Page 33 of Just Like That

But it was impossible.

Her nephew was very likely my kid, which meant, at some point, I’d been intimate with her sister. Shooting my shot with her would affirm I really was the asshole I’d worked so hard not to become.

The breeze that floated through the kitchen window was cool. I watched as Hazel wrapped her arms around her middle and I shook my head.

Rifling through my liquor cabinet, I pulled out a bottle of Blanton’s single-barrel bourbon and two glasses. On my way out the door, I draped a long-sleeved flannel jacket over my forearm.

With only the light of the setting sun, I walked across the lawn to the bluff. Using the wooden staircase, I climbed down the dune and made my way toward the beach. Hazel had turned and was walking up the beach toward me.

She kicked a small wave and smiled as I closed the distance between us.

I lifted my arm to gesture toward the flannel jacket. “It got chilly.”

Hazel’s smile widened as she grabbed the jacket from my arm. “Thanks. I was under the impression it was still summer, but man ... sure feels like fall tonight.”

I nodded and herded her toward a large piece of driftwood. “Around this time, evenings get chilly. It’s that slow transition into fall that lets us know summer is pretty much done with.”

Hazel leaned against the tree trunk that had fallen and been stripped of its bark by the tide. “Mmm,” she hummed and looked out onto the indigo waters of Lake Michigan. “That’s okay. Autumn’s my favorite anyway.”

“Me too.” I balanced the two cups on the tree trunk. “Bourbon?”

“Sure.” She smiled and I poured two fingers in each glass.

Hazel lifted one glass. “To roommates?”

I lifted my glass. “Uh.” I shook my head. “Sure. To roommates.”

Hazel took a deep sip, and I watched the muscles in her neck work as the alcohol coated her throat. “Didn’t want to run that one by me first?”

I sheepishly smiled like a kid who’d just gotten into deep shit. “About that ... I just didn’t like people thinking I was okay with your current, possibly unsafe, living conditions. But if you want to stay in the skoolie, that’s fine with me.”

“And break Teddy’s heart? I couldn’t possibly.” She took another sip. “It’s okay. In all honesty, it will be nice to have a dishwasher again.” Her eyes moved to me. “You do have a dishwasher, right?”

I chuckled. “Yes, I do. Two, in fact.”

Her eyes rolled playfully. “Of course you do. You’re so extra.”

I scoffed. “What? There’s a scullery kitchen for prep behind the main one. It just makes sense. Is my home not up to your standards?”

Hazel scrunched her nose. “I mean, it is ridiculously fancy, but ...”

“But what?” I prodded.

“It’s very ... sterile.” She looked at me, daring me to disagree.

Trouble was, she was right. I conceded with a shrug and sipped my bourbon. “You know, it also has a hot shower and a toilet that flushes.”

A gentle laugh crackled out of her as her hand came to her collarbone. “Oh... you spoil me.”

I leaned against the driftwood, both of us facing the water.

I could see it—what it would be like to spoil her. Like it would be the easiest thing in the world.

If only it weren’t so complicated.

We both stayed quiet, watching the rolling tide lapping at the beach. It was calm and peaceful as night descended and tiny sparks of starlight overtook the vast sky.

“Thank you for trying to get to know him,” she finally said.

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