Page 47 of Choose Me

His frown deepens to a scowl. “No, really, Jules. I don’t like that idea.”

Of course Stef has to chime in. “I don’t like it either. But I can’t force him to move in with me.” Then Stef’s mouth drops open in a silent ‘ooooooh’ and he reaches for both of us. “Why doesn’t Jules move in with you?”

I’m so thankful I wasn’t eating or drinking anything when he said that because I would have spit it across the table. “What? Stef, you can’t just invite someone to move in with someone else, if that someone else isn’t you.”

He waves me off like my point is irrelevant. “No, hear me out. Erik is buying a house. I’m sure it’ll have more than one bedroom. There’ll be plenty of room.”

I’m totally bemused by his behavior. What has gotten into him? “Stef!”

“It’s actually a good idea.” I slowly turn to face Erik, sure I’ve misheard him. “You absolutely should move in with me.” My mouth drops open. Is this his way of telling Stef what’s going on? “I mean it. There’ll be lots of room. You could have your own space if you want it. We know each other, so you won’t be living with a stranger. We’ll be roommates.”

Stef waves his hands in a ‘ta da’ kind of motion, and all I can do is gape at Erik. He’s holding my gaze, completely sincere, and my head is spinning because somehow Stef has just given us the perfect cover. I could live with Erik. We could hang out and play video games like we used to when we were younger. Or watch movies together and snuggle on the couch. I could fall asleep in his arms every night. “Well, um, where are you looking? I mean, I’m in the office a few days a month, but most days I’m in the forests near Tiger Mountain.”

Erik shrugs. “I don’t have a specific area I’m focused on yet. I haven’t even contacted a realtor. But that area is where most of my hiking tours are going to be. We have an office here in the city, but I suppose it could be moved out that way, and then I can meet up with groups wherever we’re hiking or camping.”

Stef nods. “That sounds perfect!” I gawp at my brother. Does he truly think it’s a good idea? “No, seriously, Jules. I know you like your apartment, and I’ll miss having you so close, but think about this. You’d have a roommate who loves the same stuff you do.” His grin is sincere, but there’s almost a desperate undercurrent, like he’s afraid I’ll say no. “And if you move out toward the forest, you’ll be near Mom and Dad.” That’s when I realize he’s worried I can’t live on my own. Why else would he mention our parents?

My food sits like a rock in my stomach. He’s not wrong, but having it pointed out so blatantly is painful. I suppose I should be grateful he’s giving me an excuse to move in with Erik. I turn to him. “Are you serious about me moving in? Because if you’re not—”

Erik cuts me off. “I’m serious. I’m very definitely serious. But I haven’t found a place yet, and you aren’t even sure if or when Quinn and Tadhg will actually move in together. We have time.” That calms me quite a lot. We’re borrowing stress, and that’s never good. “And who knows when I’ll actually find a house I want? So a nice sized apartment somewhere or a house to rent could be doable. It would give us time to find someplace permanent.”

I glance at Stef, but he hasn’t caught the “us” in that sentence. Or if he has, he’s ignoring it. He claps his hands together. “Perfect. That’s solved.” He looks between the both of us, hands pressed to his chest. “I feel so much better.”

“Then all is right with the world.” I’m unsure what just happened, except that I’m moving in with Erik, and Stef’s encouraging it. So why does it feel like there’s a shoe about to drop?

16

Erik

Wemakeamaddash across the driveway to Bjorn’s front door, trying to avoid the half-rain, half-snow mixture pelting us in the face. It’s only supposed to get worse as the evening goes on, and I considered canceling tonight because of the weather, but our presence was requested so we could meet Astrid’s new boyfriend. She’s been very cagey about him, so I’m extra-curious.

When we get to the front door, I nudge Jules to the side and put one hand on the door handle. “I need you to stand over there.” I gesture to a spot against the house, away from the front door.

“You said they knew I was coming.”

I wince at the hurt and panic in his eyes, wishing I’d phrased that better. “Sorry, they do. That’s not what this is about. I’m going to open the door and I don’t want you to get hit by Pita.”

Panic morphs into confusion. “They’re going to throw flatbread at us?”

“No, Pita is my brother’s Norwegian Elkhound, and he’s a bit excitable. He’ll come flying out of the house and tackle whoever is standing in the doorway, and I don’t want that to be you.”

Now he looks horrified. “Shouldn’t they get a trainer to stop that from happening?”

“Bjorn has one, but Pita is young and still learning.” From the tense set of his shoulders and his wide eyes, none of this is putting Jules at ease, so it’s best if I get it over with. “All right, ready?” He nods and flattens himself against the house. I thrust open the door and stagger back as Pita launches himself like a bullet shot out of a gun.

“Pita!” Bjorn bellows from somewhere inside the house, but the dog is too busy attempting to lick every square inch of my face while climbing into my arms to pay Bjorn any attention. Laughing, I do my best to dodge his kisses. “Okay, boy. Yes. I missed you. It’s been a whole three hours. It’s awful, I know.”

I finally calm him enough to stop his scrabbling up my body, but before I can set him on all fours, he catches sight of Jules. We both brace ourselves, and once I set him down, I grab Pita’s collar. “It’s fine. Just stay calm. He won’t go at you.” Pita’s wary of strangers and he either sticks by the people he knows or runs and hides.

To my utter astonishment, he does neither. Pita pulls me forward, inching his way toward Jules from the side, tail wagging quickly with his ears perked up. He gingerly sniffs Jules’ hand and leg, then presses his nose into his groin. “Pita, no.” Jules just laughs. I try to pull him back by his collar, but elkhounds are stubborn. Pita plonks himself down next to Jules, giving his fingers a lick.

Carefully, Jules reaches out and scratches under Pita’s chin. “Oh, look at you, pretty boy. So sweet.” He sinks to his knees and Pita nuzzles into his chest, scent marking him. “Oh, look at the pretty boy. Such a sweet baby.”

“I’ve never seen him act like that with strangers before.”

Jules grins. “Dogs love me.”

“Jules, how can anybody not love you?”

---