchid, Eva.” Fucking smartass.

“Look up here,” Pixie called over. She headed toward the next area, and Eva rushed after her. She loved the specimen cards everywhere, bits of information she could file away,

Eva stepped into the next room, paces behind Pixie, which seemed to be another one devoted to the tropics. Micah took the path to the right while she lingered along the left, past the banana trees full of yellow-green clusters. As long as she was in San Francisco, she should explore different gardens, losing herself in cultivated nature. A lot of folks loved the raw chaos of wilderness hikes, but she preferred the order of these places.

The order she’d been chasing her whole life. Growing up, she had struggled against her parents’ ironclad control to the point any chance to exert her own had become a breath of relief.

Her phone buzzed, and she took it out of her pocket. The name on the screen hit her like a punch to the sternum.

Jack.

“Hello?” Eva answered. Pixie glanced her way, and Eva made a face and tilted her head toward the room they came from before slipping back in that direction. No one else wandered through right now.

“Hey, we need to talk,” he said. Fuck, those words sounded ominous. She braced herself for whatever bad news would come next. “I spoke to my realtor today, and she has an investor interested who’s willing to pay way above what the house is worth. This is the sort of opportunity that’d be stupid to pass up.”

Eva’s throat dried, and she clenched her phone a little tighter. “So what does that mean?”

“I can’t sell you the house.” His tone was gruff, but the hesitation in his words made it clear he shouldered some guilt. “I’m sorry, Evs. I know you wanted to live here, but it’s not possible now.”

She didn’t ask for clarification because they both knew.

When she returned to Reno, she no longer had a home.

Chapter Ten

Pixie stepped into the kitchen, paint splatters marking her hands, arms, and shirt.

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