Page 9 of Heart Strain

I laugh and finally release him. “First door on the right.”

“Thanks. Peanut went on the front lawn, so he should be fine for a bit.”

“‘Kay.”

He rushes to the bathroom, so I make my way into the living room, then smile at the sight before me. Jameson is sitting on the floor against the couch with Peanut on his lap, licking the crap out of his face as Jameson pets him.

“Looks like you made a new friend,” I say, leaning against the wall.

Jameson smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “He’s awesome.”

“Thanks.”

Gavin walks in and stops beside me, putting his arm over my shoulders and tucking me into his side. He kisses my temple and I wrap my arms around his waist, giving him a little squeeze before letting go, but still staying under his arm.

Gavin frowns at me and asks, “What do you want to eat? I’m starving and it looks like you haven’t eaten since the last time I saw you.”

“Um, Gav.” I nod toward the living room where Jameson is sitting, staring at us with a strange look in his eyes, almost like he’s angry. My brow furrows because there’s no reason for him to be angry at me. “Uh, Jameson, this is Gavin. Gav, this is Jameson.”

“Oh hey, Jameson, nice to meet you,” Gavin says with a small smile.

Jameson gently pushes Peanut off his lap and stands up to cross the room and hold out his hand. “Nice to meet you, too,” he says, but he doesn’t look like he means it at all. What the hell is that about?

Gavin shakes his hand and offers a smile, but it looks forced, so I clear my throat and say, “What do you guys want to eat?”

Jameson said, “Actually, I’m going to take off.”

“Are you sure?”

He nods. “Yeah, I need to take care of a few things before I head back up to the hospital.”

“Oh, okay,” I say with a frown before following him to the door. “Maybe I’ll see you at the hospital.”

He nods, but won’t look me in the eyes. I don’t understand what just happened, but he looks upset, and I don’t know him well enough to ask if he’s alright. Maybe he’s thinking about Drix; that would explain it.

When he opens the door, I say, “Thanks for driving me. And for staying at the hospital and everything.”

He nods again, then pulls out a set of keys from his pocket. “I almost forgot to give these to you. Uh, it’s Hendrix’s house and car keys.”

“Thanks.” I take the keys and add them to my set on the table by the door where I set mine after I used my key to let us in.

“See you later,” he says before slipping outside.

I watch him go, then shut the door and turn to go back to the living room, but I bump right into Gavin, who starts laughing. “Walk much?”

I rub my sore nose where I bumped it on his chest and say, “I didn’t know you were behind me.”

He snorts. “That’s ‘cause you were too busy staring at that hot piece of ass.”

“Gav!” I push past him, but he follows me.

“You have to admit he’s hot.”

“He’s my brother’s partner.”

“So?”

I sigh, plop down on the couch, and pat the seat beside me until Peanut jumps up so I can pet him.

Gavin sits on my other side, close enough to put his arm around my shoulders again. “I can tell by your blush that you think he’s hot.”

I lean into him and Peanut climbs across our laps. “I’m not blind, but he’s straight, so can we please talk about something else? Let’s order some food before we go to the hospital.”

“You should probably take a shower, too.”

“Ugh, why are you cuddling with me if I stink?”

“Because I like you.” When I snort, he says, “Fine, maybe I missed you and I want to be here for you.”

I smile at him, then pass him the TV remote with a yawn as I settle back into him. “You can find something; I don’t care what we watch.” Pulling my hair out of its ponytail, I close my eyes, and even though I don’t mean to, I start to drift off while he replies.

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