“Kinsley.” He shifts. “I’m not going to be there, the bed will be empty, just use it.”

I shake my head. “That’s your personal space. I don’t want to take that up. Clyde and I are just fine, thank you.” Maddox has the most generous heart, but it is his space, and even though he’s offering his bed, I won’t go there. He lives alone because he likes that, and I refuse to crowd him.

“Your mattress was on the ground this morning again. At least sleep on the couch if anything.”

“Clyde just needs to get it together. It will be fine.” Just then, one of the workers brings over our burgers and sets them down in front of us. They smell and look amazing.

“Do you need anything else?”

We both say we’re good, and she takes off. Clearly not a baseball fan or else she would have gushed over the fact that Maddox Paige is sitting right in front of her, looking like sin in his black-on-black outfit.

Maddox stares down at his plate and then back at me. “What is this?”

“BBQ cheddar burger. One of the top nine burgers in Chicago. It’s made with Impossible meat. Give it a try.”

He examines it, and I can see the apprehension in his eyes. “This isn’t going to do weird shit to my digestive system, is it? I have to fly to Texas tomorrow.”

“No, you’ll be fine.”

Still wary, he picks up the burger, gives it a sniff, glances at me, and then takes a bite. I watch intently as he chews, wishing I knew everything he was thinking. Finally, when he swallows, he says, “Not bad.”

“Oh God, I might cry—”

He holds his hand up. “This does not mean I’m turning into a vegan. I’m just saying this particular item isn’t bad.”

I eye him over my burger as I bring it to my mouth. “I’m going to win you over one of these days, I know I will. Baby steps will have to do for now.”

“The best part about being a vegan is fries are always an option.” I pop another fry in my mouth, Maddox finished his plate a while ago whereas I like to take my time, especially when I find something as delicious as the burger we just consumed.

He reaches over to my plate and snags a fry as well. “So tell me more about the shelter. Was everyone nice to you?”

“They were so great. It’s all women, which I’m a little wary of because sometimes it can get a little catty when there are too many women. It’s the nature of the beast, but it seems like since we all have one major goal—help these animals—we’ll be okay. Plus, I get along better with guys. Hence my best friend is a guy.”

“Guys are more laid-back, sorry to say.”

“I know, but Marcy seems pretty cool, and she’s who I’ll be working the most with. There’s a receptionist, Malorie, and then the volunteer coordinator who works part-time, that’s Denise. Then there are a few volunteer captains. I haven’t met them yet.”

“At least there aren’t any guys there who will be staring at your tits the whole time.”

“What?” I laugh. “Where did that come from?”

“Come on, Kin.” He gestures to my chest. “Are you always fucking cold?”

I glance down at my chest where my hard nipples are pressing against my tight shirt, then back up at him. “I mean, yeah.”

“You don’t even wear bras to work?”

I shrug. “Don’t even think about it. They’re perky, why bother with a bra?”

The side of his jaw ticks as he looks away, almost as if he’s in pain.

“Anyway,” I say, “I’m so pumped about my new job. One of the hardest parts of the job is knowing where to look to find people to take the animals. And Chicago is such a big place. I’ve been trying to work out which social media platform has the most reach for animal lovers. Obviously, we don’t want any college students, so that could take out Snapchat. Facebook isn’t specific enough, and I’m not sure that’s the right demographic anyway. So should we be using Instagram, and if we do, how do we get followers? I have lots of thoughts running around in my head about how best to present the animals, and although some of them seem so sad, I need photos of them looking happy.” Leaning over the table, I grab Maddox’s hand and say, “Thank you so much for making this happen for me. I owe you, Maddie.”

The scowl he was wearing eases and his eyes soften as he squeezes my hand back. “You don’t owe me anything, Kinsley. This is what friends do for each other. The amount of times you let me sleep over in your room when my dad was . . . well, you know, this is something I can do for you after you gave me a safe place.”

“We were each other's safe place. You know how insane my mom is.”

“Speaking of which, have you spoken to her?”

“On the way over here actually,” I answer. “She called me five times today wanting to know if I hated my first day of work and to let me know there is no shame in going back home.”

Maddox shakes his head; it’s the same shake I’ve seen many times when he’s irritated with my mom. She has a beautiful heart and her intentions are usually good for the most part, but she’s always pushed boundaries. Overstepping, needling, encroaching on territory she shouldn’t have an opinion on.

“You’re not going back,” he says, his eyes zeroing in on mine. “Do you understand that? You’re not going back.”

I swallow hard at the intensity in his words and in his eyes. They send a shiver of awareness through my veins, eradicating any thought of the safety net back home. Going back home would not only disappoint me, but it would disappoint Maddox, and I never want to disappoint him, ever.

“Say it,” he says, squeezing my hand. I didn’t even realize we were still holding hands. “This is your new life, Kinsley, your new journey. Say you’re not going back.”

I wet my lips, steadying the surge of confidence that spiked through me. “I’m not going back.”

“Again.”

Firmer, I say, “I’m not going back.”

“Good.” He releases his hand and takes a sip of his drink before stealing another one of my fries and popping it in his mouth with a smile. “Glad that’s settled.”

Chapter Eight

MADDOX

“What are you working on?” Kinsley’s sleepy voice trails from my bedroom door. It’s five in the morning. What the hell is she doing up so early?

I set my pen down. “Why are you up? I didn’t think your body knew how to stand at this hour.”

He rubs her eye with her palm while yawning. “Clyde woke me up.”

“How?” I ask, remembering the duct tape rips she made last night before we crashed. There were eight rips. Eight. If you need eight long strands of duct tape to sleep, it means you need a new bed.

“Spring snapped me in the head. Kind of rude if you ask me.” She nods at my bed. “Can I come snuggle?”

I flip the sheets down, inviting her in.

Back in high school, we never slept in the same bed, but in the mornings, before the sun would rise and Kinsley was miraculously awake, she'd climb down on the floor with me and watch me draw. She would take the pen on occasion and make lines of her own. Always adding, never ruining what I was creating. She’s the only person I’ve ever let do that.

Not even Jamie.

Kinsley slips under the covers and I hold my arm out so she can rest against my shoulder. My nightstand light is on, which casts just enough glow so I can see what I’m sketching.

A cow.

“Are you drawing Bessy?” Kinsley asks.

“I guess so.” I never know what I’m drawing until my pen starts moving. “I drew the old tree between our houses yesterday. I think you being here is drawing up memories for me.”

“No pun intended, right?” she asks with a nudge.

“Right.”

She takes the pen from me and says, “You missed a knot.”

“No, I didn’t. I just didn’t want to draw it.”

She glances up at me. “Maddox, that’s the most important knot of all time. You can’t leave out the vagina knot.”

“I sure as hell can.”

She shakes her head against my shoulder. “That knot brought us many laughs. You can’t leave it out.” On the right corner of the tree, near the grass, she draws a knot, making a crease and rounding the sides.

Christ. I start chuckling. “I always say you never ruin my drawings, but this one, babe, you ruined.”

“No, I didn’t,” she says with humor in her voice. “I enhanced it to be its proper self. Our tree isn’t our tree unless the vagina knot is there, and how dare you even consider leaving it out.”

“I’m a monster.”

“You are.” She sighs and hands me back my pen. We both sit there, staring at the tree, and for a second, I think she fell asleep. “Remember when I saw you grab Jamie’s boob for the first time while making out against the tree?”

I chuckle, even though the pain of Jamie’s name surges anger through me. “Yeah, you didn’t make it awkward at all by clapping.”

“Someone had to cheer you on. That was your first boob grab. Pretty late in the game as a sophomore in high school. Hell, I grabbed a boob before you and I don’t even like girls like that.”