Page 137 of Left on Read

I held him for a long time until he pulled away.

“She would have liked you.” He gave me a wobbly smile. “Dad too.” He blew out a shaky breath and waved to the desk. “Thank you for this. Not just the books or pencils, but for making a space for me here.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him how much I loved him, but it wasn’t the time. He didn’t need another emotional upheaval right now.

“You’re important to me. I want you to always feel like you belong and have space here.”

“So.” He shook his head in a quick motion. I’d learned that was how he literally shook off his thoughts when he was caught in one of his spirals, as he called them. “You said you had a project you wanted help with?”

“Yeah. But I planned this before your boss went full asshole, so feel free to say no.”

“Okay.” His forehead knitted in confusion.

“Quinn helped me find a ladder for my bookcase.”

He glanced at the shelves we’d, or more accurately, he’d installed all those months ago. His eyes lit up. “Like the one in the movie that slides across the floor?”

“Yes. Exactly like it.”

“Hell yeah, I’m gonna help you with that.” He beamed and looked around. “Where is it?”

“In the basement. I tripped over the boxes twice before I realized that leaving it out probably wasn’t the best idea.”

“Let’s do this.” River took my hand and led me downstairs.

“Oh my fucking god.” He howled with laughter when he saw his toolbox filled with the tools I’d sold him next to the ladder boxes. “I was gonna ask about tools. How did you get these?”

“Noah brought them over when he helped me put the desks together.”

“I was going to ask about that too.” He snickered. “Not that I don’t think you couldn’t do it yourself?—”

“I one hundred percent couldn’t. Noah made more than one joke about how I was as helpful as his niece while we were working, and I know she’s only two.”

River wrapped his arm around my shoulder and gave me a tight squeeze. “I’d say you’re at least a few levels above Aria. Last time Zane was over, she kept hitting him on the knees with her toy hammer and running away giggling. You’ve never done that.”

“Nope, I can honestly say only fingers and one forearm have ever fallen victim to my hammer swings.”

“Forearm?” River smacked a kiss against my temple and let me go.

“I was helping Ryan put an electric fireplace together. You know, the ones with the fake fire in them? That was a test of our friendship even before I whacked him on the arm because I didn’t see him behind me.”

“At least it was his arm and not his balls.”

“That’s exactly what he said after he stopped cursing.”

“Remind me to give you a wide berth when we get started on this.” He waved at the boxes. “I need my arms and my balls intact.”

“I’m also very invested in you having intact balls, but before we get started,” I pointed to the envelope on top of the toolbox. “Quinn dropped that off for you.”

River grabbed the envelope. “He did? When?”

“This morning.”

Pulling open the flap, he peeked inside. “What the hell?” He pulled out a stack of bills and a sheet of paper.

He unfolded the paper and read it. “What did he say when he dropped it off?”

“Nothing. He just told me to give it to you when you woke up.”