Page 7 of Levee

I couldn’t be bothered by his tone, either, since the man was clearly in agony and likely just wanted to suffer in peace, not in front of a complete stranger.

“Okay. I will let you rest. But I’m one call away if you need anything,” I assured him, making my way back out of his room.

I stopped in the kitchen to grab his garbage again and replace the old bag.

I had just pulled open the door and was rushing forward. And nearly collided with a solid chest.

“Oh,” I gasped, stepping back, instinct telling me to always put space between myself and a random man.

My gaze followed up a wiry, but strong torso and chest to find a ridiculously good-looking man. One with inky hair that had charmingly fallen over his brow toward his deep, dark chocolatey eyes fringed with an unfair amount of lashes. He had a jaw that looked like it was carved by one of the greats, a straight, masculine nose, and a generous mouth.

It was the kind of face that made my fingers itch to reach for my drawing pad and pencils.

The smile he shot me as soon as his gaze landed on me wasn’t exactly hurting either. Those teeth were almost blinding. And that smile was full of charm and a hint of mischief. It wasn’t long before those attributes brightened his dark eyes either.

“You must be Jade,” he said, his gaze moving down me.

I didn’t typically gripe about someone doing a once-over. As an artist, I was often caught looking at people for what might be considered an uncomfortable or creepy amount of time.

When this guy did one, though, little prickles of interest coursed through me, making my heartbeat quicken and my belly flip-flop.

It wasn’t a strange or worrying reaction. I mean, this guy was gorgeous. I was a red-blooded woman who was into men. Of course there was a little spark of attraction. Even if he was a complete stranger.

Except he wasn’t exactly a stranger, was he? He knew my name.

“Yes,” I confirmed. “Who are you?”

“Levee,” he said, that smile spreading just a little wider.

Levee.

The name teased the edges of my memory until it came rushing back. William insulting my name. And that of his nephew. Levee.

“Where have you been?”

The words flew out of me before I could even think them through, weigh their repercussions. This man was throwing me off.

“What?” he asked, brows scrunching.

“Your uncle fell,” I said, waving toward the apartment. “He needed help getting up and getting his meds. His fridge is almost empty. The apartment is filthy. Where have you been?” I asked, indignant on behalf of a man who I knew didn’t want me to be his champion.

“Is he alright?” Levee asked, glancing past me toward the bedroom.

“He seems to have hurt his back,” I told him. “He took three pills.”

“Thank you for helping him,” Levee said, sucking in a deep, steadying breath. “I know he can be… unappreciative,” he said, and I got the feeling it was more than that for him. “But I appreciate it. Here,” he said, moving inside to put a handful of bags down that I’d been too fixated on his face to notice.

Levee reached inside of the bag, pulling out a receipt, then rifling through a junk drawer to produce a pen. When it wouldn’t write, he pulled it up to his mouth, wetting the tip with his tongue.

And, well, I’m not proud of where my mind went right there. But as he jotted something down, need was pulsing between my thighs.

“Take my number,” he said, extending the receipt toward me, then taking the garbage bag from my hand. “If he ever fallsagain, call me. I don’t want you getting hurt trying to help him up.”

“Okay,” I agreed, taking the note and tucking it into the pocket of my dress. He wasn’t wrong thinking I wouldn’t be capable of helping his uncle if we hadn’t lucked out by using the bedding.

“And I’ll admit that I’m not around as much as someone should be,” he admitted as he started pulling items out of the bags to put on the counter. Six packs of soda, TV dinners, and the eternally hopeful supply of fruit that it seemed William never touched. “But my uncle doesn’t want me here. He barely tolerates one visit a week.”

I could see that. I mean, the man was pretty grumpy and snippy with me. And I was a stranger. I couldn’t imagine the vitriol the man saved up to use on actual family members.

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