Page 44 of Let You Love Me

“Oh, yeah? Saving for some big adventure?” he asks, eyeing me.

“Something like that.”

“Something like that,” he repeats, arching a brow. “That’s it? That’s all I get? Friends,” he says, motioning between us. “Remember? Friends share things.”

I try to restrain my smile as I shake my head and glance down at the table.

Am I really going to tell him?

Oh hell, why not? Something tells me he’ll wring it out of me, anyway. Besides, I’m too excited not to share.

“Okay, fine.” I bite my lip, unsure of what he’ll think when I say, “I bought a house.”

“Wow, that’s . . .” He blinks, a hint of surprise and maybe even a little admiration shifting his masculine features. “Amazing,” he finishes. “Not too many juniors in college can say the same. Tell me about it.”

He smiles so wide, I can’t help myself as I say, “It’s actually off Drum Point Lake. This cute, yellow, three-bedroom house with a huge yard and lake view. It’s a foreclosure, so it sat empty for almost two years. I found it one day on a whim whiledriving around the lakefront. Waiting for it to finally go for sale was excruciating, but it was also probably a godsend because it allowed me to save more money. By the time it got listed a few months back, I’d been watching and waiting for what felt like forever, but I was also ready, so I snatched it up.”

“And so the extra money you make is for . . .?”

“Repairs. It needs a little TLC, and in order to fix it up, I’m going to need money. But it’ll be so worth it in the end if I can manage it. It’s a diamond in the rough. Honestly, most first homes are just a starter homes, but I can’t see myself living anywhere else.”

I can already see Sophie chasing butterflies in the front yard and catching fireflies at night. I envision watching the sunset over the water from the back porch. On the weekend, I can take Sophie for a morning row in the kayak I’ve yet to buy. Sundays, having brunch with a view. Planting flowers in the spring. Summer BBQs. Birthday parties beneath the canopy of the large weeping willow. Decorating for Christmas. So many memories are waiting on us.

Teagan’s eyes turn liquid as he stares at me with an expression I can’t read.

I drop my gaze and self-consciously tuck a lock of hair behind my ear. For one infinitesimal moment, with the warmth of his eyes on me, I feel full in a way I haven’t in a long time—maybe ever.

I shift in my seat, unsure what to do with this pressure inside my chest when our waitress arrives, saving me from the tension.

She delivers our pizzas, and Teagan thanks her with a dimpled smile before he turns his gaze back to mine, and my pulse flutters.

I wonder how many hearts he’s broken with that smile.

The thought dissipates as quickly as it came to me, and I busy myself with fixing Sophie’s plate, cutting her pizza in half so it’seasier for her to pick up, while I try to ignore the heat of his watchful gaze.

“So, you’re going to fix the house up yourself?” he asks, picking right back up where we left off. “That’s a big undertaking.”

His voice holds no judgment or disbelief, only awe.

“Some. I mean, there’s a tutorial for everything on YouTube nowadays, right?” I laugh, and though I’ve given this a lot of thought, I don’t want to bore him with the details, so I keep it short. “I can paint and spackle, hang doors, and change out locks and stuff like that. I’m even pretty certain I can manage any demo that’ll need done, and some of the flooring. But the roof needs to be replaced first, and I’ll hire out for the kitchen and bathrooms, too.”

Teagan shakes his head, staring at me from underneath a thick fringe of lashes. “You really are something, Lane Turner.”

I flush, giving him a small shrug. “A lot of people do it. I mean, I’m just like anyone else, trying to build a life for myself, and Ireallywant to move out of my parents’ house, finally get a place of my own, so it just makes sense. It’s unfair to rely on them so much.”

“Yeah, maybe, but you say that like you’re a burden. I’m sure they love having you there. You’re, what? Twenty-one?”

I nod in answer, and he continues, “So, you’re not even out of school yet. You’ve got time. Most kids our age live with their parents. I’d probably do the same if I went to a university back home if it meant saving money.”

I slide Sophie’s plate in front of her and warn her it’s hot before fixing one of my own while Teagan does the same. “Yeah, I guess. But my circumstances aren’t . . . typical.”

A crease forms between his brow and I can tell he’s about to ask me about it. Seeing as how I’m not really in the mood to broach the subject of how I became a teen mom, I strike first. “Whereishome for you? Tell me about it.”

He lights up like a Christmas tree at my question, a warmth in his expression that was previously missing. “Riverside, Ohio. It’s a small town outside the city and easily one of my favorite places. Maybe that has more to do with the fact that all my favorite people have come from there, but I love it regardless. My parents and little sisters are still back home. There’s quite the age gap there, so it’ll be a while until my folks are empty nesters, which takes a bit of the burden off my shoulders since I moved away. My twin, Brynn, was probably the hardest to leave, though.”

“You’re close with her?”

“You could say that. I guess we have the typical twin connection people talk about.”