Page 49 of Somebody to Save
TWENTY-FOUR
AN OFFER YOU CAN’T REFUSE
Beckett
I grabbedAddison’s bag from the backseat of my car and reached for her hand, leading us toward the parking garage elevator.
“I think I’m growing on Nana already,” I said as I pressed the button.
“Yes, well, the books you brought her definitely went a long way. Even if she didn’t say so.”
The doors opened, and I dropped her hand to place my palm against the small of her back and usher her into the waiting elevator. I tapped the button for floor seven.
I caught part of one of their conversations about books during Thanksgiving dinner and made a mental note of the information. I bought a few of the books they were talking about and gave them to Nana.
I’d also given Grams my grandmother’s banana bread recipe we’d discussed that day. But she was already on Team Beckett, if you will. Nana was still unsure.
“It really was thoughtful,” Addison said, smiling up at me as the elevator began to move. “It meant a lot to me, too. That youlistened and that you care enough about their approval to do little things like that.”
Tugging her closer, I tucked her underneath my arm and enjoyed the way she hugged around my midsection and her head rested against my chest. I bent down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I care so much more than a few books,” I explained. “That’s the least I can do.”
Honest, green eyes met mine, and I leaned forward, dropping a sweet kiss to her lips as the doors opened.
My apartment was one of three units on the floor and right outside the elevator. Unlocking the door, I waved for her to go in first as I flipped on the entryway light.
I closed and locked the door, dropping her bag near the entryway table where I tossed my keys and wallet as well. Addison wandered farther into my apartment, studying my space that looked wildly different from her own.
Most of my apartment was decorated in neutral colors—beige, black, and brown were my favorites because I knew everything matched that way. But I’d spent a lot on a comfortable, plush couch and curtains for the windows that looked out on the patio and city beyond.
There were a few pictures I’d framed throughout the living room, but other than that, I didn’t personalize it much. Not that I didn’t want to, I just didn’t know how to or have the eye for it.
Addison tucked a stray piece of pink hair behind her ear as she roamed into the living room, rounding my low, wood coffee table and eyeing the large TV on the opposite wall. I continued into the kitchen and flipped on the pendant lights hanging over the island. It was one big room, and I watched her take everything in.
“It’s exactly what I expected,” she said, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Is that so?”
She nodded and ran her fingers along the back of the couch as she crossed to the kitchen, stopping just on the other side ofthe island between two barstools. She leaned her elbows on the marble counter, and I got a perfect view of her cleavage in her V-neck sweater.
“Yes, that is so. It’s clean and neat and…a little plain.” She cringed, but I wasn’t offended.
“It is plain, especially compared to your place.”
She slid into one of the barstools and shrugged. “I can help you personalize it a little,” she offered. “Add some color, if you want.”
Retrieving the pasta I’d made the evening before and the herbs I needed for the sauce, I shut the fridge and turned back to her.
“You’ve already added so much color to my life, Bubbles.”
Her eyes widened ever so slightly, and she shot me a tentative smile. Like she was surprised by my honesty or the thought that she’d made my life better in the short time she’d been in it. It shouldn’t have been a surprise, though, and maybe I should have been doing a better job letting her know that.
Righting her expression, she cleared her throat and worried her lower lip between her teeth. “So, you…umm…like the color then?”
My smile widened as I pulled open the pantry door and retrieved the other items I needed for dinner. I didn’t respond until I was back on the other side of the island, and I could look her in the eye as I said, “Yeah, I like the color.”
A more confident smile worked its way across her lips, and I liked how pleased she was by my answer.
She straightened in her seat and eyed the ingredients I’d laid out. “What are you making?”
