Page 25 of Peach

“Wow, that smells great,” Peach said as he set his bag on the floor beside the door.

“I hope you like it. I found enough ingredients to make spaghetti with meat sauce. I had to doctor the sauce because you only had a jar in the pantry.”

"It smells great. Let me put up my piece and wash up, and I'll be back in a moment."

She nodded, wondering if he'd meant gun. Of course,he did. But he wasn't her ex, and she didn't need to fear what he would do with a gun in the house.

Peach stepped into the main room of the house and was shaking his head. “You know, you don’t have to clean my place. I appreciate it, but you’re not here to clean.”

She shrugged. “I know. I just felt the need to help out. I’m not good with sitting around doing nothing.”

Peach stepped into the kitchen and grabbed two bowls. "So you cleaned and cooked. Did you take a nap?"

She shook her head. “No. I slept late. I think I was really tired from traveling.”

“I’m sure you were. So Harry and Rory are going to come over tomorrow night and help me go through the box of papers.”

“Oh.” Worry filled her. Wild and Ava had been nice, but she wasn’t sure if his other friends would like her.

"Rory was in the Marines, but now she has a sweet gig working for a consulting firm that advises large companies about international security."

“I don’t even know what that means.”

Peach nodded as he carried their plates to the table and motioned for her to join him. “I know, right? She’s really smart. I’m glad she and Harry are together. She’s good for him.”

Haisley took a seat across from Peach, worry filling her. She wasn't impressive at all. Her jobs consisted of being a cleaner and a shop clerk. It was obvious she was using Peach, and his friends would probably hate her for it.

Peach had taken a bite and moaned. "This is great." He glanced up and narrowed his gaze. "I can tell you're overthinking this."

“I don’t like taking advantage of you.”

“Trust me, you aren’t. If I didn’t want you here, Iwould have driven you to a shelter in Atlanta and walked away.”

“Why do you want me here? I’m a nobody.”

He ate another forkful of food, and then his lips twisted up to the side after he swallowed. "First off, it's the right thing to do. If I'd left you in Georgia, I'm sure the sheriff would have done something. You're able to get around and do stuff, but in a few months, you'll be much more pregnant, and you'd be an easy target for those men. I'm sure they don't want your baby born. Once you can prove that the baby is one of theirs, they'll have to at least pay child support, and they might end up in jail. They don't want that."

“I could have gone somewhere else.”

Peach nodded. “That’s true, but my mom thought enough of you to take you in. This is a way I can honor one of her last wishes.”

She ate a little more of the food on her plate, thinking she was much hungrier than she’d first thought. “Thank you. I don’t want you to think I don’t appreciate it. I do. I’m grateful you opened your house and got me out of there.”

“You’re welcome. And please take some time to make up your mind about what you want to do. Honestly, if you want to wait to get a job, that would be okay.”

She couldn’t do that to him. “No. I need to earn my keep.”

He set his fork down and shook his head. “No, you don’t have to earn anything.”

“But everything is so expensive. If I wasn’t living here, you could have a roommate who paid rent.”

Peach burst out laughing. “There isn’t anyone I’d want living with me other than you. I’ve lived in barracks enough to know I don’t want another Navy guy as aroommate, and I certainly don’t want some random citizen in my house.”

“Okay, but I need to pay for food.”

He took another bite and moaned. "This is so good. And no, you don't. I decided to use the money from the sale of my parents' place to care for you and the baby. It will last a few years."

“No, you can’t do that. I’m really not worth that.”

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