49. Violet
VIOLET
I consider knocking for half a second as I stand on Drew’s porch.
My fingers brush against Drew’s spare key in my pocket.
Not yet.
Timing matters.
Drew notices more than he realizes.
Just... not when he's flustered.
If I use it now, he’ll know I found where he hid his extra key.
I knock.
His footsteps sound a few seconds later. Steady. Familiar. I know the rhythm already.
The door opens, and Drew appears, still dressed for work. His hair is slightly messy, probably from running his hands through it all day, thinking too much.
“Violet?” he says, surprise flickering across his face.
Cedarwood and soap fill my lungs.
“Hi.”
His gaze moves past me to the driveway, then back to me. “Did I forget we made plans?”
“No.”
“Yesterday you said you wanted to see me. So I figured I’d come over.”
“Okay.” He blinks. “That makes me feel better and more confused.”
I smile. “I just wanted to check on you.”
His expression softens for half a second before he catches it.
“Oh. I’m good.” He gives me a nervous smile. “Headache’s gone. No permanent damage from the rake.”
“Good.”
“And thanks again for getting my car from the bar.” His brows pull together. “Actually… how did you—”
Luna bolts between his legs. I reach down and grab her before she can escape outside.
“Luna. What the hell?” Drew says.
I take that moment to step inside, still holding Luna.
“Hi, pretty girl.” I nuzzle her face. “Did you miss me?”
She purrs, then leans into my hand when I scratch her ears.
“I, um, planned to do some stuff around the house today,” Drew says, like it’s a hint for me to leave.
One I’m not going to take.
“Like what?”
He shrugs. “Work. House stuff. Maintenance. Normal things.”
“Normal things,” I echo.
“Yeah. You know. Fixing things that are falling apart.”
I cock my head. “Such as?”
“The bulkhead doors.”
“What’s wrong with them?” I ask.
“They’re a mess. I need to fix them before winter.”
"Yes. The latch doesn't—"
I stop.
Drew's brows knit together.
"...Doesn't what?"
I stroke Luna’s fur. “Doesn’t sound very secure.”
He watches me for a second.
“And it’s supposed to storm tomorrow. That’ll make it hard to do any outside work.”
“Yeah, um. Right.”
He looks uneasy as he moves toward the door. “I’m going to check it out,” he says.
“I’ll come with you.” I sit Luna on the couch.
That surprises him. I can tell by the way his eyebrows lift slightly.
“You don’t have to—”
“I want to.”
There’s a beat of silence before he shrugs. “Okay.”
He grabs his keys out of habit, even though we’re not going anywhere, and goes outside with me on his heels.
The yard is still slightly damp from last night, the air cool and clean as we step outside.
Drew walks ahead, scanning the ground like he’s expecting to trip over something again.
I hide a smile. There aren’t any rakes in his yard. I made sure of it.
“How was work today?”
He looks at me over his shoulder. “Not very productive. I had a headache.”
“Hangovers suck.”
“I learned that the hard way.”
He reaches the doors and nudges one with his foot. It creaks open slightly.
“See?” he says. “Mess.”
Of course it's a mess. I had to use a pry bar to get it open.
But I don’t tell him that.
I step closer, peering down into the familiar darkness. “Kind of spooky how dark it is.”
He shifts beside me, close enough that our shoulders touch.
“Yeah.” He looks at the door again. “I wonder what I’ll need to fix it.”
I immediately rattle off some supplies.
He stares at me, wide-eyed.
“You know, if that’s not latching properly, it poses a security threat.” I point at the door. “I know someone who's really good with security. Does good work.”
He looks a little uneasy as he stares at it for a moment. “Someone could get in pretty easily.”
We stand there for another second before he closes the doors again.
“And maybe a security system might be a good idea.” He nods slowly, warming to the idea. “Sebastian uses King Morine.”
“He does.”
His eyes narrow slightly. “You know that?”
I shrug nonchalantly. “Ivy mentioned it.”
That’s not entirely true.
She mentioned cameras because of Sebastian being protective. But not the company name.
But I’m not about to tell him I disabled the alarm and snuck into his room when he lived there.
We enter the house.
Luna hasn’t moved. She’s still curled on the couch, watching us with half-lidded eyes.
“They’re expensive though,” he says.
“They’re worth it.”
“Of course you think that. You probably have a system that can identify someone by their shoe size.”
"Not shoe size,” I say, deadpan.
Drew blinks at me. “What?”
“I know someone who works there.”
“Of course you do.”
“Is that judgment?”
“No.”
“It sounded like judgment.”
“It was an observation.”
I pull out my phone and dial Ryker. I put the phone on speaker so Drew can hear.
“You have their number saved in your phone?”
“Yes.”
“Of course you do.”
“Ryker speaking.”
“Hey, Ryker. It’s Violet Quinn.”
He pauses for a minute and then says, “Hello, Ms. Quinn. Good to hear from you.”
“I have someone special here named Drew Locke. He’s interested in a security system, but is a bit concerned about the cost.”
“Ah. Well, I’d love to talk with him.”
Drew clears his throat. “I’m on a tight budget. I’m not sure I can afford—”
“Nonsense,” Ryker cuts him off. “We offer options for every budget. Since Ms. Quinn referred you, I'll waive the installation fee."
Drew’s eyes meet mine. “Oh. Well, then. Okay.”
They set up a time to meet.
The cameras will make things easier.
Until I move in with him.
Drew ends the call and slides the phone to me.
“Thanks, Violet.”
“Of course. Happy to help. Your safety is very important to me.”
And so is being able to watch you on camera.
I look at my watch and offer him an apologetic smile. “I’m afraid I need to go. I have something I need to do.”
I don't miss the flash of disappointment before he hides it.
Good.
He already misses me.
He just doesn't realize what this feeling is yet.
“Okay. I’ll walk you to the door.”
I step outside into the cool air, then turn and smile at him.
“Thanks again, Violet. For everything.”
A soft smile curls my lips. “Anytime.”
I head toward my car, a smile curling my lips. The spare key presses against my leg through my pocket.
One more errand I need to run.
Tomorrow morning, it’ll be right back where I found it.