Page 52 of Willowbrooke
“I can go with you—”
“No,” he said bluntly, then took a deep breath and adjusted his tone. “Please stay here. I’ll keep you updated. My phone is fully charged,” he promised.
“Be safe,” I said, but he was already down the hall.
Waiting for Leo to return was a bit nerve-wracking. It felt like things were going off the rails, and we were helpless to stop them. I knew Leo probably felt even more out of control than I did.
Danny was hesitant to leave for the day, sensing something wasn’t right, but I assured him I would be okay and again found myself alone in the house as the sun set. Tendrils of darkness encroached upon the main floor, which I fought against by turning on as many lights as I could find.
Not wanting to bother Leo, I resolved not to text him asking for an update, knowing if he had one, he would contact me. As the minutes ticked by, and he still hadn’t returned, I decided to keep myself distracted by attempting to make dinner. I wasn’t a terrible cook, but I certainly wasn’t as skilled or remotely as passionate as Leo was when it came to the kitchen.
I opted for a simple dinner of roasted carrots and braised chicken. Leo had shown me how to make it only a week before. My attempt wasn’t as good as his, but it was passable.
With impeccable timing, Leo arrived just as I was pulling the carrots from the oven.
“You made dinner…” His tone was grateful, but his appearance betrayed him, showing his exhaustion as he approached me in the kitchen.
“It’s not as good as—”
Before I could say “yours,” Leo wrapped me up in a tight hug.
“You made dinner…” he whispered into my hair, refusing to let me go.
But I didn’t mind, and I gladly returned the embrace.
“Are you okay?” I pulled back slightly, brushing some stray hair from his eyes. “Is William okay?”
Leo nodded, finally releasing me from his hold.
“His lawyer wouldn’t let me talk to him, but they’re processing his release on bail.” Leo slumped into one of the barstools.
“That’s good, right?” I pulled the chicken from the burner before removing a wineglass from the dishwasher and giving Leo a generous pour of red wine.
“It’s something…” He sighed after taking a long pull from the glass.
“We don’t have to talk about it, if you don’t want to.” He wasn’t obligated to keep me informed of every small detail, especially since he was swimming in so much uncertainty; the stress was written all over his face.
“You sure?” he asked, grateful for the reprieve.
I smiled, nodding. “I’m here, whatever you want to talk about—or not talk about.”
Taking me up on my invitation, dinner was a quiet affair, but Leo made sure I knew how thankful he was for my efforts, despite my perceived shortcomings. I would have thought it was the best meal he’d ever had, if I hadn’t eaten every dish he’d served me before.
But after dinner, when we’d usually retire to the couch to continue talking over a glass of wine, Leo caught me off guard when he asked if we could instead lie down in the room.
“I’m just tired…” he breathed, his voice unable to hide the depth of truth in his statement.
That first night, lying together in his bed, a moment which I had been thinking of since the first night I’d spent alone there, didn’t play out the way I had expected, but perhaps just snuggling and falling asleep was exactly what I needed.
Despite his insomnia, Leo easily fell asleep in my arms.
CHAPTER 10
Laid Bare
Iwas surprised to find Leo gone by the time I woke up the next morning. There was a note next to a fresh pot of coffee with his apologies. He had an appointment he’d forgotten about, and would return later—his phone was fully charged.
Doing a final walk-through of the second floor with Danny took up most of my day. Leo sent a text in the afternoon letting me know he’d take care of dinner and that he missed me. The latter part sent my heart soaring.
