Leo’s POV

The guest room was small, but it beat sleeping in my truck.

My mom had practically guilted her best friend Helen into letting me stay for three weeks. A pipe burst on the fourth floor of my building, the subfloor gave out, and the city pulled the occupancy permit before I could even finish packing. I didn’t want to take the offer, but Helen wouldn’t let me go to some cheap motel off the highway. She just handed me a key, told me the upstairs room was free, and left for her twelve-hour night shift at the clinic.

I dropped my duffel on the floor and sat on...