Page 99 of Fault Line

“You think so, huh?”

“Yeah, you should let me talk to her.”

I raise a brow, both hands planted on my hips. “And what are you gonna say to her?”

“Take me back to your place, and you can find out.”

“Be my guest, then,” I say, and his grin only widens at the idea of a challenge.

* * *

Holdenand I walk back to my apartment, hand in hand, ready to face whatever attitude Lizzie has in store for us. As we enter the living room, her gaze narrows, and she immediately grabs her things, preparing to make a hasty retreat to her room.

But Holden stops her in her tracks. “Lizzie, can I talk to you for a minute?”

She looks surprised but hesitates nonetheless, her arms crossed defensively. “What do you want to talk about?”

He straightens his posture, choosing his words carefully. “Look, I know you’re not comfortable with me being here for whatever reason.”

“No, it’s not that, Holden,” she cuts him off, her tone defensive. “I honestly don’t mind you being here at all.”

“Oh really? I must have misread the situation, then,” he says, a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

She sighs, frustration evident. “It’s notyou.It’s just the fact that we basically have a third roommate now. Kaia already had Elio over all the time, and now she’s brought you into the mix. I just didn’t expect this to happen when I took her to that party at your house, or I wouldn’t have done it in the first place.”

A slow smile spreads across Holden’s face. “Ah, so I have you to thank for bringing Kaia to me.”

“I guess you could say that,” she mutters.

“Then how about I write you a check for all your contributions? A little something to help your pain and suffering for the next few months of me sticking around. Would five K be fair?”

Her eyes widen in disbelief. “Oh, um, I wouldn’t ask you to—”

“How about I double it, then?” he interrupts, the shit-eating grin never leaving his face. “I can leave the check on the counter before I head out tomorrow.”

“Um, I suppose I won’t argue with that,” she stammers, taken aback. “But, er, is there a reason that you’re both so opposed to staying at your house instead?”

Holden gives her a devilish grin, wrapping me up in his strong arms. “See, the thing is I’d really like to fuck my girl in the comfort of her own bedroom from now on. If that’s okay with you, Liz.”

“Whatever,” she groans, rolling her eyes before sauntering her way down the hall.

I lean my head back against Holden’s chest, blinking up at him, laughter bubbling up inside me. “What the hell, Beck? Did you seriously just bribe my roommate with ten grand?”

“Yeah, well, it’s my dad’s money anyway. Not like I did anything to earn it.”

“Still a waste.”

He chuckles, a playful twinkle in his gaze. “It’s not a waste if it makes you happy.”

“You’re ridiculous, you know that?”

“But you like me anyway,” he retorts, pulling me close and pressing a tender kiss to my forehead.

I sigh, leaning into his embrace. “Yeah, I really do.”

With Lizzie’s bullshit officially out of the way, we head into my bedroom, the door closing softly behind us. The competitive banter from earlier still lingers in the air, but there’s a newfound sense of peace between us.

Spending that much money to get Lizzie out of our hair is outrageous, there’s no denying that, but it’s also sort of sweet. And I’m feeling unexpectedly sentimental about it. I mean, it’s nice to know how far he’s willing to go just to make me smile.

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