Fine. “I like having you here. I want you here.”
Kam started to relax.
“As long as it’s convenient.”
He stiffened right up again. “For me or you?”
No man could be that obtuse. “I don’t want you to feel obligated.”And I don’t want to feel like a nuisance.Cue pity party. Maybe if she slept better, she’d handle him better, too—if anyone couldhandleKam. It didn’t seem likely. He had a streak of honor that would always guide him. Admirable, as long as that wasn’t what kept him with her. “You have a life away from me; I know that. Work at the shop, a family who adores you—”
“Tanner might object to that description.”
“And your volunteer time with kids in the youth program.Plus, you still help out with the tree farm.” Addie and Tanner depended on him. The at-risk kids needed him. She did not want to hog all his time. It made her feel needy and selfish, when she’d been well on her way to changing her life.
If he lived with her—permanently, without that perfectly good apartment going to waste—she might feel differently. He’d kept the apartment, though, and now he was stuck here with her.
Firming her chin, she tried to sit a little straighter, to look less like a wounded victim. “I can get around on my own now.”
His brows leveled over his eyes. “Sure, from the couch to the table.”
“So I’m a little sore, big deal. You wouldn’t let that slow you down. Neither would Tanner, and I’m guessing Addie would forge on no matter what. Callie was hurt and she still went out to feed her chickens. Remember that?”
With a distinct lack of humor, the corner of his mouth lifted. “Do you remember that Callie didn’t have broken ribs and a torn rotator cuff?”
No, but she’d fallen from her attic, and she’d been bruised almost as badly as Glory was now. “Hurt is hurt,” she said, refusing to give up her point.
“There’s hurt and then there’s injured. Besides, if you think Tanner and I wouldn’t be pampering Addie, you haven’t paid attention.”
Maybe it was from being cooped up, but Glory felt like throwing her fork at him. “Callie and I would dote on her, too. That’s not what I’m saying, and you know it.”
Kam rubbed a hand over his face. “Actually, yeah, I get it. You want to normalize your life as much as you can.”
Recognizing that he did understand took away some of her starch. She relaxed her spine again, shifting to get as comfortable as she could in the hard chair. “I have weeks to goyet before my ribs are healed. The idea of nonstop visitors is daunting.”
He nodded in acceptance. “Want me to talk to them?”
“We could do that together.” With a moderated inhale, she prepped herself for the next battle. “I want PB back here. For good.”
“Babe—”
“Don’tbabeme, Kam. She’s my dog. My dog-ter.” Yes, she liked that term. “You know the longer she’s with Addie, Tanner, and Callie, the more attached she’ll be to them.”
This time, it was his mouth he rubbed, but still when he dropped his hand, real humor showed in the tilt of his mouth. “Dog-ter, huh?”
“Yes. My dog-daughter.” Glory had so much love to give—love she wanted to lavish on others. Kam wasn’t ready for that yet, so PB was it. Well, and Callie. But that was different. Usually, Callie tried to take care of her—as much as Kam did. With PB, she’d love her and care for her... and baby her. Instinctively, she rested her hand over her abdomen. “I want her established here and that’s that.”
“I get your point. PB will probably bond with the pets, too.”
Very true. Blu the dog and Percy the cat would become PB’s friends, and then she’d lose the dog for good. “It’s not right to leave her there.”
“Fine, I’ll work on it.” Getting cagey, he pointed at her. “But only if you’re okay with me staying, because you’re in no shape to be constantly bending down to attach a leash when she needs to go out.”
“No problem.” She wanted him to stay—and seriously, she couldn’t imagine trying to bend like that. Feeling like she’d won that round, Glory smiled at him. “I told you I wanted you to stay—but only if you want to.”
“I want to.”
Because she still needed so much help. “What about your work with the kids?”
“I’ve been thinking about that. You’re right that it’s important—to them and to me—so I’ll fit it in.”