Page 29 of When You Stayed
True to her word, Killian’s truck was gone when I arrived, which would mean he and Laura were gone. I didn’t see Taryn’s bike either, so it seemed it was just Royce who was home. I had driven my truck, with Gus’s carrier sitting next to me in the passenger seat. Right as I made it to her front door, I got a new text from her.
Pain in My Fucking Ass: Just come up, the code is 6943. I can’t move, otherwise I’d come downstairs.
Did that mean she was hurt? I didn’t like the idea of her being hurt any more than I liked her stealing my cat, but I pushed down the feeling so I could remain unfazed.
I tried the code, entering the house cautiously. The house I remembered from being a kid and teen had remained the same. The entryway had a small alcove for shoes and coats, beyond it was the spacious living room and kitchen, separated by an intricate arch. An open dining space connected to the living room, which then wound back to the kitchen.
I edged toward the stairs which would lead to the second floor.
Once my feet hit the landing, I winced the smallest bit because Ihadn’t slipped out of my boots. I wasn’t sure if that would matter and couldn’t remember the Quinn’s policy on shoes in the house, so I kept walking. Killian and Laura’s room was on the opposite side of the house from Taryn and Royce’s. While the girls didn’t share a room, they shared a bathroom which connected their bedrooms.
Nervous to reveal that I knew exactly which room belonged to Royce because I had it burned into memory, I lightly knocked on her white door.
“Come in!”
Wrapping my hand around the gold knob, I pushed inside and then came to an abrupt stop. Royce was wearing a set of thin pajamas while lounging on her bed. The top of her pajama set dipped enough that her cleavage was outlined by the tiny lace of the neckline. Her shorts were practically underwear for how high on her thighs they went. She had so much skin showing, my mouth might have dropped open.
“He’s been sleeping for a while. I couldn’t bring myself to move him.” She stroked the top of Gus’s head, who was curled in her lap. How the fuck had I stooped low enough in life that I’d become jealous of my own cat?
Her eyes sparkled as she took in what was in my left hand. “You brought me a latte!”
Yes, and I was ashamed that I had. She didn’t deserve it, and I was only rewarding bad behavior.
I stepped closer, handing off the latte, ignoring when our fingers brushed. The heat curling in my stomach made me feel like a fucking teenager. I stretched my hand while taking a few steps back. “Well, you wouldn’t be stuck there if you hadn’t stolen an animal that doesn’t belong to you.”
Her pink mouth covered the small hole in the plastic latte lid while she took a generous sip.
“I wish my parents had let us have one growing up.”
To avoid staring down her thin shirt, I sat down on the edge of her bed. I watched as she continued to run her fingers over my cat’s fur, and that’s when I realized he was purring, as if this was the happiest he’d been in a long time. I liked that he was purring, and I liked even more that she had made him so content.
“You never had a pet?” Why was I indulging this?
“No. We had talked about it a bunch of times, but it never happened. We would always go to your house, Connor’s, or Rook’s if we got an itch to play with animals. It always seemed to make Taryn and me happy enough that when we got home, we didn’t bring it up again. But this is nice. You must have loved having pets as a kid.”
I had loved it. We had Maxwell, until he passed, but even while he was alive, Ellie had her dachshund, Millie, and a hamster. I had Gus, along with a turtle and a guinea pig.
“Well, you’re an adult now.”
Royce finally lifted her head, so I had those navy eyes to stare into. “You think I should get one? I need to find a place to live first, and make sure they allow pets.”
“Didn’t realize you had plans to move out.” If I remembered correctly, she had to live at home unless she agreed to leave the city. Did that mean she was finally going? That’s what I wanted, right? Why did my chest feel so tight then?
She lifted her shoulder, which made the strap keeping her top up seem incredibly thin. Shit, her tits were too big for that measly amount of fabric to be considered a pajama top. It only made me think of the video she’d done for that underwear ad, and all the bullshit I had said to her a few days prior.
“I’ve been contacted by a few modeling agencies since that video went viral. I could look into that, see if I can make some real money with it.”
My throat swelled with the need to apologize, but now I was frustrated too.
“Thought you wanted your dream at the Hollow?”
Gus stretched his front paws out, as if he were waking up. Part of me didn’t want him to, because this seemed to be the longest conversation I’d ever had with Royce Quinn that didn’t involve arguing or fighting.
She drug her fingers over Gus’s head again. “The Hollow will always be my dream, but I have a gut feeling it’s not going to work out. Rodney has too much power, and I feel like he’s planning something. But, let’s say I got it, I’m not sure it’ll pay for my own placeoutside of Rose Ridge. Taryn makes a real living off what she does, and if she can do it, then maybe I can too. If they give me a script and tell me what they want me to wear…I don’t see the harm.”
The fucking harm was that people would see her body, but aside from my own issues, both she and Taryn were linked to Killian, which meant they were linked to the club. While it wouldn’t be easy to connect Taryn to the club, because of Royce’s tattoo, there was no undoing her connection to it. If I brought that up, we’d just argue again, so I kept my mouth shut.
“Do you have any idea how much of a salary Rodney makes from the Hollow?”
