Page 11 of Passion Restored

When they’d made it to the porch, Owen looked over, surprised to see a moving truck in his neighbor’s driveway.

“Looks like your new neighbor is finally settling in,” Blake said. “I would have thought they’d have gotten their stuff before now.”

Owen almost shrugged but thought better of it at the last moment. “I was busy before the accident, and I think whoever moved next door must have been too because I haven’t even seen them yet. They may have been around more this last week, but I wasn’t here. Maybe it just took them this long to find time for the movers or something.” He could understand that since his job tended to take over his life, as well. Not that it had recently since the others had cut him off. However, that would change just as soon as his family got in their vehicles and left.

He looked over at the other house again and froze when a familiar blonde head popped up from behind the truck. His heart raced and his throat went dry. Holy hell.

“Holy shit,” Murphy murmured from his side. “Is that the hot nurse from the bar? Liz, right?”

Maya leaned over so she and Noah could get a better look and smiled. “Well, look at that.”

“You didn’t know she’d moved next door?” Blake asked.

“No,” Owen said softly, trying to get his brain to catch up with the rest of him. Hell, he’d forgotten how beautiful she was, considering he hadn’t seen her since they wheeled him away for surgery, and he’d been a little drugged up at that point. He wasn’t drugged up now and his dick was about to stand at attention just at the mere sight of her. “Maybe she’s just helping her friend?”

The brunette from the bar walked out of the house at that point, and Murphy let out a soft laugh. “Maybe Tessa moved next door instead. Come on, man, let’s go meet the neighbors.” Murphy turned to him. “You okay to walk, or do you need me to grab the wheelchair.”

Owen set his jaw. “I’m good.” He would be, damn it, even if he ended up sweating through his shirt from the exertion. He wasn’t in that much pain, it was just uncomfortable. Thankfully, his incision site barely hurt anymore. And since he’d caught sight of Liz, he wasn’t thinking about pain. No, the endorphins running through his system just from seeing her were taking care of any discomfort he might have.

“Hey, ladies,” Murphy called out, and Blake sighed from Owen’s side.

“He is seriously going to flirt with your neighbors right now on their moving day,” Blake said with a laugh. “You can’t take him anywhere, can you?”

“That’s why we love him,” Owen said with a smile. Of course, he only had eyes for Liz at that moment, who had turned at the sound of Murphy’s voice to look at them. Her eyes had gone wide, and her face paled slightly. He hoped she was just surprised because going pale at the sight of him wasn’t the reaction he had hoped for, and definitely not the best way to start things.

Start things?

What the hell was he talking about? This was his new neighbor, not someone he was going to start something with. He needed to get his head on straight.

“Murphy?” Tessa asked as she came to Liz’s side. “You live here? Small world.”

Murphy shook his head. “No, Owen lives next door. We were just here to drop him off.”

Tessa winced. “I’m glad to see you on your feet, Owen. I heard about what happened. I hope you’re doing better.”

Owen nodded, his eyes on Liz, who still hadn’t said anything. Come to think of it, he hadn’t said anything either. “Thanks. I’m doing much better. In fact, I get to actually stay home today and let everyone else get back to their lives. I was staying with Graham and Blake so they could hover over me.”

Blake snorted. “You need some hovering every once in a while. This is Rowan, my daughter, and the little guy in Maya’s arms is her son, Noah. So, who moved next door? Can we help?”

Liz blinked, finally seeming to come out of whatever trance she’d been in when they’d walked over. “Hi. Actually, Tessa and I both moved in. We bought the house together.”

Tessa grinned and put her arm around Liz’s shoulders. “We’ve been friends and roommates since college, and since finding a decent house these days is killer, we decided to go in on this one together. It’s not quite a fixer-upper, but it’s not perfect yet either.”

Liz sighed. “We actually have movers to help. But, thank you. The guys are on their lunch break, so Tessa and I were just making sure that what they had left was labeled correctly so it could be put into the right rooms.”

Owen grinned then. Nothing made him happier than knowing someone else labeled things like he did. And honestly, who would move without making sure their boxes were perfectly labeled?

“Did you color-code, too?” Murphy asked. “When we moved Owen into his place a few years back, he’d labeled each box with a different color so we knew where to put things. Of course, he hired us to move him in and not someone else since he didn’t trust anyone except a Gallagher to do things.”

Owen rolled his eyes at Murphy’s words and Liz’s questioning look. “We own a restoration and construction company. We had the manpower and the truck. Of course, I made my family help. And, really, if you need anything, just let us know. I’m right next door.”

Liz raised a brow and looked down at his sling. “Shouldn’t you be resting instead of offering to help lift boxes?”

Owen just grinned. His dick was hard, and his ribs hurt because his dick was hard. He couldn’t help it if Liz did this to him. Of course, now he had images of Nurse Liz in his mind, playing doctor and patient with him despite knowing it was all kinds of wrong.

“I wouldn’t lift boxes, I’d just help you keep organized.”

Liz shook her head. “I’m plenty organized for the both of us, thank you.” She looked down at her phone and frowned. “And the movers should be back in a moment, so I’ll let you guys go about your business. It’s a small, small world that you’re our neighbor, Owen. But I’m glad you’re up and walking around.”

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