Page 17 of Crave Thy Neighbor

“No way!” She shakes her head. “And give the jerk the satisfaction? Hell no. We’ll figure something out.”

We’ll.

She says it like we’re a team, and I guess that’s because we are.

I smile, and tears sting my eyes for the second time tonight.

Of course she has my back. She always does.

“I’ll put more feelers out. Maybe Darlene at The Gravy Train knows someone who’s looking for a tenant or a roommate.” I cringe at the wordroommate,and she holds her hand up. “I know, I know. Having a roommate isn’t the ideal situation with Sam. But, if it’s your only option until you can findsomethingbetter, it is what it is, you know?” She snaps her fingers. “Oh! I just had a crazy thought.”

“What?”

“Nolan.”

My heart jumps into my throat at the mention of him.

I can’t get the way he looked at me out of my mind. It was the kind of stare a girl could get used to, and I can’t afford to get used to it.

“What about him?”

“He’s looking for a room—”

She doesn’t get the full word out before I’m shaking my head.

“Absolutely not,” I say.

“But—”

I pin her with the same stare I do Sam when he’s attempting to argue his way out of—or into—something. “No buts. It’s a no.”

“Why not? Because he’s hot?”

Don’t react. Don’t react. Donotreact.

“Because he’s a stranger.”

“True, but Dean and I can both vouch for him. Besides, it’s not permanent. It’s just until you hear back about your other applications.”

She has a point there…

But there’s no way I could live with Nolan.

I don’t know him. Sam doesn’t know him.

I can’t uproot my kid and move him into some random guy’s apartment because I suck at being an adult.

Especially when the guy made me squirm one too many times in such a short amount of time.

“No.” The word is final, maybe a little too sharp. “Please drop it.”

Her mouth floats open again, then she snaps it shut. She’s not mad, that much I can tell, and I know she wants to say something else.

I just don’t want to hear it.

“It’s dropped.” She grins. “Just let me know if I need to kick Dean out to the couch.”

She would, too, and as much as the idea pains me, staying with River might be the only choice I have in the end. But I refuse to accept her offer until I’ve run out of all my other options.

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