“How was I supposed to know that Ben knew you?” I ask Mason as he huffs and starts striding toward where Ben is still bent over in laughter.
I watch the two bicker back and forth for a moment, feeling a little left out before Mason finally acknowledges my presence again.
“You sure you want this guy’s couch? Never know what could be on it,” he says with a laugh, and I wrinkle my nose.
Thanks for the visual, May.
I paste a cheery smile on my face and give an enthusiastic nod. “Yep. I like it. It has character—unlike my old brown leather couch. I hated that thing. No, this couch will look wonderful with my new color scheme—”
“I’m going to stop you right there, cuz,” Mason says, throwing up a hand.
I blush.
Curse this mouth of mine.
“Hey, what am I going to do about a place to live?” I ask Mason, wrinkling my forehead.
“I gave the front office a piece of my mind about the unit they tried to give you. But trust me, you don’t want to live there—mold everywhere. The second unit they showed me was the same. They need to be shut down. Sorry I can’t get you another place yet, but until then, you can move in with Jules and Ginny and me while you look.”
“Nope. I’m not moving in with you and your new wife and baby. I’m a strong woman, and I can solve my problems.” I put my hands on my hips to drive my point home.
Come hell or high water, I want to fix this issue on my own.
I tap my foot on the ground as I think, and I’m very aware of both guys shifting nearby. I can feel the flush rising up my neck, as a new plan doesn’t immediately come to me.
“Ben, can you hold on to the couch for a bit longer until I figure out what I’m going to do?” I turn to the guy who is staring at me.
He promptly jerks his eyes to the side as if he wasn’t just staring a hole through my body, and I can feel my flush get deeper. But this time, it’s not from embarrassment. My gaze drifts along his face while he’s not looking at me, noting the dark eyebrows and the way one piece of hair flops on his forehead in a charming, boyish way, as if no amount of brushing or water will get it to lay right. I want to put my hand on his arm and bat my lashes like I did with the boys back home, but that won’t help me establish my strong, independent persona. No, I need to be professional about this.
“Yeah, sure.” His deep voice brings me out of my thoughts.
I beam at him. “Perfect. Now, where is a nice hotel around here? I’ll stay there until I figure it out,” I say to Mason.
He frowns. “Pep, Aunt Sophie would kill me if she knew I stuck you in a hotel instead of you staying at my place. I can’t believe she didn’t scout out the finest apartment around for you.”
I color deeper at his words and grimace. I watch his mouth curl up in a grin as he looks at me, and I fight the urge to roll my eyes.
“Aunt Sophie didn’t pick the apartment, did she?” At my head shake, Mason bursts out in laughter again. “Damn, Pep. You are helpless, you know that?”
I bristle at his words, and anger sweeps through my body. This is exactly what I didn’t want. To feel like the incapable child that I am.
I can’t seem to get away from it, but now, no one knows me here, and I love it. I have always lived in the spotlight as a Stratten, and I’m tired of it. Starting over sounded wonderful, so when I was presented with the opportunity to go to grad school here in Nashville, where my cousin Mason and his family live, I jumped on the chance. It took some groveling on my part to get my parents to agree, but here I am. Proving everyone right that I can’t make it on my own without help.
Ben clears his throat and looks a little constipated, his gaze darting between Mason and me as he speaks up, “I have an extra bedroom you can use until you find something else.” He doesn’t look either of us in the eye.
In the silence that follows, I could hear a pin drop before my brain catches up with what he said.
This is perfect. This solves everything.
“Absolutely not,” Mason says, crossing his arms.
My heart drops. “But, May—”
“Mason,” he says with a growl.
“But, Mason, this is a great solution. Now, I won’t be living by myself. I’ll have a big, strong guy to protect me.” I smile back at Ben and grip his forearm in a squeeze as I try to reason with my cousin. I don’t mention how we all know this is temporary.
Damn, that’s an arm right there.
Ben is looking everywhere but at us as we argue back and forth.
Without thinking, I fling myself forward into Ben’s arms and let out an attractive screech. “You mean it? This is great. Thank you, thank you. I’ll find something else as soon as possible. And don’t worry; I’ll pay whatever rent I need to,” I say before stepping back and grinning at him as I watch him turn a darker shade of red.
Mason is staring at him, his mouth open at the scene he just witnessed. “Aunt Sophie will kill me when she finds out I’ve let you shack up with one of my friends,” he says.
“Whoa. No one said anything about shacking up,” Ben says, throwing his arms up, a look of surprise crossing his face.
I furrow my brow. “Ben is right; no one is shacking up.
