Page 87 of Where We Call Home

I wanted to show her how much I craved her, as long as I lived in a world where she existed.

“Do you still have the business card for that guy who fixes boots?” Logan asked, chipping away at the rotted wood around the coop’s hole. “These boots are falling apart, but I can’t bring myself to get rid of them.”

He stood to his full height, a few inches shorter than me. I’d been supervising, half-watching while lost in my thoughts.

“Yeah,” I said, clearing my throat and uncrossing my arms. I reached into my wallet, searching through the cards and scraps of paper I kept there.

Something new caught my attention. Without thinking twice, I pulled it out.

“Oh… wow,” Logan choked, coughing into his fist. “I don’t think I was meant to see that.”

Quickly, I held the photo to my chest. It was a picture of Theo from the other morning after we’d had sex—the one she took. Her hands were on my abs, my cock just out of frame.

“Oh my God,” Logan groaned, covering his eyes with one hand and pointing to the ground with the other. “There’s another one.”

I bent to pick up the second photo, this one taken by me.

Theo.FuckingTheo. She’d printed these photos and slipped them into my wallet, fully aware I’d find them. I probably should’ve been irritated that Logan had seen her like that, but instead, I felt a sense of pride. She was mine in those moments—intimately, entirely.

Shaking my head, I stared at the photos a little longer, remembering the way her body felt against mine. My skin prickled with a lingering desire, yearning for her all over again.

I shoved the photos back into my wallet for now, knowing I’d look at them later. I handed Logan the card.

“The coast is clear. You can open your eyes now.”

He peeked through his fingers, grabbing the card skeptically.

“Why is it always me?” he muttered as he took it from my hand.

“What do you mean?” I asked with a laugh.

Logan shivered, like he was recounting war stories with an old buddy. “I walked in on Boone and Aspen at the Farm Stand while Boone was, uh, under her skirt.”

I barked out a loud laugh, my head tilting back. Poor Logan.

“Sorry for adding to the trauma.”

“So… you and Theo?” Logan asked cautiously, like he wasn’t sure he should.

What could I say?

We’re roommates? Friends? Hooking up?

That I had feelings for her? That I couldn’t imagine my life without her?

All of it was true.

Honesty felt easier. Lies snowball, and eventually, the truth gets lost.

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I like her, a lot. But we haven’t talked about it. We’re just… going with the flow.”

Going with the motions felt right for us. We were adults, and allowing fate to control things took the pressure off.

Logan nodded like he understood. “Do you have a plan?”

I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to interrupt the good thing we had going, but I knew it was a conversation we’d have to eventually. Avoidance couldn’t be the answer forever.

“Again, I don’t know,” I confessed. “She’s dealing with a lot right now. I don’t want to complicate things for her.”

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