Chapter 2
Chapter Two
HUDSON
I push through the front door of our reno project with my toolbox in one hand and coffee in the other, expecting to find an empty house and a good day’s work ahead of us. Instead, I freeze in the doorway.
Lily’s curled up on the couch, red hair spilling over the cushions like liquid copper. She’s still in yesterday’s clothes: the tight skirt and purple blouse that brings out her eyes. I mean, if I were to pay attention. Which I’m not.
“What the hell?”
Cole bumps into my back, nearly spilling his own coffee. “Dude, why’d you—” He stops mid-sentence when he sees what I’m staring at. “Oh.”
Gage crowds in behind us, his boots heavy on the threshold. “Everything okay?” Then he spots her too. His expression shifts from confusion to something protective that I recognize in myself even though I shouldn’t.
No matter how long I’ve had a crush on her, regardless of the fact that Matt knew when he asked her out, despite the fact that I can’t get her out of my head, she’s off limits. She’s Matt’s girlfriend. Even still, I release a frustrated sound. She shouldn’t be staying here. It’s not safe.
The guys look at me.
“You okay?” Gage asks.
“Yeah, but,” I set my stuff down carefully, trying not to wake her. My mind races through all the reasons this is wrong. “We left a mess yesterday. Sawdust, loose screws, construction debris. What if she stepped on something? What if she’s been breathing that shit all night?”
This house is still very much a work site and dangerous to try to live in. Protective anger builds in my chest, but I’m not sure who I’m upset with. Her, for being reckless? Matt, for not giving a damn? Or myself, for caring this much about someone who’s not mine.
Cole leans against the doorframe, studying her sleeping form with that calculating look he gets. “Do you think Matt knows?”
“Good fucking question.” I pull out my phone and scroll to Matt’s number.
The fact that I even have to ask him about his girlfriend’s whereabouts pisses me off more than it should.
He treats her like crap, and she deserves better.
I turn and head outside so I don’t wake Lily, and the guys follow.
The morning air is crisp, carrying the scent of pine and sawdust from yesterday’s work.
That only makes me more frustrated that Lily stayed the night because the furnace isn’t on and that flimsy throw blanket isn’t exactly warm.
She’s not yours, Hudson.
The phone rings four times before Matt picks up, his voice rough like he just woke up. “Yeah?”
“Matt, it’s Hudson. Where’s Lily?”
He pauses for too long before finally grumbling. “How the hell should I know?”
My jaw clenches. “She’s your girlfriend, asshole. She spent the night on the job site.” He should be here too, ready to work, but he’s always late.
“So? She broke up with me. She’s not my problem anymore.” The casual dismissal makes my free hand curl into a fist. “Look, man, I drank too much and feel like death warmed over. Whatever drama Lily has going on, I can’t deal with it today.”
“Really?” I ask, letting my disbelief color each syllable. He went out and got wasted while his girlfriend—er, ex-girlfriend—had nowhere safe to sleep? Did he kick her out? Even the thought has my blood boiling. It takes a real asshole to put a woman out on the street at night.
Matt, as always, doesn’t even seem to realize what he did is a problem. He’s been more self-absorbed than usual lately. “Yeah, man. I don’t feel good so I’m calling in sick. Listen, I’m going back to bed. As far as Lily’s concerned. . . she’s not my problem. Let her suffer.”
The line goes dead. I stare at my phone like it might give me answers.
Maybe I should drive over there and knock some sense into him.
If my dad were here, his ass would be fired.
Shit, the only reason Matt is still employed is because I cover for him.
I keep him on my jobs and far away from the projects my dad runs.
“Well?” Gage keeps his voice low, glancing at Lily through the window to make sure we haven’t woken her.
“He doesn’t give a shit.” I shove the phone back in my pocket. “Lily broke up with him last night and now Matt says she’s not his problem anymore and he’s too sick to work.”
Cole’s expression darkens. “Too sick, or too hungover?”
“Take a wild guess.” Matt has a bad habit of calling out the morning after he makes bad decisions. The guys are tired of it, and honestly, I am too. It’s not easy realizing that my childhood friend has turned into a total piece of shit.
“This is fucked up,” Gage mutters, running a hand through his short hair. “Who lets their ex-girlfriend sleep on a construction site?”
“Someone who never deserved to have that girlfriend in the first place.” Cole’s voice carries an edge I don’t hear often. For all his charm and easy smiles, he has a protective streak a mile wide.
We used to be thick as thieves with Matt, but something is different about him now. Watching the way he was with Lily was hard to swallow, and whenever I tried to say something, he’d go off on me. She definitely deserves better than Matt.
“You know why she came here instead of one of the hotels, right?” Cole asks.
I scrub my hand over my face. “Yeah, I know.” The Big Ridge gossip mill can take on a life of its own. I don’t blame Lily for wanting to avoid being the talk of the town, I only wish she had somewhere better to stay. “We can’t leave her here. Not with all the debris and dust. It’s not safe.”
“We have that spare room,” Cole suggests quietly. “At the house.”
The thought hangs between us like a loaded gun.
I know he’s right. We have the space, and it’s clean and safe.
Matt is supposed to be our friend, and we all know asking her to stay with us would violate bro code .
. . but he has been acting like a complete dickhead lately, not just to Lily either.
We all get along with Lily. She’s always nice to us, even when she’s clearly frustrated with him, and every part of me hates the thought of her staying here.
Exhaling, I shrug. “I mean, fuck Matt,” I say finally, voicing what we’re all thinking. “He’s been treating her like garbage for months.”
Gage nods. “I’ll run and grab coffee and breakfast. She’s probably starving.”
“Good idea.” I glance back through the window at her sleeping form, and something tight coils in my chest. She looks so fragile curled up on that old couch. Anyone could have walked in here last night. There are no curtains on the windows. Some creep could have been watching her.
The thought makes my hands clench into fists again. Big Ridge isn’t a crime hub, though as a tourist hot spot, we get our fair share of weirdos. This house is smack in the middle of short-term rentals. I don’t like it.
“Hudson?” Cole’s voice pulls me back to the conversation.
“Yeah?”
“You’re staring.”
I am. I can’t seem to stop myself from looking at the way her hair catches the morning light streaming through the dusty windows, or how her lips part slightly in sleep.
There’s something about Lily that’s under my skin, and I can’t figure out when it happened or why.
All I know is when she’s around, she consumes more space than she should.
I care about this woman way more than is appropriate. Given my friendship with Matt, offering to let her stay with us is a bad idea, but it feels right.
Thirty minutes later, the sound of a truck rumbling to a stop pulls my attention away from the woman curled up on the couch. Gage’s door slams shut. He heads toward us with a steaming cup and what looks like a pastry bag.
“Sorry. Traffic was rough.” Fall is always a busy time of year with the changing leaves and tourists.
“She’s still sleeping,” I tell him, doing a crap job at hiding my frustration that her natural instincts haven’t woken her up after sensing she’s being watched. It only makes me more determined to get her somewhere safe.
Gage’s gaze strays between me and Cole. They share a silent look, knowing me all too well, though if they have anything to say, they keep it to themselves.
If we delay any longer, this project will fall behind today and that will impact our ability to get to others. I’m still trying to prove to my dad that I can handle things so he can go into full retirement.
“All right, let’s get this over with,” I murmur.
My heart thuds harder as I move closer to Lily.
She’s gorgeous. I always thought she was, but out of respect, I never really let myself look lately.
Now that I know she and Matt are over, I drink her in.
Plush lips with a bitable cupid’s bow, the gentle slope of her nose, and that long red hair I want to wrap around my fist.
Despite every rational thought screaming at me to keep my distance, I squat down beside her and tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The silky texture sends a jolt straight through me. I jerk my hand back like I’ve been burned.
Fuck. What the hell is wrong with me?
I shake my head, trying to clear it, then gently place my hand on her shoulder. “Lily. Hey, wake up.”
She startles, her green eyes flying open and scanning the room before they land on my face. The tension melts from her features instantly.
“Oh, Hudson.” Her voice is raspy with sleep and my name falls from her lips, breathy and soft.
The sound goes straight to my cock. I can’t help thinking about seeing her in my bed and how she’d sound saying my name when I—NO. Stop, she’s Matt’s ex-girlfriend.
Heat crawls up my neck as I help her sit up. Her cheeks flush pink, and she runs her hands through her hair, trying to tame the mess.
“How long have you guys been here?” She glances between Cole and me, then at Gage who’s approaching with the coffee and food.
“Not long,” Cole lies smoothly.
Gage extends the cup and bag toward her. “We figured you might be hungry.”
Her eyes narrow slightly as she accepts them, like she knows we’re lying but decides not to call us on it.
“Lily, what are you doing here?” There’s an edge underneath his gentle tone. He’s as frustrated as I am with the whole situation.
She chews on her bottom lip. I have to force myself to look away from her mouth. Finally, she blurts out, “Matt and I broke up, and he kicked me out and I didn’t have anywhere to go.” She gestures around. “So, I stayed here.”
“Son of a bitch.” The curse rips from my throat before I can stop it. I fucking knew he kicked her out.
“Fucking asshole,” Cole mutters.
“That piece of shit,” Gage adds, his jaw tight.
My hands clench into fists, and rage builds in my chest. What kind of man kicks a woman out with nowhere to go?
Dad and Mom had their fair share of arguments when they were getting a divorce.
Even when she started dating her best friend, he was never ugly to her or her partner.
Hurt, for sure, but never terrible the way Matt is to Lily.
My jaw works as I try to contain the urge to hunt Matt down and teach him some manners.
Lily misinterprets my anger and scrambles to her feet. “I’m sorry, I’ll go. I didn’t mean to be in the way.”
“Lily—” I start, but she continues.
“I shouldn’t have come here. I know it’s my house, but it’s your project, and I’m causing problems and in the way. As per usual.” She laughs bitterly, trying to brush by me.
I catch her wrist and pull her to a stop. Her mouth drops open, surprise flickering across her features. “We’re mad at Matt, not you. You shouldn’t have to stay the night in a place like this.”
She shrugs, trying to play it off. “It’s fine. Really. I’ll get an apartment, this is temporary.”
“You’re not staying here again.” The words come out sharp and I know the moment they do that it was the wrong thing to say.
I know I should never talk to her like that.
I don’t know what the hell has gotten into me.
Probably that massive, asteroid sized crush that I’ve had for years.
Probably that unreasonable sense of possessiveness unfurling in my chest because if Matt won’t take care of her, I fucking will.
Her eyebrow arches, and there’s fire in her green eyes. “Excuse me?”
“Stay with us,” Gage jumps in, drawing her attention away from me. “We have a spare room and it’s safer.”
“I don’t need your pity.” The defensiveness in her voice makes my chest ache.
I brush my thumb along her pulse point, her heartbeat fluttering at the touch. Her gaze snaps back to mine. Good girl. Eyes on me.
“It’s not pity. We wouldn’t stay in a house under construction. You shouldn’t either. We have a spare room. Let us help you.”
The silence stretches between us, heavy with possibility. Cole shifts beside me. Gage holds his breath. I try not to think too hard about why we’re all desperate for her to say yes.