Page 74 of Inferno

Sighing, I shrug. “Six months of free rent is a lot of money, on top of the already crazy good salary they were offering…” I trail off, hoping she understands.

“You’re worried it feels too good to be true?” she says sympathetically.

I nod sadly. “Yes.”

“Look, I don’t know the Barnetts that well, but from what Danny’s told me and what you’ve said, I think they’re just really great people. I know there aren’t many of them in the world, but I think you’re overthinking this and assuming everyone is an asshole.”

I hear what she’s saying, but she didn’t just get dumped by a guy who said he’d fallen for her this morning, then said goodbye for good just a few hours later. But I can’t allow my situation with Anders to impact how I feel about the Barnetts. I’ve had more dealings with shitty people than good, and she’s right, the Barnetts really do just seem like great people.

“They’ve always been nice to me,” I admit.

“Exactly,” Parker says triumphantly.

“So, you think I should say yes?” I ask her.

“Yes,” she says excitedly.

After our food arrives, Parker asks me how much notice I have to give on my current apartment, then offers to help me move to the new place this weekend. Her enthusiasm is infectious, and by the time we walk back into the garage, I’m feeling almost hopeful.

“Well?” Bay asks the moment he sees me.

Sighing, I smile. “Thank you for the offer. I’d love to take the job and the apartment, if that’s okay.”

Rushing over to me, Bay whoops excitedly, throwing his arms around me and lifting me off the floor as he hugs me, like I just told him he won the lottery.

“Yes!” he shouts. “Missy is going to be over the moon, she’s been bugging me to talk to you about the apartment for over a week now,” he says on a laugh.

“Is the apartment ready to move in to? Because we thought we could go get his stuff tomorrow and have him all settled in before work on Monday,” Parker asks Bay.

Narrowing my eyes, I glare at Parker, but she ignores me.

“It might need a bit of cleaning because it’s been empty for a few months, but yeah, I’m happy to have you here as soon as possible. Let me go and get you the keys, and you can head up and have a look at the place,” Bay says, striding off to the key box that’s hung on the wall and returning a moment later with a small bunch of keys hanging from his finger.

With a wide grin etched across his face, Bay gestures for Parker and me to follow him as he heads outside, then up a small, partially hidden staircase that leads up the side of the building to the floor above. Two identical doors stand side by side, and Bay inserts the key into the right-side door, pushing it open before he motions for me to step inside.

The air feels a little stale as I cautiously edge through the door, moving my head from side to side, taking in the space. Parker follows me inside, kicking off her oil-stained work boots and nudging me forward.

Taking off my own shoes, I shuffle further inside, marveling at the huge apartment. The entrance hall leads into a massive living room, with a full-sized kitchen with a stove, oven and even a dishwasher built into the cabinets. Off the living room is a large bedroom and a bathroom with a full-size tub.

“I know it’s not huge—” Bay starts.

“Are you kidding? This is probably three times the size of my apartment,” I confess, my eyes blurring with tears as I take in the gorgeous apartment that I’m going to get to call my home.

This morning started off perfectly, only to disintegrate into devastating pieces. But this place, this offer of a job, a home, a life…a family, it’s more than I ever dreamed of having. Being with Anders would have made everything perfect, but I’ve never even dared to dream of perfect. I’d have settled for survival, but this place, this job, and these people, they’re offering me the chance to thrive, and I have no idea how I’ll ever explain how much that means to me.

Blinking back the unshed tears, I turn and offer Bay a grateful, watery smile, not capable of articulating to him how much this will change my life, at least not right this minute.

“I have a couch in the basement if you need one,” Bay says, clearing his throat, like he’s almost as emotional as I am. “When Missy moved in, she redecorated, and we got a new one. There’s nothing wrong with it, she just picked new colors, so it’s just been stored out of the way ever since.”

“I’m not sure I can afford—” I reluctantly start to admit.

“It’s just in the way. I’ll load it in the truck and bring it over tomorrow for you.”

Parker lifts her head, closing the cabinet she’s been snooping in. “All the appliances are built in, you even have a washer and dryer, so once we get your bed from your old place and the couch from Bay, you won’t need anything else immediately to live here.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Bay says, clearing his throat. “But if you do think of anything else you need, just let me know. We’ve rebuilt and redecorated so many times in the last few years as our families have grown that I bet we could open a shop with all the stuff we have lying around.”

I startle when Bay wraps his arms around me again, pulling me into a hug, that reminds me a little too much of the safety and protection I feel in Anders’s arms.

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