Placing an arm around her shoulders, I steer her toward my room. “I’ll lend you some pajamas and wash your clothes while you sleep so they’ll be clean for tomorrow, okay?”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
I pull a clean T-shirt and a pair of sleep shorts out of my suitcase and hand them to her. “They’ll be roomy on you, but Skylar and I can get you some things before the concert.”
A frown mars her face when I hand her the clothes. “Um…I don’t want to seem ungrateful, but do you have anything other than shorts?”
Oh.
“Yeah. Of course.” I root around for a pair of clean pajama pants. “Here.”
Relief crosses her face. “Mucho appreciated.”
After she’s done changing in the bathroom, she pads back out. She hands me her T-shirt and jeans, but she’s still wearing her sweatshirt. “I get cold a lot.”
My heart lodges in my throat, but I nod anyway. I’ve already deduced why she wants to keep the sweatshirt on—the same reason she didn’t want to wear shorts—but I don’t want to make her feel self-conscious by pointing it out.
“It’s the Windy City after all.” I trek over to the main door so I can make a pit stop at the laundry room in the hotel. “Let me know if you need anything, okay? I’ll be in the next room.”
She climbs into bed. “Thanks, but no thanks. I do not want to interrupt you two again.”
Double shit. “We’re not…” I stop talking because it’s late, and she needs to rest. I can broach all of this with her tomorrow. “Sleep tight.”
“Lennon?”
“Yeah?”
“Is Phoenix really gonna save me?”
Oh geez. This girl has a way of pulling on your damn heartstrings.
I don’t want to lie to her, so I give her the truth.
“Phoenix is the most stubborn and determined person I know and when he wants something…he’ll stop at nothing to get it.”
Given she has no knowledge of the appalling things he’ll resort to, she innocently assumes this is a positive thing and smiles.
“You’re good people,” she says as I twist the knob. “My bro’s lucky to have you.”
After making a quick trip to the laundry room, I return to Phoenix’s suite.
I find him propped up against the headboard of his bed in a pair of boxers. Both his reading pen and the documents from earlier are in his hands, but the distant expression on his face tells me he isn’t focusing on any of that.
Can’t say I blame him.
“Hey.”
At the sound of my voice, he snaps out of his haze. “Hey. Is Quinn…” He stalls like he’s at a loss for words. “Tucked in?”
I bite back a smile. “She’s fifteen, not five. But yeah, she’s settled. I told her to come get me if she needs anything.” I gesture to one of the pillows on the bed. “Is it okay if I take one of these? The ones on the couch don’t look very comfy.”
“Yeah—” He gives his head a shake. “Wait. Why are you talking about the couch?”
“Because that’s where I’m going to sleep.”
I go to take one of the pillows, but Phoenix snatches it away. “You’re not sleeping on the couch.”
Yup. Should have known this would happen.
“The floor is way less comfortable.”
I try to steal a different pillow, but he snatches that one, too. “You won’t be sleeping on the floor either.” He points to the bed. “Bring that ass.”
Bring that ass?
I could stand here arguing with him all night—and were it any other night I would just for the sheer principle of not wanting him to control me—but he’s under enough stress right now.
Sometimes you have to pick and choose your battles.
It suddenly dawns on me that while I gave Quinn pajamas, I didn’t get myself any. Seeing as she’s probably—hopefully—fast asleep, I don’t want to wake her.
Poor girl could use the rest.
“Fine. But do you have a T-shirt I can borrow?”
He quirks a brow. “T-shirt for what?”
“For me.” I toe off my shoes. “I forgot to grab myself some pajamas and I don’t want to go back in there and wake her. Hence I need a T-shirt.”
“No,” he deadpans. “You’re supposed to take your clothes off in my bed. Not put clothes on.”
He’s incorrigible.
“Whatever. I’ll sleep in the one I’m wearing.”