Page 34 of All Too Well
“You aresogoing to regret this, Lachlan West.”
I already do. Just not for the reasons she thinks. I step closer. “You can follow me over, and we’ll talk about the rules when we get there.”
Ainsley tosses my coat at me and saunters off in her bra and leggings in the cold morning air.
Rule number one—she has to be dressed from head to toe at all times.
We each pull up to my house, and for the first time I feel self-conscious. My home isn’t a shithole, but it’s not anything to write home about either. It’s a three-bedroom modest farmhouse painted a terrible green with white shutters. I have more projects than time and more issues than money to fix them. However, it’s a roof over our heads, and in this town, material things aren’t what matter.
“This is your home?” Ainsley asks after we both exit our vehicles.
“It is.”
She turns to me with a warm smile. “It’s beautiful. It looks so cozy, and I imagine Rose running around the yard. We would’ve loved this space as kids.”
Her voice is wistful, and there’s not a hint of disapproval. I feel myself start to relax a little. “She loves it, that’s for sure.”
“Is that a rope swing?”
I nod. “I put it in last year.”
“All you need is a pond.”
“I have one and something better.”
Her eyes widen. “You do not.”
“I do.”
“Where?”
“I’ll show you another day. Providing you don’t try to burn my house down.”
She scoffs. “I didn’t try to burn that disgusting cabin down. Hopefully you have power that’s not run off a generator.”
I tamp down my growing anger as I think about her out in that fucking cabin. “I have all the modern amenities. Plus, we have an activities coordinator in the form of a six-year-old.”
“Oh, fancy.”
I sigh. “Come on, let’s go inside so you can meet her and she can inform you of the daily schedule.”
We walk in and the neighbor is in the living room with Rose.
“Daddy!” She jumps up, like she always does when I come home after a fire call.
However, she stops dead in her tracks when she sees Ainsley behind me.
“Rose, this is Uncle Caspian’s sister, Ainsley. She’s going to stay with us for a bit because she tried to burn her house down.”
Her eyes widen and she looks to Ainsley. “You did?”
Ainsley huffs and slaps my chest. “I didn’t. It just started because I was trying to blow dry my hair.” She squats in front of Rose. “It’s so nice to meet you again. I knew you when you were a baby. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you.”
Rose grins. “Daddy says I’m a menace.”
She purses her lips. “Truth be told, he was the worst menace when he was a kid.”
My daughter’s hazel eyes stare at me. “You were?”
