He might have only known her a day, but he already knew she deserved a lot more than what Braden could give her. Hell, she deserved a heck of a lot more than what most men could give her.
She threw back her head and laughed.
“What? Why are you laughing?”
“You think I’m interested in Braden?” She made it sound like Braden was the equivalent of a third-world dictator.
He instantly relaxed his shoulders which until now, he hadn’t even noticed had tensed. “Most women are.”
“Well, I’m not most women. I was asking because he and Viola acted strangely around each other. I wanted to make sure he wasn’t the type of guy to hurt her.”
He’d met Braden in grade school when they fought over who got to sit with Sally Marks on the tire swing. When she’d told them she didn’t want either one of them on the swing because boys had cooties, they’d discovered they’d both preferred to play in the woods behind the playground. They’d gotten in trouble together more times than he could count and Braden had always had his back, usually taking the fall for Ryan’s stupid mistakes. He trusted Braden with his life. That didn’t mean he wanted him with Portia. Viola on the other hand, not a problem.
He pulled into Braden’s driveway. “He’s not going to chop her up into little pieces if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“I’m not. I’m worried about her heart.”
“Viola seems like she can take care of herself.” She kind of scared him a bit with all her piercings and weird hair. He didn’t see one iota of resemblance between the sisters, although Viola was also beautiful in her own way. She wasn’t Braden’s type at all. Braden preferred women like Portia.
“I know she comes off as tough, but she’s a sensitive soul. Even more than me. She’s just able to hide it better.”
He shut off the car’s engine and pivoted in his seat to face her. “You two are really close, huh?”
She nodded. “We were once upon a time. Moving from school to school bound us together. The last few years, we’ve drifted apart. That’s why it’s so important to me to own a permanent home. My hope is it will convince her to stay in Detroit. She lives the same kind of life as my mother, which is fine for some people, but not Viola. We used to curl up together under the stars and dream about having a roof over our heads. She didn’t want to stay on the road. I guess I hoped if Braden and she had something going—”
“I wouldn’t count on that. If anything happens between them, it’s just fun and games. Braden doesn’t want anything serious. He’s maintained since we were kids that he’ll never get married or have children.”
She released her seat belt. “I can understand that.”
“You can?”
“Sure. I don’t think marriage and kids are for everyone. I’ve never met anyone I’d want to tie myself to for the rest of my life, and kids need stability, something I’m not sure I could give.”
Her statement shocked him. Not because of the words themselves, but that she actually seemed to believe what she was saying.
“I don’t believe that. You seem as though you’re pretty stable.”
Her hand rested on her chest. “Me? I grew up with a single mom who was convinced she was a Muse meant to inspire creativity in her male soul mates. Well, if my dad was her soul mate, how could he leave her to bring up a child on her own?”
All right, her mom sounded like a world class wackadoo. He didn’t believe in Muses any more than he believed in the Tooth Fairy, but Portia wasn’t anything like her mother and he sure as hell wasn’t anything like her father. He’d been close to his own father once upon a time, before Ryan had screwed it all up by refusing to come clean about how he’d lost millions of dollars.
He unbuckled his seatbelt and took her hand, entwining his fingers with hers. “Not all men are like that.”
She gave him a sad smile. “I know. But it’s not as though I had a great role model when it comes to being a mom.” She squeezed his hand and released their hold, as if she appreciated his comfort but didn’t require it any longer. “And look at me. I’m in my mid-twenties, and I’m both penniless and jobless.”
“But not homeless.”
“No, not now. But in three months? I could be sleeping on a cot in a homeless shelter.”
Raised with two loving parents in a mansion, he had no idea what it was like to be homeless. He’d never realized how much he took for granted. He tried not to feel guilty about his plan to sell their home. After all, once they each got a couple of million in their bank accounts, she wouldn’t ever have to worry about having a roof over her head again, and he’d be on his way to proving to his family that he could be trusted.