Page 13 of The Year of Us 2: February

“If I ask for your phone number, are you going to give me the real one, or are you going to ghost me?”

My question made Reese laugh and he bumped his foot against mine. “I’ll give you the real one. Scout’s honor.”

“Were you a scout?”

Reese scoffed. “No, but I’ll still give you my real number. Get your phone.”

“Bossy.” I rolled my eyes, but grabbed my phone off the nightstand while he fished his out of his pants. After I unlocked it, I handed it to Reese, who tapped away at the screen. A few seconds later, his phone screen lit up with a new text message.

“See. Now you have my number. Maybe next time, I’ll get a bit of warning before you blow into town.”

“Not a fan of surprises?”

He met my gaze and held it. Just when I thought he was going to say no, he spoke. “Sometimes they’re okay.”

A knock on the door startled us, and we both flinched. Laughing, I dusted a kiss against his lips. “Stay here, I’ll get it.”

Reese put his hands behind his head and grinned at me. “I could get used to being on this side of aftercare.”

I think he’d meant it as a joke, as a bit of levity to take the weight out of the moment, but even hours later, all I could think about was wondering if he ever let anyone take care of him before, or if anyone even offered to. And the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to take care of him. If he’d let me. Reese was more tangled up than a cat in a yarn shop. Getting him to let me look after him would be no easy task.

It was a good thing for both of us that I’d already decided I was up for the challenge.

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