Total pages in book: 140
Estimated words: 137144 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137144 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
Detoxing.
“On the floor.”
Oh no, now she felt terrible. He’d been sleeping on the floor while she slept in his bed?
“You shouldn’t be sleeping on the floor!” she cried.
“Why not?” he asked.
“Because that can’t be good for you. You’ll hurt your back.”
“Why? Because I’m so old?”
“I have a feeling that agreeing with you would be the wrong answer but at the same time it’s also the right answer,” she said.
“You brat!” He let out a chuckle as he tickled her sides.
She giggled, shocked at her reaction. How could she laugh like this after what she’d just remembered?
She’d gone from hiding under the bed with the dust bunnies to sitting on his lap and giggling like an idiot.
But it felt cathartic and some of the tension inside her eased.
“I am not old. I’m only eight years older than you.”
“Yes, so positively ancient. And your old bones can’t handle sleeping on the floor.”
“Is that an invitation to sleep in the bed with you?”
Lily tensed.
“Sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to upset you. I know it wasn’t an invitation. I’m fine on the floor.”
But that wasn’t fair. This was his bedroom. It was his bed.
“I can sleep on the floor,” she blurted out.
Although surely there had to be another bedroom in this cabin.
“That definitely isn’t happening,” he told her firmly as he stood and carried her around to her side of the bed.
Except you don’t have a side of the bed because you sleep in it on your own, not with him.
But it was all too easy to imagine them sleeping in this bed together, the way he’d hold her tight, how he’d chase away all her nightmares.
She really was coming to rely on him, wasn’t she? It wasn’t healthy. And it wasn’t real.
Lily needed to remember that.
“It’s time you got some sleep. And I’ll sleep on the floor. You don’t need to worry about my old bones.”
“Why don’t I go sleep in a different bedroom?” she suggested.
“Because I want you close, so I can be there if you have any nightmares.”
“This can’t go on forever, Harvey. This isn’t real life. This isn’t our lives.”
He sat facing her and brushed her hair back off her face. She couldn’t deny the shiver that ran through her as his fingers brushed against her skin. And the way her brain conjured up images of him touching her everywhere.
“But it could be. Shh. Don’t say anything yet. I know I can’t keep you here forever. But when you were coming down off those drugs, you needed someone to take care of you, and that person was me. And if you really need to leave, I will let you. After you give me a chance to win you over.”
She loved the way he just stated that, like it was a given.
“You’re a contradiction, Harvey Gallagher.”
He grinned. “Believe it or not, I’ve heard that a few times.”
“And a real pain in my ass,” she added.
He threw back his head and laughed. “Heard that a few times too.”
Yeah, she could believe that.
15
Harvey saw Paddy in the distance, leaning up against his car and smirking.
“Hey, brother. I thought you were never going to leave your love nest.”
“I wasn’t in a love nest, you asshole.”
“But you’re tucked away with someone, aren’t you? Who is it? Go on, tell me.”
“You’ll meet her when she’s ready to meet you.”
“Why isn’t she ready to meet me?” Paddy stood straight with his hand pressed against his chest. “Are you ashamed of me, brother?”
“Yes,” Harvey said dryly, “I’m ashamed of you, which is why I’m not going to introduce you to her until you straighten up your act.”
“What have I done to deserve such hatred from my big brother, the one I’ve always looked up to, who I’ve always loved the most?”
“You’re so full of shit,” Harvey told him. “Now, I asked you to come in with me so that I didn’t go too far in front of witnesses.”
“Shit, should I have brought my brass knuckles with me?” Paddy asked.
“Please tell me you don’t have brass knuckles.”
Harvey thought he was joking, but with Paddy, you could never be too sure.
“I don’t have brass knuckles,” Paddy repeated.
“Just help me figure out if this asshole is lying. You’re good at that.”
Paddy was good at reading people. Which was the other reason Harvey wanted him with him.
He didn’t like leaving Lily to come do this, so he’d waited until she was asleep. His only real concern was that she’d have a nightmare while he wasn’t there. But she hadn’t had one the last two nights.
And honestly, things were starting to get a little bit strained between them, especially at night when he went to bed on the floor.
The urge to climb up and in with her was so strong that he found himself having to take a cold shower before bed.
She wasn’t ready for that, and he wouldn’t be taking things further until she agreed to be his.