Chapter 30
“Thanks, y’all.” Benjamin waved to the last of his siblings as they headed out into the twilight. Then he turned back to the house, swiping at the sweat on his brow. The heat still hadn’t broken, but that hadn’t slowed his family down as they’d moved Summer’s and Max’s things across town.
Inside, he looked around, his heart full to see that his spartan little house was spartan no more. Two chairs and the coffee table from TJ’s house filled out the living room, and there was even a table in the dining room now, complete with space for the large family he hoped he and Summer would have one day, although the likelihood seemed low at the moment, given that the walls she put up between them seemed to grow higher every day.
But she hadn’t pulled away when he’d slid his arm around her in church this morning, which he took as a sign of progress.
He headed down the hallway to see how she and Max were coming on setting up his room. Their backs were to the door as they organized a shelf with Max’s toys, and Benjamin let himself pause for a moment to watch them, emotion pressing against his throat as he considered how happy it would make TJ to see them here.
“It looks great in here, Maxerooni.” Benjamin stepped into the room, and Max spun around with a grin.
“It’s the same as my old room. See, we put the bed here and the books here and the toys here.” He pointed toward the spot where Summer remained absorbed in organizing dinosaurs on a shelf.
Benjamin moved farther into the room so that he was standing right behind her. “You shouldn’t put the Triceratops by the T. Rex,” he teased. “That’s a recipe for disaster.”
Summer didn’t look up, but he heard the tiny chuckle low in her throat, and she moved the T. Rex farther down the shelf. Then she stood, apparently not realizing how close Benjamin stood behind her because when she turned around, she startled and took a step backwards—right into the shelf. All of her carefully arranged dinosaurs went tumbling.
She sighed and bent to pick them up at the same time he did, her silky hair brushing lightly over his arm. He swallowed and picked up a dinosaur to pass to her, intentionally letting his fingers brush over hers in the hand-off. He heard her light inhale, but she didn’t say anything.
When they were done cleaning up the dinosaurs, he made himself ask the question he hadn’t wanted to bring up while his family was here. “Do you want me to— I mean, would you prefer—” He couldn’t seem to get a grip on his suddenly flustered tongue. “Should I set up your bed in the spare bedroom, or . . .”
He couldn’t quite give voice to the rest of the question: Or do you want to share my bed?
He knew which he’d prefer. But he wasn’t going to push her.
“Oh.” Summer looked startled. “Um. I guess— It would probably be better— If you don’t mind—”
Benjamin realized he was holding his breath as he waited for one of these sentences to end.
“I guess it would be best to set up my bed. If it’s not too much trouble,” she finally completed the thought, and the air seeped out of Benjamin’s lungs, along with the hope that had been building.
But he worked hard to keep his disappointment off his face. “No trouble at all,” he said, heading straight for the door. “I’ll go do it right now.”