With all that in mind, she resolved to be patient.
When the cheesecake was plated, sliced strawberries scattered over the top, she carried it all into the living room and switched on the TV. After a moment he joined her, mug of steaming coffee in hand, and they ate their cheesecake accompanied by the laugh track to an episode of Friends.
Geo still didn’t speak, although he seemed to enjoy the dessert. Lani took their empty plates to the sink and, returning to the living room, propped her feet firmly on the coffee table. “Go on. Get comfortable,” she ordered. “Feet on the furniture, unbutton your pants, rip a giant belch, whatever.”
He rolled his eyes, but he pried off his sneakers and crossed his socked feet next to hers. Delighted with her small victory, she nudged his toes. He nudged her back, setting off a mini foot war, which ended with Geo’s big toe caressing her instep in surrender.
At the touch, she shivered, nipples tightening, goose bumps springing up everywhere. She glanced at Geo to see if he noticed, but he just sighed and sank back into the couch, coffee mug resting on his stomach. As the Friends episode ended and the next one started, his eyes drifted shut, his breathing going long and slow.
Lani rescued the mug just in time, a lump rising into her throat.
I wish you could talk to me, she said to him silently. I wish you could let yourself trust me. Whatever it is, I’m here.
Even as she watched, he startled himself awake with a snore, so she took a chance. Grabbing up a small throw pillow, she put it on her thigh and urged him to lie down.
Blearily he did, head on the pillow, one leg crooked against the back of the couch, the other one stretched out, foot on the floor. She stroked his hair, which was soft and springy. She was combing her fingers through it, sifting it gently, when suddenly he murmured, “No wonder Bosch likes this so much.”
“Whoops.” She gave a self-conscious giggle, hand stilling. “I guess I am sort of petting you, aren’t I?”
“Yeah. But don’t stop,” he said hoarsely, his voice a tiny bit ragged. “Please.”
“I won’t.” Her eyes stinging, she ran her thumb lightly over his forehead, fingers delving back into his hair. “I won’t. Shhh. Go back to sleep.”
It’s okay to trust me, Geo. It’s okay to let me in.
When his body finally went limp and he let out another soft snore, she couldn’t help but smile.
She’d take it.
Chapter Fourteen
Something tickled Geo’s nose.
He waved it away, only for it to reappear on his forehead. A damn fly. God, he hated the barracks.
Yawning, he cracked open his eyes, but instead of drab white walls and industrial furnishings, the soft light coming in through the windows revealed pictures scattered everywhere, a floor lamp with a funky shade...
“Oh, shit!” Awareness returned in an instant, and he jackknifed to sitting, the blanket covering him dropping to the floor.
Lani’s apartment. Jesus, he fell asleep on her!
With a loud groan, he flopped back down on the couch. Fucking hell, he was such a tool. Not only had he shown up uninvited, he’d probably scared her the way he’d been lurking in the dark like that. Then after she’d graciously asked him in, he’d eaten her food, refused to talk—the whole reason he’d come here in the first place—and finally passed out cold with his head in her lap.
What the fuck? True exhaustion, or just avoidance?
He didn’t want to think too closely about the answer to that.
Finally unable to ignore the demands of his bladder anymore, Geo got to his feet and tiptoed down the hall to the apartment’s one and only bathroom. When he’d finished, he paused in front of Lani’s door, which was slightly ajar.
Holding his breath, Geo peeked in, catching a glimpse of long, tangled hair and one bare shoulder, the rest of her covered up by a thick gray comforter. He backed away, careful not to make any noise, and retreated to the kitchen.
The sight of their cheesecake plates in the sink brought a lump to his throat, along with the memory of gentle fingers in his hair, soothing murmurs, and a sense of peace and safety that’d enabled him to fall so deeply asleep he hadn’t even felt her disentangle herself from him.
He couldn’t remember the last time that’d happened, if ever.
Sighing, he filled the sink with soapy water and washed the plates and silverware. When he was done, he stood uncertainly in the middle of the kitchen, the soft ticking of the appliances the only noise.
What else could he do? She’d probably be getting up soon, and it’d be nice if—after everything she’d done for him—she could wake up to something.
He discarded the idea of running out to buy breakfast. Lani would appreciate the effort more than the result, homemade over store-bought every time. Geo gazed at the fridge, imagining it covered with childish creations someday—finger paintings, crayon drawings, even stick figures.
Each one would get a pleased exclamation, and a hug and kiss, before finding its place of honor amidst all the others...
He squared his shoulders. Okay, he’d cook for her. It wouldn’t be amazing, but he’d try. Searching her tiny pantry, he came up with a box of pancake mix. Ah, perfect. Pancakes were idiot-proof, weren’t they?
“Well, almost,” he thought ruefully a few minutes later as the one he was trying to flip broke apart. “Not as easy as it looks.”
“Good morning.” Lani’s husky voice behind him made him jump and whirl around, spatula in hand. “What’s going on?”
Oh, my. In a spaghetti-strap tank and cotton pajama pants, she looked sleep-warmed and cuddly, and the sudden, overwhelming desire to take her in his arms had him spinning back toward the stove.
“Um, you know, breakfast,” he grunted. “Although I’m not doing so great a job.” He lifted his chin toward a nearby plate and its pathetic stack of uneven, broken pancakes, wincing when she crossed the room to look at them.
“Mmm. They don’t have to look pretty to taste good, do they? I can’t wait.”
Despite a sneaking suspicion that she was only being polite, warmth flooded him at her approval. As he finished with the last few pancakes, she sliced some bananas and made a pot of coffee, both of them working in a companionable silence.
When they were finally seated across from each other, Lani lifted her glass of orange juice and tapped it against Geo’s mug. “Cheers.”
“Cheers,” he mumbled, holding his breath as she forked up her first bite. She chewed thoughtfully for a moment, then pronounced them delicious, her tone grave but her eyes twinkling.
“Thank you, Geo. What’s the occasion?”