Two Truths and a Marriage: A Grumpy Sunshine Romance by Nicole Snow

Author:Nicole Snow [Snow, Nicole]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ice Lips Press
Published: 2024-03-26T18:30:00+00:00

15

THE SWEET STUFF (JUNIPER)

Holy hell.

What even is this day?

This night, this life, this man?

He stands in the middle of my apartment with his sleeves rolled up, looking around at the piles of junk I’ve grabbed and parked in a safe, dry corner. Clothes, plants, a box of sentimental stuff, plus Catness’ food, carrier, and a couple salvaged cat toys.

“We might need multiple trips,” he says without a hint of annoyance. “Can you get him in his carrier without a fight?”

I frown.

Usually, it’s quite a battle when we’re going to the vet or anywhere else, but today Catness seems to know that if he doesn’t get in, he’s going to wind up as a mangy soaked cotton ball.

He shuffles in without complaint.

“Dang, that was easy. Good boy.” I pass the carrier to Dexter with a smile and our fingers brush.

Every sense pings on the contact, although he doesn’t seem to notice.

“Keep collecting everything you want to take,” he says. “I’ll be right back.”

My heart sinks.

“Dexter, I—”

“No. I don’t want to hear it, Sweet Stuff.”

I want to fight the fact that he’s taking care of me better than Liam ever did—better than anyone—but he just heaves the carrier up and disappears out the front door.

I close my eyes against the endless spray gushing from the damaged pipe. I’ve put in three calls to the landlord and the maintenance guy and nobody’s answering.

Their loss, but it’s also mine.

Dexter already had a look at it, meaning his shirt is plastered wet to his skin in a way I find distinctly pleasing. He’s decided we’ll need new parts and an insane plumbing bill to get it fixed.

He’s promised to call one of the guys they use for their properties, just to shut this off and figure out the cost later. I don’t even know if he’ll be able to get to the main water shutoffs without somebody from the apartment to unlock that area, though.

God, how embarrassing.

I pause my frantic salvage job and put my head in my hands.

Of all the times for this to happen…

Also, I hate that we were plunged into chaos after a nice day.

A really nice day.

The kind of nice that had me dizzy, imagining what it would be like if we were dating for real and his mom adopted me, taking me under her expansive wing in that way she has. Like I belong.

The rest of his family wasn’t half-bad either.

The cookie Dexter bought me sits with my purse. I smile when I think of Colt, rattling on about how he had to immortalize his favorite cookie like a little Michelangelo.

Seriously.

I need to hold myself together, but right now, all I want to do is scream and cry and maybe scarf down an entire pint of ice cream.

My apartment is toast and I just know my landlord, Mr. Evans, will find a way to pin this on me. It’ll be my fault the pipes burst because the plumbing hasn’t been updated since Reagan was president.

My fault the unit is ruined.

My fault that all my stuff is destroyed.

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