Page 27 of Me and Mr. Just Right

“Haydn?” she asked, sounding unsure.

He cleared his throat as he sat down, still making sure to keep his stomach flexed like a teenage lifeguard at the pool. “No, you didn’t wake me up,” he replied, trying to sound normal. Calm, cool, and collected. Was his voice pitched lower than usual? “Bennett’s bed is horrible, and I don’t know how he sleeps on that thing, so I came out here to maybe sleep or at least read, and you’re incredible.”

Way to play it cool,mate. Boy, if there was any time he could use his brothers to act as a buffer between him and being awkward, it would be now.

She folded her arms over her sweatshirt and sank into the couch.

He winced. “I just mean … yeah.” He didn’t know what he meant, except he wished she’d keep playing. He let his abs relax, because they were starting to burn, and she wasn’t looking at him anyway. She was staring out the window, looking similar to how she had yesterday morning right before she’d fled for the boat. He hated seeing her look so uneasy.

“I’m sorry to eavesdrop,” he continued when she didn’t say anything. “I’m guessing playing and singing must be a really private thing for you.”

She snort-laughed and then covered her mouth again, her eyes wide as she looked at him. “Stop making me do that,” she said through her fingers.

He felt his shoulders relax slightly. “Nope. I won’t promise that.”

She shook her head and then dropped her hand to let her fingers rest on the guitar strings. It was too dark to clearly read the expression on her face, but he thought he saw deep sadness etched there.

“I won’t tell anyone you sing. Patient-doctor confidentiality,” he teased. It was a dumb joke, but it eased some of the tension he felt in the room.

“You did have to bandage me up earlier,” she told him with a faint smile, merely an echo of her smiles from earlier.

“Exactly.” He clasped his hands between his knees and stared at her seriously. He really wished he’d thought to grab a shirt before coming out here to sleep. “I know how to keep things private, Lia, if you ever want to talk.” He’d always been a private person; that was part of what had drawn him toward nature photography—the music in the wilderness and expansive space to stretch out in. The endless nooks to explore. The vibrant colors and all the stories nature held. The draw to do that across the world tugged at him even stronger than before. It was getting harder to nudge that feeling aside.

Lia let out a shallow breath and nodded her head just once, like she believed him. “It’s better. Being out here.” She ran her fingers lightly over the guitar strings in a way that made his heart race.Focus, Haydn. “Away from it all.”

“From your breakup?”

She raised an eyebrow at him.

“Bennett told us. He may not be as good at keeping things private as I am.” Yeah, that’d convince her to open up. Why did he want her to open up in the first place? He didn’t know, except he wanted to see some of the sadness lift from her eyes again, and sometimes talking through things helped.

“Noted,” she said wryly. “And yes, the breakup. Along with my job and everyone who has opinions about how I’m living my life.”

“Sounds stressful.”

“It is. Being out here, though, it helps. Like the world is bigger than my best friend and my boyfriend getting together behind my back.”

“Wait—seriously? That sucks.”

“Yep. And they stole a bunch of my work and took credit for it.” She turned toward him fully, and he felt her relaxing into his presence again.

“You all worked together too?”

She shook her head ruefully. “Unfortunately.”

“There’s got to be something you can do,” he said, feeling fired up on her behalf. He never liked injustice, and it was coming against Lia, of all people. Lia, who was so kind and who made Bennett smile again and got Jules to chill out and … He kind of wanted to punch something—her ex’s face, maybe. He wasn’t a violent person. He was more the zen nature type, so this was a new feeling for him. “Tell your boss what they did, or … I don’t know, let’s set up a hidden recording to get them to admit they stole your work. I’ll pose as an investor or something. I’m realizing I don’t even know what you do, but we’ll figure out a plan that works. I’m not sure if recording someone without their knowledge is breaking the law or not—but Jules can represent us if needed.”

She smiled at him.

“What?”

“I just … thank you for believing me.”

“Of course I believe you.”

“And being willing to break the law for me.”

“I’m Alaskan. Laws are meresuggestionsout here.”

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