“Sorry ‘bout that.”
“It’s all good though, because you’re here! This is going to be so fucking great. Gives us a chance to get to know each other.”
“We were talking about that before I left—how it’s a shame our clans don’t spend more time together.”
“Us too! I called my brothers up and we said the exact same!”
“How’re they doing?”
He nods at the road. “Good. Ronan moved to New York and Finn is on his way here. He just got picked up by the Cubs. Savannah’s so isolated, we all got itchy for more.”
“No way, Finn’s gone pro?”
Proud, Kian grins at me. “Yup—just got the word. You’re the first Cocker to know. Unless Mom called your dad after you left.”
“How cool is that?”
He tells me about the process Finn went through during the next twenty minutes of the drive. The last few, he’s navigating city streets and pointing out the best coffee shops, grocery store, anything I might need.
I roll the window down and inhale. “I smell Lake Michigan.”
“Oh yeah, here’s the deal. The lake is always East. That’s how you know which direction you’re facing. And we’re on a grid, so it’s easy to get around.”
“Cool.”
“You’ve never been here?”
“Nope.”
“The lake has sand.”
I blink at him. “What?”
“Yep. Fucking sand and a beach. But it’s a lake.”
“No ocean anywhere.”
He stares at me. I grin and he laughs, “You want to see the sights and all that?”
“Have to be at the hospital tomorrow morning.”
“I mean at some point. You care about that sort of thing?”
I shrug, “I’m sure I’ll see it all as time goes by. Don’t need a tour. Unless you want to.”
Frankly I’m not in the mood just yet. But since I’m Kian’s guest, albeit paying rent, I’ll do what he wants.
His smile turns sideways as he pulls up to parallel park in front of a brick apartment building. There’s a lawn chair holding the spot. He jumps out and folds it up, tossing it in the back seat. “Nah, not my style. But I was willing to.”
“Forget about it. I’m not high maintenance. You just go about your life and I’ll blend in.” We jump out, heading for the trunk. “What’s up with the chair?”
“It calls dibs.”
“People accept that?”
“Yup.”
“Huh. Truth is the hours I work leave little time. You’ll hardly see me.”
He pauses as he hauls out my case, as we lock eyes. “Oh, okay.”
A grin flashes as I yank the other one free. “You look disappointed. I appreciate that. Here I was, feeling like I’m a fish out of the fishbowl, imposing on your world with little notice. It’s weird.”
“No, Caden, I’m happy to have family here. Finn showing up is news to me. Didn’t know that was going to happen until today! But now I’ll have two in Chicago? I came here knowing nobody. Here’s the thing. Atlanta’s different than Savannah, Caden. I can imagine you wouldn’t want to leave since you have everything there already—plus your family. For me, my family was the one thing holding me there. I needed more things to do, more girls to meet. Even my mom imported Dad. Hard to date with a pool that small.”
We head up brick stairs. I rake a quick glance over the facade of his building, approving of its urban charm as I say, “Makes sense. I love Savannah, but I can see how it’d be limiting. Some of your cousins—our cousins—haven’t moved away.”
“Yup, some love it. Here we are. Number Seven.” He punches in a code and we hear a click. “Code is the year.”
“Nice.”
“Easy,” he agrees as we walk into a bachelor pad complete with distressed, brown leather couch and matching bean bag. The shelves, coffee table, and small, round dining table are wood with iron. The walls are brick, curtains deep red. “Here’s your new home.”
“Nice!” I nod with appreciation. “Way more style than mine had.”
“This is a projection screen. Projector’s over here. I’ll show you how to use it later, or now if you want?”
“Later’s good.”
Kian slides his long hair back from his crinkled forehead as he looks around. The living room and kitchen space are in the same long room, several doors leading off. He maps them out for me, pointing as he goes. “First one on the left, bathroom. You’ll share that with Oz. That’s his door, second left. Mine’s far right. Yours is first one on the right, here.” He throws the door open to reveal everything he said would be waiting for me. “I hired a cleaning service to scrape the crud off it. I hate cleaning. We have someone come once a month, but this was a heavy-duty job. Wanted to make sure you didn’t sleep in filth.”
As we haul my suitcases in I look around. “Appreciate that. I’ll reimburse you.”
“It wasn’t your mess,” Kian mutters. “Besides, I did it before I heard from Mom that you needed a place to stay. I was about to rent the room. You have more boxes coming or is this it?”
I glance around the room, the empty bed frame, empty hangers, naked desk and dresser. I never got nightstands for my old place, so even though they’re basic, they’re a novelty I’m grateful for. “Shipped ‘em. And my mattress will arrive Monday. Figured I could sleep on the couch until then. How do they handle packages with this building? I might not be here. Will they leave ‘em by the mailboxes?”
“We got ya covered.” He crosses his arms. “Work from home, remember?”
Taking a deep breath, I shove my hands in my pockets. “Thanks, Kian. You’re making
