by Deanna Chase
“I already did,” he said, his eyes wide. “She said something very similar. Something about paying it forward.”
Interesting. This kid obviously didn’t let anyone in easily. Who could blame him? Chad just hoped he’d managed to strip back at least one of Levi’s many shields. They’d need to barrel through most of them if Levi was ever going to heal after the rejection he’d already received in his young life.
“Brunch is served,” Candy said in a sing-song voice as she placed the plates on the table. “I’ll be back in a second. Need to get your drinks. Sorry for making you wait.”
Chad watched Levi as he watched her saunter away.
“She really is hot,” Levi said almost wistfully.
“I thought you said girls weren’t your thing?” Chad challenged.
He laughed. “They aren’t. But dang, I can enjoy the view of a sexy woman, can’t I?”
“Fair enough,” Chad said.
They were still chuckling when Candy returned with their drinks. Then Levi surprised Chad when he asked Candy, “Hey. Is there anything interesting happening in this town on Friday night? Any teen get-togethers or hangouts I should know about?”
“Hmm, nothing official. But if you’re looking for a hangout partner, I’m free. Just friends though. I’ve got a boyfriend.”
Levi grinned at her. “Is he hot?”
Her eyes crinkled with amusement. “Heck, yeah. Why?”
“I’m just wondering if he has an available brother,” he said with a shrug.
Candy barked out a laugh. “No, however...” She eyed him up and down. “Yeah, okay. Come out with us on Friday night. There’s someone you need to meet.”
“Oh, no. Not a set up.” Levi shook his head, his face turning a dark shade of red. “I’m not great in those situations.”
“Nerves,” she says nodding. “I get it. But don’t worry. This will be a group thing.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket. “What’s your number? I’ll text you the details.”
Levi’s mouth opened then closed as he shook his head. “My phone died recently. Haven’t had a chance to get a new one yet,” he muttered.
“Oh. Well, let me give you my number and you can text me later,” she said without hesitation. She retreated back to the counter, scribbled a number, and when she returned, she handed it to Levi.
“Yeah, okay,” he said, tucking it into his jeans pocket, but he looked out the window with a defeated expression on his face.
Candy glanced at Chad, a concerned look on her face, seeming to ask, What did I say?
Chad gave her a slight shake of his head, not sure how to answer. He could guess what Levi was thinking. He wouldn’t have a phone. He wouldn’t have much of anything, and at the moment he didn’t even have a change of clothes.
“It’s nice to meet you, Levi,” Candy said. When he glanced at her, she added, “It’s always nice to meet cute, interesting boys. See you Friday.”
“Thanks, you too.” He cleared his throat. “Looking forward to it.”
She waved and went back behind the counter to deal with the line forming.
Chad led Levi down the sidewalk of the strip mall. “Any stores look promising?”
They’d ended up in Eureka since Keating Hollow didn’t exactly have clothing stores that catered to moody teens. Chad pointed to the Old Navy store. “How about that one. Or the Gap. They have good jeans, right?”
Levi rolled his eyes. “I can’t shop at either of those places.”
“And why not?” Chad crossed his arms over his chest, getting really tired of the money excuse. Levi didn’t want to do anything that cost money. It was obvious he didn’t want to take advantage or owe anyone anything.
“I just…” Levi jammed his hands into his front pockets.
“Just what?”
“Can we go to a second-hand shop? Like the Buffalo Exchange?” Levi asked.
“Vintage?” Chad’s interest perked right up. “Yeah. Let’s do that.”
Once they were in the secondhand shop, Chad was able to convince Levi to get enough clothing to last at least a week. When Levi kept insisting he needed to find a way to pay him back, Chad said, “Don’t worry about it, man. You can help me get the store set up. If you want to work there, I’ll take it out of your pay.”
Levi turned and stared at him. “What?”
“I’m opening a music store in Keating Hollow. I’ll need someone to help me with painting and store set up. You game?”
“Hell, yeah!”
“Good.” Chad slipped his arm around the kid’s shoulders and led him up to the front counter. “Let’s get this stuff and then we’ll hit Target for the rest of your necessities before we head back to town and raid Barb’s storage. With any luck, we’ll have everything moved into Luna’s house before she gets off work.”
Levi’s elated expression faded, and he glanced away again.
Chad swallowed a frustrated sigh. What now? The furniture was free. Even though he fully expected the kid to dodge his question, he straight out asked, “Levi, what’s going on?”
To his surprise, Levi turned worried eyes on him and said, “I think she’s changed her mind.”
“About what?”
“About me staying there. This morning she got really weird and quiet, and I… I shouldn’t stay long.”
Chad grabbed Levi’s arm and squeezed lightly. “That’s not at all the truth, Levi. She got some news this morning she wasn’t expecting, and it has nothing to do with you. Trust me. If you leave because of anything she said this morning, she’ll be gutted. She’s not going to let you back out on the streets if she has anything to say about it. If you don’t want to stay in Keating Hollow, that’s one thing. We’ll help you find a safe place—”
“I don’t want to leave,” he said quickly, looking away as his eyes turned glassy.
Chad let out a relieved breath. “Good. That’s good.” He let go of Levi’s arm and took a step back. “Ready to stroll the personal hygiene aisle of Target?”
Levi ran a hand through his hair, making it stand up in messy clumps. He grimaced and patted it back down. “More than ready.”
Chad could only imagine. He’d obviously showered since Chad had seen him the night before, but Luna likely didn’t have a spare deodorant or tooth brush or anything else he needed lying around. “Let’s do it then.”
It was late in the afternoon when Chad and Levi finished putting together the bed they’d hauled over to Luna’s from Barb’s storage. It was a double bed with a slightly lumpy mattress, but Levi was beaming as he stared down at the piece of furniture. “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had my own bed to sleep in?”
“About twelve hours?” Chad teased. “Did Luna give you hers last night?” After the run to Target, Levi had finally relaxed and spent the rest of the day smiling. It was good to see him accepting the help Chad and Luna so desperately wanted to give him.
Levi rolled his eyes. “Besides that. I only took it because my head was killing me and arguing with Luna was making me nauseous.”
“Of course,” Chad said nodding. “Sometimes it’s better to just let the women have their way. I get it.” He winked. “So, how long?”
“Nine or ten years,” Levi said with a shrug. “I acquired four step siblings after my dad got remarried. All of them younger than me. They gave my bed to my oldest sister and I got a couch.” His eyes flashed with anger as he added, “They were supposed to buy me a new bed, but as it turned out, the stepmonster’s children always needed something else more. And then when they suspected I was gay… well, I was probably lucky they didn’t kick me out sooner.”
“Damn, Levi. That’s brutal. I’m sorry, man.” Chad clapped him on the shoulder.
“Yeah. It was,” he said simply. Then he looked down at the bed again and beamed. “But thanks to you and Barb, I’m going to enjoy the heck out of this.”
“Yes, you will,” Luna said, striding into the room. “But put this on top before you secure
the sheets. It will keep your back from aching.” She tossed a foam bed topper on the mattress and then rushed out, only to return a moment later with sheets, two blankets, and a couple of pillows.
Staring at the bedding, Levi asked, “Where did this stuff come from?”
Luna shrugged. “The bedroom fairy.”
Levi’s eyes sparkled with amusement as he sputtered, “Bedroom fairy? Do I get one of those too? Is he my type?” As soon as the words flew out of his mouth, he let out a gasp and clasped his hand over his mouth as he mumbled, “Sorry.”
Luna just laughed. “If there was such a thing as a bedroom fairy, I’d be first in line for one.”
Levi’s eyes were wide with surprise as he gaped at her. Chad turned his attention to her, his body temperature rising as he imagined crawling onto her bed and covering her body with his own. Holy hell, he thought as he glanced away. Not now, dude. Not now.
Chapter Seventeen
Luna didn’t miss the look Chad was giving her. And her body responded instantly with a flutter of her heart, followed by tingles dancing over her skin. He hadn’t even touched her, and yet, she felt like she could already feel his fingertips gliding over her skin.
“Wow. I feel like a third wheel. I’ll just head downstairs while you two, ah, do whatever it is you’re going to do,” Levi said with a snicker and rushed out of the room.
Luna watched him go, horrified. Her face heated and she averted her gaze.
Chad chuckled.
“What’s so funny?” she asked him with narrowed eyes.
“Us.” He reached out and lightly grabbed her hand, tugging her closer to him. “We can keep dancing around this, or we can acknowledge that we’re both goners.”
She blinked up at him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. We should—”
Chad placed his fingers over her lips, stopping her words. “Yes, you do.” Instead of pulling his hand away, he gently ran his thumb over her bottom lip. “Do you have any idea how much I want to kiss you right now?”
Luna’s breath caught. She wanted more than anything to lean into him and taste him again. The kiss they’d shared back at the spa had stayed with her all day. She’d be lying if she pretended that she didn’t want him, too. She let out a small sigh and leaned in, whispering, “We shouldn’t be doing this right now.”
“Probably not,” he agreed, but he cupped her cheeks with both hands and brushed his lips over hers. “But I’ve been wanting to do this since that first day I saw you sitting at the bar in the brewpub.”
She made an appreciative noise and leaned into the kiss, unwilling to tell him exactly how long she’d wanted him. He tasted of chocolate and coffee and home. Her arms went around his solid frame, and she wondered if she’d ever felt as right as she did in that moment. She was exactly where she was supposed to be with the only man she’d ever loved.
Life felt just about perfect.
She stiffened and then pulled back, startled and more than a little freaked. Perfect wasn’t good. Perfect meant that likely the shit was about to hit the fan. Perfect was a fleeting moment, and she was sure her bubble was about to burst.
“What just happened?” he asked, studying her face, his eyes searching. “Where’d you go?”
“Back to reality. Listen, Chad. There’s a sixteen-year old boy downstairs. I know you told me you two had a good day and he’s doing fine, but that kind of trauma, it doesn’t just disappear. I need to go make dinner and talk to him about the next steps. Not stay up here, making out with you.” Her gaze dropped to his lips, and she had to force herself to look away. “Are you done in here?”
“Uh, yeah.” He ran a hand through his light hair and blew out a breath. Then his easy smile was back as he said, “Okay. You’re right about that. Let’s go make dinner.”
Her heart dropped as disappointment set in. She hadn’t expected him to agree so easily. Or maybe she just hoped he wouldn’t. Too late. She’d put on the brakes and he’d respected her decision. Of course, he had. Pushing wasn’t his style.
“Right.” She spun on her heel and started for the door.
“Luna?”
“Yeah?” she glanced over her shoulder.
“We’ll revisit this Friday after I pick you up for our date.” He gave her a sexy half smile before striding past her and down the stairs.
Cocky bastard, she thought, but as she made her way down to the kitchen, she couldn’t help the silly grin on her face or the butterflies that had taken up residence in her stomach. He wanted her, and he was making sure she knew it. She just hoped she wasn’t jumping off the deep end without a life preserver.
She found Levi in the kitchen chopping a bell pepper. He’d already worked his way through an onion and a bag of carrots she’d brought home from the grocery store. When she glanced past him, she spotted a bowl of cut up chicken breasts. “Hey,” she said, grinning at him. “Looks like you know your way around a kitchen.”
He shrugged. “I’m not a gourmet cook or anything, but I know stir fry ingredients when I see them.”
“You want some help or—”
“I got it,” he said, waving a hand. But then he paused, that worried look in his eyes again. “Unless you wanted to do the cooking. I’m just so used to fending for myself that I didn’t think to ask.”
“Levi, you can cook anything you want at any time. You don’t need to ask. Especially if you’re cooking us dinner.”
Relief washed over him, and his shoulders relaxed. “Okay. Cool. I like to cook. I’m happy to do that whenever you want.”
“The job is yours,” she said with a wide smile. The fact that he’d taken it upon himself to just start dinner for them made Luna’s heart squeeze. Guh. He was such a sweet kid. She couldn’t help wondering again for the twentieth time how he’d ended up homeless. Since he had it all under control, she sat on the newly acquired stool across from him and clasped her hands together. “Can we talk a minute?”
He paused, holding the knife above the red pepper. “About what?”
Luna sucked in a breath, not wanting to upset him, but if he was going to stay, she needed to find a way to make it official. She didn’t want him to settle in and get attached, and then get pulled out of her home for any number of preventable reasons. “I want to talk to a lawyer about where we go from here, and I’m going to need some information first.”
“A lawyer?” His face was pinched as if he was worried.
“Yes, someone who can help us figure out how you can legally stay here. I need to find out how I can become your legal guardian so we can get you back in school and your uncle can’t just come and order you back into your old situation. I didn’t mean to pry earlier, but I overheard you say your dad kicked you out when I was coming upstairs a few minutes ago. Is there any reason to believe he might want you to come back now that there’s been some distance?”
His face paled, and he blinked rapidly, clearing the tears that appeared suddenly. “No. He’s not interested in a… relationship with me.”
Luna longed to wrap him in her arms and somehow just hold on until all of his wounds were healed. But she knew that wouldn’t happen in one night. Probably not even a lifetime, but she was up for trying. “Okay. I’m sorry to hear that for your sake, but hopefully it means it will be easier to get all the legal stuff in place for you to stay here. What do you say about meeting with a lawyer so that your uncle can’t claim a legal right as a guardian?”
A visible shudder ran though him as undeniable fear flashed in his big brown eyes. He glanced around as if looking to see if his uncle was already in Luna’s house demanding that Levi get back to Eureka. “No. I won’t go with him. Not ever again. I won’t,” he insisted.
Luna reached across the counter and gently squeezed his hand. “That’s what I want to avoid. Trust me, Levi, I don’t want you in that situation. That’s why I want to consult someone. So you’re protected.”
“But what…” He swallowed hard and his eyes turned glassy with unshed tea
rs again.
Luna was silent as she waited for him to find his courage to ask whatever it was that he was thinking.
“Um, what if the lawyer has to contact someone?” He averted his gaze, and his voice was barely a whisper as he asked, “Like… Child Protective Services?”
An ache formed in Luna’s gut. That was always a possibility. But she couldn’t just have a kid living with her without getting some sort of legal protection for both of them. “Then I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure they let you stay here. Which brings me to my next question.”
He dropped his chin to his chest and asked, “What?”
“How do you feel about reporting your uncle? I know the deputy sheriff here in town. You can trust him.”
Levi’s head snapped up, and his expression was hard. “No. No cops.”
Luna suppressed a sigh. She figured he wouldn’t trust the local law enforcement. She hadn’t either at his age. All of her interactions with cops up until that point had ended with her in another crappy foster home or hassled just for being an aimless teen out too late in the city who wasn’t willing to go home. It had taken her a while to realize that most of them actually wanted to help but were confined by their jobs concerning how much they could do. Levi had no way of knowing that Drew Baker, Keating Hollow’s deputy, was a good man. Drew would never do anything to put Levi back in danger. But Luna wasn’t about to break Levi’s trust. “Okay. No reports for now. But keep in mind that the sooner you report the incident, the better. Child Protective Services won’t send you back to your uncle with a criminal complaint against him.”
A single tear ran down Levi’s cheek as he slowly shook his head. “I just want to disappear.”
Luna’s heart twisted. She’d been there more times than she could count. “I know, sweetie. I really do. And it kills me that I can’t make any promises about the outcome of this. The only thing I can promise is that I will always be here and will do my damnedest to not let you down.”
