Page 97 of Second Chance with Seth

“And you’ve done all this?” she says, sounding incredulous. “You’ve set it up in just a few days?”

“Yeah. It’s been a crazy few days… although I had other things to do as well.”

“Like what?”

“Like speaking to my landlord, who I have to say was a royal pain in the ass. He’s always been pretty reasonable in the past, but for some reason, the moment I mentioned wanting to leave, he got all official and legal on me.”

“Meaning what?” she asks. “Is he gonna stop you from coming back here?”

I love that, having criticized practically every aspect of my plan so far, she suddenly seems scared I won’t be able to see it through, and I chuckle, lifting her onto my lap. She yelps in surprise but straddles me, gazing into my eyes. This feels a lot better than sitting side-by-side, and I grab her ass, pulling her onto me, and making her gasp.

“Nothing’s gonna stop me, babe. I’ve just gotta pay him two months’ rent, which he’s insisting on, because I’m not giving him any notice of leaving.”

“Two months?” she says, her outrage fairly obvious, and while she tries to lean away from me, I don’t let her.

“It’s better than the three he originally wanted.”

She lets out a sigh, shaking her head. “How did you talk him down?”

“I didn’t. Aiden did.”

“Oh, yes. You mentioned they knew each other.”

“Yeah. Aiden convinced him he was being unreasonable. He pointed out that the apartment is in a really nice location, and he’ll probably be able to rent it out again within a few days, so there was no benefit to anyone in being greedy.”

“Even so… two months’ rent,” she says, shaking her head.

“I don’t mind.” I pull her closer and lean forward, resting my forehead against hers. “It’s worth it.”

“What about all your things? Do you have to go back and pack them?”

“No. That’s the other thing I’ve been doing with my time.”

“You mean…?”

“I mean, every single space in my car is filled to capacity.”

“So you’re really back?” she says, wide-eyed.

“Yes. But don’t panic. I checked into the hotel before I came here. I wasn’t making assumptions about moving straight back in with you… not permanently.”

“You weren’t?”

“Of course not. I knew my plans would come as a shock to you, and there are things we still need to work out.”

“Even so, you can’t live at the hotel. It’s too expensive.”

I chuckle, shaking my head. “Will you stop worrying about money? I have savings, Everly.”

“I remember, but…”

“But nothing. I’ve had precious little to spend my spare cash on over the last twelve months, so after I’ve paid rent and bought food, I’ve put every cent I’ve earned in the bank.” I capture her face between my hands, focusing her attention and gazing into her eyes. “Trust me, I’d never take a gamble like thiswithout something to back it up. I wouldn’t risk your future, or River’s.”

“Okay,” she says, softening slightly and leaning in to me. “But where will you store your things? You can’t leave them in your car, and you can’t offload them into a hotel room, either.”

“I know. The hotel is just a temporary fix. I’m not gonna stay there for very long,” I say, tipping us both over slightly and reaching into my back pocket, pulling out my phone, and flipping it around so we can both see the screen. “I’ve been looking at places to rent here in Hart’s Creek.”

“You’re gonna rent somewhere?” she says, looking totally confused and utterly beautiful.

---