Page 53 of When You Got a Good Thing (Misfit Inn 1)

He sobered. “Are we okay?”

She considered the question. Moving past the truth of what had happened to split them up didn’t mean ignoring it. But as hurtful as his reaction had been…he’d had a lot less time to come to terms with it than she had. She sure as hell wasn’t going to hold that against him.

“I think there’s probably going to be some adjustment. You were right when you said we’re different now than we used to be. But I think we don’t just start fresh either. We build on the foundation of the old—something new and stronger. But I want this. I want you.”

“Then I’d say we’re more than okay.”

His hands curved around her ass, and they spent the rest of the night proving his confidence was well justified.

~*~

“Back again, huh?” Pru smirked at him as she pulled the door wider to let him into the house, but there was no malice in it.

“Best coffee in town,” Xander declared easily, heading straight for the kitchen in what had become a routine over the past week.

“Right, it’s the coffee,” Pru said. “I’ll pretend to believe that.”

Kennedy rose from the table when he came into the room, moving straight into his arms. “Morning.” Her voice was rough, her body pliant and sleepy against his. Not surprising since she’d been getting up to see him before he went on shift. That meant barely more than five hours of sleep last night. He knew, because he’d followed her home around two. And that just made him think about everything they’d done when she got off her shift at Elvira’s. His cock twitched.

Pressing a kiss to Kennedy’s temple, he moved to the coffee pot for his alleged reason for being here. It wasn’t an entire lie. Sleep had been happening in chunks for the past week. He finished his shift and took a nap until she got off work. They spent a few hours together. Then he got another few hours of shut eye. Kennedy, he knew, would go back to bed for a couple hours after he left for work and Pru took Ari to school. It was an odd schedule, but right now it was working for them.

Xander carried his coffee to the table, sliding onto the long bench beside Kennedy, who snuggled in, her head on his shoulder, eyes drooping.

Ari lifted a brow. “I don’t know why you don’t just pick somebody’s house and stay there.”

Kennedy popped an eye open. “Huh?”

“Either spend the night at his place or have Xander come here. It’s not like you’re fooling anybody sneaking in at two in the morning. You’d both get more sleep that way.”

Pru hid a smile in her own coffee. “They didn’t fool anybody in high school either.”

Heat crept up the back of Xander’s neck.

Kennedy appeared unconcerned. “I’ll have you know, I am not sneaking. One doesn’t have to sneak at twenty-eight. He doesn’t stay here because your social worker would frown on it. And I don’t stay there because, if I did, I wouldn’t make it up in time to see your shining face before you head out to school. Since I work odd hours, I wouldn’t get to see you otherwise, except on my days off. So, really, I’m enduring the lack of sleep for you, hermanita.”

“Your sacrifice is noted and appreciated.” Ari forked up more eggs. “Not sure what Maggie will think of it, though.”

Kennedy opened the eyes that had drifted shut again. “Maggie?”

“I hadn’t had a chance to tell you,” Pru said. “She called last night to say she’s coming back on the red eye tonight.”

“For how long?”

“I don’t know yet. A few days anyway. She’s supposed to get in tomorrow morning.”

At that Kennedy sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Xander knew she’d been working on her business plan in the limited downtime she wasn’t spending with him. He wanted to ask if she’d be ready in time, but she hadn’t told Pru yet, and he didn’t want to spoil the surprise.

Pru checked the clock. “Finish up your breakfast and get your teeth brushed, kiddo. Time to head to school.”

Ari finished shoveling in her breakfast and sprinted from the room.

“Out of the mouths of babes, huh?” Pru asked.

“I’m not sure how I feel about her being that astute,” Xander admitted.

“A fencepost would know what’s going on with you two. But seriously, I am happy for you. Especially so after finding out about—well.”

Xander scowled.

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