She took a deep breath, and he leaned back.
“Okay, I think I need some rules.”
“Rules?”
“Yeah. For us. For what we’re going to do and expect while I’m here. And some structure around how things are going to go.”
He nodded, trying very hard not to squeeze her knee and beg her to stay. “Got it. Okay. Well, you told me that you planned to go to Colorado for a year and were saving up money.”
“Right.” She paused. Then said, “I found a yoga studio that will need another instructor. And there’s an apartment that will open up around that same time.”
Mitch felt his chest tighten. He might have squeezed her knee too. “When?”
“August.”
He was able to take a breath. “That’s seven months.”
“Yeah.” Paige tucked her hair behind her ear. “I was kind of thinking that staying here, getting to know Louisiana, just being away from Appleby and everyone, while I save up money over those seven months might be nice.”
He nodded, trying not to slump in obvious relief. Seven months wasn’t forever, but it was better than three weeks.
“You can stay as long as you want,” he finally said.
She smiled, and his next heartbeat was a little harder.
“Can I help you with the otter enclosure? Or other projects or something?” she asked.
He grinned. “I don’t know if you’re really the manual-labor-outside-all-day type.”
She shrugged. “I’m not. You’ll have to teach me.”
“Not that I don’t want you around, but I have a better idea,” he told her.
“Yeah?”
“The Boys of the Bayou is my cousins’ business. Swamp boat tours and fishing and hunting expeditions.”
She nodded. He’d told her about the business before.
“They need a receptionist in the office. Someone to take reservations and keep the tour schedule and greet the customers when they show up for the tours. Manage the gift shop. Stuff like that.”
“No one’s doing that now?”
“Kennedy was,” he said with a grin. “But she’s helping Bennett with his foundation, and she’s busy on some boards and committees for the Governor. Oh, and she’s going to be Mayor of Autre.”
Paige’s eyes widened. “She is? Really?”
“Really. There’s a special election in May, and everyone loves her. Oh, and no one’s running against her.” He grinned. “So yeah, she’s really busy. And Bennett’s loaded, so she doesn’t have to work for money anymore.”
He was really happy for Kennedy and Bennett. They seemed like total opposites, but they got each other in a way that made Mitch downright jealous sometimes. They also shared a passion for making people’s lives better and for protecting the environment, particularly the bayou, and that made their mission for public service in government, local and bigger, meaningful.
“So. Wow.” Paige was still obviously processing that.
“Anyway, she was the receptionist until recently. Now everyone is trying to pitch in and make it work. Maddie is even doing tours with Sawyer, Owen, and Josh because the business has grown, and there just isn’t anyone who can do the job full-time.”
Paige nodded slowly. “I could do that.”
He grinned. This was perfect.
Well, not perfect. It would allow her to save up money to go to Colorado. But with this setup, he could help his family with their business and Paige with what she wanted.
It might not be what he wanted, but what she needed would trump that for him every time.
That was how he knew he was falling for her. Or had already fallen for her.
He would do anything he could for the people around him. The town, Paige’s home town, even the visitors who came for swamp boat tours. That was just who he was. He did whatever he could to make things around him better.
But when it came to his family, it was next level. He’d move heaven and earth. Sacrifice anything of his own. Even put himself in danger.
And he felt the same way about Paige.
Already.
“That actually sounds really great,” she said. “Will they go for it?”
“They? You mean Sawyer and Maddie and Owen and Josh?”
She nodded.
“No question about it.”
They needed the help, but even if they hadn’t, if Mitch had come to them with a suggestion that would help someone he cared about, they’d do it. The love and loyalty, and support went both ways in the Landry family.
“Well, then that’s great.”
She was studying his hand where it rested on her leg and chewing her bottom lip.
“What else?” he prompted.
She sighed and lifted her gaze. “Just… what this is with us.”
“This is whatever you want it to be.”
He meant that. He wanted more than he knew she was going to give, but he could deal with that. He wasn’t going to make this hard on her.
“Wow,” she said softly. “You really mean that.”
“Of course.”
“It’s just… I mean, I’m used to my family pushing me to go on dates and settle down and get a real job and get married. I have guys I’ve known my whole life asking me to marry them after a couple of dinners. Everyone is just always pressuring me. I guess I’m not used to someone actually really caring what I want without thinking they know better. And I’m not used to them being okay with it when what I want isn’t what they want.”
And all of that was exactly why he was going to do the right thing here and let her call the shots. It was the reason she was here in the first place, and he was damned glad she was. For however long it lasted.
Her hair had fallen forward from behind her ear, and he reached to tuck it back again. “No pushing,” he said.
She pressed her lips together and nodded.
“So tell me exactly what you want from me.”
“To hang out. Get to know you better. See where and how you live. Laugh.” She leaned in. “Kiss. A lot.”
He pressed his lips to hers, then released her. “Done. All of that.”
“But—” she added.
He sighed. “Lay it on me.”
“Maybe separate rooms?”
Shit. He should have seen that coming. He took a breath and let it out. “Okay.”
“Really?”
“My house has four bedrooms. Only two are in use. You want your own space you can have it.”
Fuck. He hated all of that.
“I want to spend some time in your room though,” she said. “Is that terrible? Does that make me a tease? Is that not fair to you?”
Well, he hadn’t even thought about touching another woman since he’d met her, so it wasn’t as if he’d be having women over if they were just roommates.
“It’s fair if we both know upfront that we’re roommates with benefits. And friends,” he said.
She nodded but didn’t say anything for several seconds. Finally, she responded with, “You’re a really good guy.”
Yeah, he’d been told that all his life. It was what he worked to be. What he prided himself on.
But now he thought that maybe he was just a dumbass.