Chapter 19
RAWLEY
What the fuck? Why are all these paparazzi here, at Avery’s house?
I park the car and there’s a million thoughts racing through my mind. Most of them are about Avery’s safety. Her townhouse door is easily accessible from the street—no gate, no guard obviously. It’s a relaxed family community.
These guys are basically on her lawn. No way am I comfortable just leaving her here by herself.
And then there’s the fact that we’re supposed to be falling in love, seriously dating. I can’t just drive off after dropping her, like I’m not spending the night or whatever. We would kiss each other goodbye at the very least.
Suddenly, the photographers start yelling.
“Rawley, Avery, get out of the car.”
“Come on, give us the photo.”
They don’t look like the guys Taylor had at the restaurant, and they’re much more aggressive.
“Shit, Rawley, I don’t like this.” Avery sounds genuinely upset.
Suddenly, lights flip on at a couple of the townhouses near her. “Oh no, my neighbors are going to hate me,” she says, her anguish coming through.
That’s it. “We’re getting out of here, okay?” I turn on the car and put it in reverse. “I’m getting us out of here.”
As soon as we’re back on the highway, I take stock. No one seems to be following us.
“I’m sorry, Avery. We’ll go to Landon’s, okay? And we can call Taylor when we’re there.”
“How did they know where I live?”
Pretty much everyone’s address is a Google search away, but saying that out loud isn’t going to help things right now.
“Do you want to call Taylor while I’m driving?”
“No, just give me a minute. I need to regroup.” She takes a couple of deep breaths. “I don’t spook easy, but that was intense.”
She’s quiet for a beat, and then she turns to me, looking more like herself. “I’m better now. How much longer until we’re at Landon’s?”
“Maybe five minutes.”
“Enough for a call.” She calls Taylor up on speaker and explains everything.
“Wow, okay. Those guys definitely don’t sound like they’re from Orlando. It’s not exactly teeming with aggressive paps. They must have come in just for you two. Maybe from Miami.” Great.
I don’t stay silent. “This is a little out of control, Taylor. Avery needs to feel safe in her house.”
“I understand. Let me make some calls and see what I can find out.”
Avery settles back into the passenger seat, looking irritated instead of frightened now.
“What am I going to do, stay over at your place?”
I hadn’t really gotten that far yet, but…
“I think that would be best for tonight? Landon has tons of room.”
She looks down at her phone. “I could try to reach Sarah, but it’s late now.”
“Let that be a solution for tomorrow, maybe? You can use Grace’s old room at Landon’s.”
Before she and Johnson moved in together, my sister had her own suite. I have my own too, because Landon’s house is over-the-top. Every bedroom even has its own en suite.
Avery gives me a small, resigned smile. “Okay.” I’m glad to see a flicker of relief pass through her eyes.
We’re at Landon’s a few minutes later. Unlike Avery’s neighborhood, there’s a gate with an attendant, and the house has an advanced security system too. Paps aren’t getting in.
“I’ll give you a mini-tour,” I offer as we walk in the entryway.
“I’m going to take these heels off, okay?” She’s kicking them off and putting them against the wall near the door without waiting for an answer.
I should have thought of that. “Oh yeah, you don’t need those.”
When she stands up, she’s lost a couple of inches, and the top of her head is at the same level as my lips.
“That’s one painful part of the night over,” she quips.
Suddenly, Grover makes an appearance, wagging his tail and scamping around our feet.
“Sorry, I was trying to give you a minute,” Landon says as he appears in the front. “But Grover had other ideas.”
“No worries, I love dogs.” She bends down and gives him the pet he’s demanding.
As she stands back up, my brother extends his hand. “It’s awesome to meet you, Avery, I’m Landon.”
She takes it and they shake quickly. “Great to meet you too.”
“Come on in. I’m sure Rawls will show you around.”
We make our way to the living room, and Connor’s there as well. He looks up and smiles in Avery’s direction. “Hi, again.”
“Hey there.” She turns to me. “Is there a restroom I can use?” I show her where the guest bathroom is off the room, and she disappears inside.
I turn back to my brothers and try to figure out where to start explaining what happened at Avery’s house.
Landon speaks before I do though. “Is she staying over? Do you have everything you need for her in your bathroom? I can grab extra towels.”
And then I realize—fuck—Landon thinks we’re dating, and we need to keep it that way. She can’t sleep in a different room than me, that would be weird. No one here is a Boy Scout, and we’d clearly be physically involved.
I flash a look of panic at Connor, and he gives an unhelpful shrug. Awesome. I return my gaze to Landon.
“Yeah, I think I have enough.”
“Okay, let me know.”
Avery returns, and my mind is calculating how to work this out. “I’ll show you around the place.”
“Sounds great.” She looks calmer than she has since we left her house, at least. “Thanks again for having me,” she says to Landon.
We walk through to the kitchen. “So this is where you made the magic happen with that paella?”
“Yeah, Landon’s not much of a chef, so I’m usually doing the heavy lifting on that front.” I look around to make sure no one else is approaching. “I’m sorry to add to the stress tonight, but one more thing has come up. Landon’s expecting you to stay in my room…”
Her eyes open wider for a beat. “And we can’t tell him the truth.”
“Nope. It’s okay though.” A solution clicks into place. “You can sleep in the bed, and I’ll take the floor. No big deal.”
She tilts her head. “That’s not fair to you. Why don’t we head there, and we can sort it out.”
I nod and we walk back through the living room, where Landon and Connor are watching the Marlins game.
We’re quiet, and they stay locked in on the TV until we pass into the hallway where my room is.
“How many bedrooms does this place have?”
“Other than the main bedroom, five. Each sibling has claimed one over the years.”
“Nice.”
“And…” I open the door. “Here it is.”
We walk in and admittedly, the thirteen-by-fifteen space is nothing to get too excited about. Landon’s still not done a lot of decorating. But the blue-gray bedding and dark wood furniture, combined with a painting of the ocean I bought, help it look pulled together.
“So this is me. And there’s the door to the bathroom.”
“You’re neat.” There’s no clutter visible, so I can see why she would say that.
“Not always, but it helps me calm my mind at night to keep the room clean.”
“No stimuli.”
“Exactly.”
She walks over and sits down on the bed. “I need a breather.”
“Nothing from Taylor yet?” I walk over and join her on the side of the bed.
“No. But given everything that just happened, I’m starting to think I’ll need to get a new place? Like, even if she figures out who the photographers are, that doesn’t really solve the big-picture problem.”
“Yeah, privacy and security.”
“Yep. I can’t believe I have to deal with this in the middle of the season.”
I try to find a way to reassure her. “Don’t worry, we’re in this together.”
“Better Together, right?” She grins, and then briefly rubs two fingers on my thigh where my tat is.
She moves her hand off me after maybe three seconds of contact, but it’s enough to wake up my dick. I’m half hard by the time she’s no longer touching me.
Sitting on my bed with her isn’t helping. I stand up and subtly readjust myself.
“I think I have an extra blanket in the closet. Let me grab it, and I’ll set up my floor-bed.”
Her face twists. “Are you sure you’re okay with the floor?”
“You’re in season and need to get your rest. I’ll be fine.”
“Okay.”
I walk over to my dresser and pull out an old high school T-shirt and sweatpants. “Here, for sleeping. There’s an unopened toothbrush in the top drawer of the bathroom vanity too.”
She stands and takes the clothes, the hint of a grin appearing as she looks at them. “Thanks for everything.”
She disappears to change, and I set up my sleeping arrangement on the floor. Nothing I can’t handle. It’s like using a sleeping bag.
I pull out my phone to discover there still isn’t anything new from Taylor in our group chat. I guess at this point, Avery’s situation is a tomorrow problem.
I quickly strip off my own shirt and pants and slip into the makeshift bed. Usually I sleep naked, but I leave my boxers on and bring the blanket over me so I’m covered up.
Another couple of minutes go by, and then she comes out of the bathroom.
Fuck. I try not to stare. But Avery in my shirt? Her dark hair loose and flowing over the faded fabric, her tits creating curves around my high school team’s logo?
Teenage me would be losing his mind.
The current version is close too.
She has no awareness of the thoughts passing through my head, of course, and gives me a small smile.
“Do you mind if we crash now? I don’t like to go to bed too late during the season.”
Yeah, I’m not messing her up on that front. “Absolutely.”
“Thanks. Are you ready for me to flip off the lights?”
With my nod, she hits the light switch and we’re in relative darkness, the light coming off our phones the only illumination.
“Good night, Rawley.”
“Good night, Avie baby.”
She giggles in surprise and then pulls the blanket over her on the bed.
“Thanks, I needed that,” she murmurs softly, flipping over her phone so the room goes truly dark.
I don’t reply, and before I know it, the only sound in the room is her steady breathing.