Into the Fading Twilight (Starlight Grove, #2) (19)

The scent of sawdust filled the air, and I took in the surrounding attic area. The walls were still exposed drywall, but a living space of sorts was beginning to take shape. A kitchen in one corner, a bathroom in another, and so many windows, the space would be full of light during the day.

“An apartment?” I asked, moving toward the massive window at the back. The moon illuminated the land just enough for me to see glimpses of the pastures and forest, with Mount Lupine in the distance. It was breathtaking.

“An apartment,” he echoed.

I stilled, taking a second before I turned to face Kol. A buzz lit beneath my skin. “Oh.” It was all I could manage to say at first.

Kol simply stood there, waiting for … something.

“And you’re showing it to me because?”

“You should live here.”

He said it simply. Like it was an undeniable truth.

“I should live here,” I parroted. I knew the Archer brothers were protective of Twisted Oak Ranch. It only took a couple of visits to realize that. Outsiders weren’t exactly welcome, and I got the impression the few dinners I’d been invited to were exceptions and not the rule. The fact that their middle brother, Orion, hadn’t graced a single one was proof of that.

“It’ll be ready in about two weeks. Maybe less if I can get my brothers to help,” Kol went on.

“Are you serious right now?”

Kol stared at me, those eyes stormy with flecks of light in their depths. “Phoenix. Sometimes, we have to walk before we run. Here, you’ll know you’re safe but will have your space. No one breathing down your neck.”

“Kol,” I croaked.

“I’ve got you.”

My eyes burned. Because I knew those words were the truth. He did have me. I didn’t know why the universe had brought him into my path, but I knew I’d be grateful for the rest of my days.

“You don’t even know me,” I rasped.

Kol didn’t look away. “I know enough.”

The words burned with the most beautiful, scarring heat. “Okay.”

His mouth curved into one of those rare smiles. “Okay.”





CHAPTER SEVEN


Kol




THE WORDS BLURRED AS I STARED AT THE COMPUTER screen, the fluorescent lights in my office only making it worse. It was too early in the day for that, but burning eyes and hazy vision were the consequences of barely managing a few hours of sleep.

“You don’t even know me.”

Nova’s words echoed in my head as an image of her face played on repeat. The way those gray eyes filled with pain, gratitude, and hope. She was so damn strong. And she deserved a hell of a lot more than just a tiny apartment over a garage. But I’d still make it the best it could be.

I snatched up the eye drops in my desk drawer, depositing more than a few in each eye. It helped a little. At least enough that I could see my phone screen clearly. I pulled up the group chat with my brothers and scowled at the name.

Every time someone changed it, Mav changed it back to his group moniker of choice: 50 Shades of Slay.

We all dealt with what our father had done differently. It marked us all in different ways. And Mav’s tool of choice was laughing in the face of trauma. But I knew that humor hid his scars, both physical and mental.

Me:

Anyone up for helping me with the apartment this week? Close to the finish line and would love to get it done.



I wasn’t quite ready to share who would be inhabiting the space.

Wylder:

You jammed on this project. I can help after six.



Wylder worked a mix of days and nights at the Boot, wanting to have his finger on the pulse of how his staff was handling things.

Maverick:

What’s my payment?



Me:

Pizza and me not telling Uncle Waylon that you’re the one who broke his Bigfoot grandfather clock in high school after coming home drunk and trying to fight it.



Maverick:

Hey, it looked like a bear.



Dex:

A bear in the house?



Maverick:

It could happen. Those cute fuckers are resourceful.



Wylder:

Let us not forget that Mav lost the fight to that inanimate object.



I couldn’t help the snicker that left my lips.

Me:

Remember? He started bequeathing us all his prized possessions.



Dex:

I’m still holding on to the hope of getting his prized Derek Jeter rookie card.



Maverick:

None of you are getting shit for making fun of my trauma. I still have a scar from where Bigfoot’s fist hit my jaw.

Wylder:

What do you tell people it’s from?



It wasn’t the only scar Mav carried, and we all knew he never told the truth about where they came from.

Maverick:

A fight with a grizzly, where I saved a kid from being attacked. Obvi. Gets me laid a lot.



Me:

TMI. Are you guys coming to help or not?



Dex:

You had me at pizza.



Maverick:

Throw in garlic knots, and I’m in.