22. Leo （Now）
Leo (Now)
The funny thing about this morning was that Lynne was up before him. The first thing he smelled was coffee, and when his eyes blinked open, a mug was already waiting on the table. Somewhere in the apartment, cabinets shut a little too carefully. Water ran. Drawers slid.
Twig was gone from his chest. So was the blanket.
When Lynne spotted him sitting up, she froze for half a second, like she’d been caught mid-thought. “Oh. You’re awake.”
“Yeah.” He lifted the mug. “Thanks for this.”
“Sure.” She scooped up the blanket from beside him, fidgeted with the edge. “Laundry,” she said, as if she owed him an explanation, then retreated a step farther than she needed to.
He lifted his eyebrows and took another sip of his coffee. Something between them had shifted again.
“There’s some breakfast in the kitchen. It’s not biscuits and gravy, but I did my best—eggs on toast.” She hesitated, twisting the mug between her hands.
“Mama and Fred are fed. Kittens weighed. Twig’s still gaining.
” She blew out a breath. “And … Minka texted. So did half The Nine. Everyone’s asking about the kittens again.
I thought maybe—if you’re up for it—we could do a quick livestream? Just to let them know things are okay.”
She seemed so in her head this morning it made his stomach knot.
“Hey, Lynne. Are we okay?” he asked.
She glanced around the living room. “We will be. I think … I just need a minute.” Then she moved about preparing for the livestream, clearly unaware that wasn’t what he meant by the question.
He tried not to let it worry him. They could talk after the livestream. Maybe it was time for him to suggest heading back to his place anyway. The kitten panic had resolved. The false fire alarms were scheduled for replacement. No need to overstay his welcome.
Lynne took them live and shared a little bit about the progress of the cats, how she was adopting Mama but they’d probably host an adoption event at O’Donnell’s when everyone was spayed and neutered. TBD.
“Oh, and quick update, because I know a lot of you have been asking. Twig’s still gaining and our new vet, Dr. Hart, officially starts next week. He just messaged that he got the job!”
A new comment slid up on the screen. Lynne read it aloud. “So is Leo staying or heading home now that Mama’s nursing again?”
They turned toward each other.
“Honestly, I’ll be wherever you need me to be,” he said. He meant it more than he wanted to.
Lynne’s expression changed. The chat was still lighting up with heart emojis and cat faces, but neither of them looked away from each other. She hesitated, a faint crease furrowing her brows, the kind of pause that stretches until it hurts.
“If you want to head back, I get it.” Her eyes darted from the camera back to him. “I mean … after everything that’s happened. Here. Between us.”
He didn’t move, just smiled.
“I have never—and will never—regret anything that’s happened here,” he said. His mouth tugged upward at one corner. “Between us.”
She swallowed. “Then I don’t want to go back to what it felt like before you. You’re the only thing that’s made this livable. I want you here even when none of us need rescuing.”
He saw the recognition flicker in her blue eyes, that tiny spark neither of them had dared put into words.
He wanted to promise he could make everything easy, smooth out every rough edge of her life. But that was the lie he’d been telling himself for years. This time, all he could offer was himself—messy, worried, all-in—and trust that she’d take what she needed, not what he thought she should.
Her phone buzzed, wobbling on the stand.
Are we still talking about the cats?
OMG what’s happening?!
YASSS, Cat Daddy!
A blush rose on her cheeks, a flicker of awareness they were still livestreaming. Then it disappeared under her small, crooked smile.
“Okay, I think the internet’s telling us we broke the feed.”
He laughed, low. “Then care to, uh, end this and pick up where we left off?”
Lynne’s smile deepened. She reached past him for the phone. “Goodbye, internet. We’ll be seeing you soon.”
The last thing the camera caught was his hand sliding to her waist. Then it went black.