Love Next Door (Lakeside 1)

He’s dressed in a pair of navy sweats that have seen better days and an old T-shirt, but he still looks fantastic. “Hey.” I step right into him, and he folds me into a warm embrace.

“Hey, yourself.” He lets me hold on to him for a few long, comforting seconds before he kisses my cheek and pulls back. “How is Billy? How are you? I’ve been thinking about you all day.”

“He’s okay. Or he will be, I hope.”

“That’s good. Do you want to talk about it at all? Maybe you want to come back to my place? I can make up for being a jerk yesterday.”

I give him a small smile. “Yeah, sure, that sounds good. Just let me grab a couple of things?”

“Of course.” Van waits at the door while I shove pajamas and my toothbrush into an overnight bag. Once I have my things, I shoulder the bag, close the door to my trailer, and follow him down the path back to his place. I realize I’ve started to look at it not as Bee’s anymore, but as his.

As soon as we’re through the narrow path, he links our fingers together. “You okay?”

I realize I didn’t answer that question before, too fixated on Billy and what he’s going through. “I think so. I’ve known for a while that things with Billy weren’t okay, but seeing him break down today made me aware of how hard this whole thing has been on him. He’s always had ups and downs, but this is more than that. I hate that he’s been going through this alone this whole time.” As we step inside the cottage, I tell him about the episode Billy had at the hospital and that they admitted him.

“How did your parents handle that?” He takes my bag, sets it on the kitchen counter, and pulls me over to the couch I’ve sat on a million times before. Being in here feels different now. Bee’s was always a haven, but this is so much more than that.

“Better than I expected. I thought my mom would put up a fight, since they’ve been doing a lot of brushing things off, but I realized they didn’t know what to do. No one wants their kid to go through what Billy is. There’s guilt attached to it, like it’s somehow their fault that he’s like this, and I guess genetically there’s probably a link, but it’s not as though they have control over it. They needed someone to say this was a good idea and that it needed to happen so they could feel okay about it, and that person had to be me.”

“And how do you feel about that?” Van brushes my hair back and smooths his thumb down the side of my neck. “Being the one they looked to for help to make the decision?”

“We’re all in this together, so that definitely makes it easier. I don’t feel as though the decision rests solely on my shoulders. We made it as a family. And I know that Billy might be upset now, but I’m hoping with time and treatment he’ll see that we did this because we care about him.” I lean into him, letting those words sink in. “That’s what it’s always been like with my family. We back each other up.”

“That’s good. I’m glad you have that.” There’s wistfulness in his tone.

“Me too. I don’t know if I would have been able to make that decision on my own. Leaving my brother at the hospital was so hard; I just wanted to wrap him up in love and keep him safe, but I knew I couldn’t do that for him. Having my parents there as a support was a big help.” I squeeze his hand, aware that our family situations are vastly different. “I’m sorry about your brother,” I add. “I can’t imagine how you feel, or how hard this is for you. Family are supposed to take care of each other.” I tip my chin up as he tips his down.

Our gazes meet, and something shifts in the air around us. A new kind of tension sparks and crackles between us. A connection that wasn’t there before, so much more intense this time.

“I could be that for you,” I whisper. “The person you can count on not to let you down.”

“You already are, Dillion.” He cups my cheek in his palm and dips down and presses his lips to mine. “You’re the best part of my day and the one person I look forward to seeing more than anyone else. I’m lucky to have you in my life.”

This time when he comes back for a kiss, it’s a soft lingering one that sends warmth rushing through my veins, and heat settles low in my belly, sparking need. He deepens the kiss, and when it’s clear it’s about to become more, he takes me to his bedroom. We undress slowly, paying special attention to each other’s most sensitive spots, until we’re both panting and desperate.