Three Rules I’d Never Break by Remi Carrington

Chapter 26

After spending most of the morning on the phone, I stepped into the front of the store. “Has it been busy?” I rubbed Eli’s back as I eased up beside him.

“Lots of people, but I think most of them had heard about your house and wanted to check on you. A few people bought stuff.”

“Thank you for doing this. Issa should be here soon. She hasn’t started teaching yet, so she can cover the rest of this week.” I rested my head on his chest. “I’ve been thinking.”

“Hmm?” He kissed the top of my head.

“I didn’t grow up seeing people work through problems. Thank you for showing me what a healthy relationship looks like.”

“We’re going to irritate each other. It’s inevitable. But I’ll still love you.” He glanced toward the door as it opened. “I’m going to slip out the back and see you later.”

I inched up and kissed his cheek. “Will you pose for me without a shirt?”

“Just say when.” He winked as he walked to the back. “Hello, Tandy. I was just headed out.”

Tandy laughed. “I think maybe I scared him off.”

“Possibly. He’s pretty skittish after working the store for me this morning.” I glanced back as the door closed at the end of the hall. “And he doesn’t want to leave the puppy alone for too long.”

She dropped her extra-large purse onto the counter. “Those Gallagher men are a breed of their own. But we don’t need to talk about that. Tell me about you. How are you? I heard the awful news.”

Her statement had me itching to ask, but my gut said to wait. Maybe Eli knew why she’d made such a pronouncement. I couldn’t disagree with her though.

“I’m okay. It’s a shock, and I know the next few weeks will be tough because I’ll keep thinking about it. But I have Eli, and he’s better than any house.”

She tapped a manicured nail on the counter. “Home isn’t about walls.”

“That’s true.”

Dragging her bag off the counter, she turned toward the door. “I’ll be around if you need me. Just wanted to check on you.”

“Have a great day.”

Once she was out the door, I wandered through the store, making sure items were in their proper places.

I had more questions than answers regarding the house, and it would be weeks before I had some of the answers.

That gave me time to think, and after yesterday, I had a lot of thinking to do. Since I was building my forever home, I wanted Eli’s input because I wanted him to be part of my forever.

* * *

I curledup on Tessa’s couch, cradling my cup of tea. “Thank you for being a good friend.”

She sat down on the opposite end of the couch. “I was probably too harsh, and I’m sorry about that.”

“No. You were absolutely right, and I’m grateful you cared enough to be honest with me. When you left that first night, I wasn’t sure if our friendship would survive.” I’d never told her why her friendship meant so much, but that would change today.

Shaking her head, she grinned. “It’ll take more than a blip of stupidity to chase me off.”

“Well, I’m glad. Your friendship means a lot. In fact, I’ve never told you this, but meeting you was why I chose this location for my store. You are friendly, warm, and authentic. It’s a rare combination, and I’m lucky to have you as a friend.”

She lifted her mug, intentionally blocking her face. “Thanks.”

“I feel like I should explain why those silly rules were so important to me.”

“Delaney, you don’t have to.”

“I want to.” I shifted, tucking my feet up next to me. “My mom had issues.” I told Tessa about my mom and how my stepmom didn’t want me. “I thought those rules kept me from turning out like my mom. I was wrong. I’m not like her. The rules have nothing to do with it.” I finished the last of my tea. “And one of the reasons I love you so much is because you make me feel like I belong. Apart from my grandma, and now with Eli I never really felt that.”

Biting her lip, she wiped her cheek. “We can’t all have perfect families like Eli did. Some of us just have to muddle through and make the best of it. But you and me, we’re both lucky enough to get to be a part of his happy family. They’ve been awesome to me.”

“I’m excited about that too. His mom is so sweet.”

“She is. And funny. More than once I’ve wished that I’d been her daughter instead of just her niece. But please don’t repeat that. My dad would be heartbroken to hear me say that. My mom too.” Tessa leaned forward. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that you and Eli worked it out. Y’all are my two favorite people, and I’m thrilled to see you happy together.”

“Because you know us both so well, you shouldn’t ever feel like a third wheel. Ever.”

“I’ll remember that.” She sprang up off the couch. “The brownies are probably ready. Let’s indulge.”

“Perfect. I’m going to need a lot of chocolate to make it through the insurance process.”

* * *

That evening,Eli and I snuggled on the sofa after dinner. Sherlock was sprawled across our laps.

Eli had been quieter than normal, but I waited until he wanted to talk about it.

“The investigator said it looks like some rags that had been used to stain the cabinets were the likely cause of the fire. The clean-up alone will take a while. They’ll need to have the foundation inspected to see if it needs to be torn out. Then the builders would start over from scratch.” I hoped they would need to put down a new foundation.

“Rebuilding will be faster if they use the same foundation, but it can be hard to get the smell of smoke out of the concrete. And that was a pretty hot fire.” He brushed his thumb back and forth across my fingers.

“I’ll let the experts sort it out.”

He tilted his head back and sucked in a deep breath. After huffing it out, he rubbed his jaw. “I have an idea, and before you shut the whole thing down, hear me out, okay?”

“I’m listening.”

“Even with insurance rebuilding is going to be costly.” He pinched his lips together. “And paying for an apartment will only pull money away from what you could have spent on the new house.”

“I’ll figure it out. You don’t have to—”

He leaned closer. “You promised to hear me out. I know I don’t have to do anything.” After pressing a kiss to my cheek, he flashed a smile, probably hoping it would convince me of what he was about to suggest. “The rent on this trailer is cheap. Joji probably spends more feeding me than I give her in rent.”

“I’m not going to—” I bit my tongue. “Continue.”

“Thank you. So, my suggestion is that you live here, and I’ll move back home. Just until the house is done.”

“Eli, it could take months. I can’t ask you to do that.”

He cupped my face. “You didn’t ask. I offered, and I’m hoping you’ll say yes. I talked to my parents about it today and to Joji. They are all fine with the idea.”

“But you have reasons for not living there.”

“And now I have reasons for living there. It’ll make it so much easier for my mom to do my laundry.” His green eyes pleaded with me. “Please.”

“Okay.”

Eli pointed at Sherlock. “He’s going to love the new arrangement.”

“You can come over here any time you need a break.”

That wonderful grin spread across his face. “I’ll be over here a lot, but not because I need a break.”

“Because of Boingo?”

Eli rolled his eyes. “Yep. Exactly. I’ll come to visit a goat.”

I tugged on his shirt, pulling him closer to my lips. “I hope you make a little time for this.” Brushing my lips on his always set off the flutters.

Sherlock jumped off as Eli laid me down on the couch. I loved that I could enjoy kissing him without worrying how far he’d take things.

Hovering over me, he teased his lips on my skin. “This is my favorite word.”