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Carter smiled down at me. “I don’t want to leave.”

Relief coursed through me. “Okay. I’m going to sit down with Chad when he gets here and lay out some ground rules. If he doesn’t like them, he can leave. If he doesn’t follow them, then homeless or not, I’ll make him leave. I doubt he’ll be happy, or able to stick to them very long. It should motivate him to find another solution, and this will all be behind us soon.”

“Do you want me with you when you tell him the rules?”

As tempting as that idea was, Carter seeing Chad at his lowest would only make this worse. “No, I’ve got this. I appreciate you for offering.”

He tightened his arms around me and dropped a kiss on the top of my head. “If you change your mind, just say the word. I’m here for anything you need.”

Chapter 19

Jane

I paced my front room, waiting for Chad to pull up with his stuff. I wished Chad had had the decency to tell me about his problems himself, and actually ask to move in here. I was sure he was humiliated to find himself here, and our divorce had been horrible, but I wasn’t a monster. I didn’t want him living out of his car, sleeping on the couch at the dealership, and scrounging for a place to clean up.

I glanced at the clock again. Ethan had given me a rough ETA after Chad texted him, but unsurprisingly, he was late. I should have known nothing had changed from when we were together. Chad was late for everything.

When headlights pulled into my driveway, my guts cramped. I did not want this confrontation, but here we were. I crossed to the door and pulled it open as Chad climbed the porch steps.

“Waiting up for me? I knew you’d be happy to have me move in.” Chad wore a satisfied smirk.

“You don’t have a key yet. There’s the small matter of you signing your tenant’s agreement before you move in.”

The idea of a tenant agreement had been floated at dinner as Ethan, Carter, and I had talked about how this would work. I’d jumped on the idea and found a simple template that I’d modified to include the house rules that Chad had to follow.

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from snickering at the shocked look on Chad’s face. If the thought of signing an agreement upset him, wait until he read my terms.

Chad pushed past me into the house and walked into the kitchen. I closed the door and followed him. Ethan and Carter had both made themselves scarce, not wanting to make this confrontation more complicated. I picked up the agreement I’d printed out before Chad’s arrival.

“My what? Give me that.” Chad yanked the papers out of my hands, his cheeks flushing redder with every paragraph he read.

“It’s a simple agreement laying out my renting space to you in my house, how much it will cost, and what the house rules are. If you don’t agree, I suggest you put your bags back in your car.” I kept my voice calm, trying to be pleasant if impartial.

I was proud of myself for setting boundaries with Chad. It had to be a shock for him, because when we were married, I’d been a pushover. Clearly, or I wouldn’t have wound up the butt of a thousand jokes on social media. I wasn’t going to let myself slip back into my old ways. This was my house, and Chad had no real part in my life anymore. He’d either refuse to sign and walk out now, or he’d screw up and break one of the rules soon enough, and be gone then. Either way, this was going to be a short-lived arrangement.

“You want me to pay? You know I’m broke!”

I refrained from rolling my eyes at him, no matter how strong the urge. “Yes, you need to pay. I’ve given you two options; with or without meals. The price is well below market rate, but if you think you can do better elsewhere, you know where the door is.”

I hoped he would balk at that and leave in a huff.

“How much is Carter paying?” Chad asked petulantly.

Was he jealous? There was no way he knew about what was going on between Carter and me, even if he was acting like he did. Chad never liked anyone getting a better deal than him, though, so maybe that was enough to trigger the jealousy.

“Carter is paying more than what I’m offering to you, because your accommodations aren’t as nice. He pays for meals when he’s in town, and not when he’s on the road.” It was a simplistic answer that was close enough to the truth. Carter had already transferred more than the amount I told him, and had bought takeout too. Chad didn’t need to know any of that. My finances were not his business anymore.

Grumbling, Chad nodded and kept reading. When wrinkles appeared across his forehead and his scowl deepened, I knew he must have hit the house rules section. These were specific rules beyond the basic stuff like not smoking and paying on time. I’d had a lot of fun writing them up.

House Rules

Cleaning services are not included. You are responsible for ensuring your area is kept clean.

Laundry is located on the main floor. Your laundry days are Sunday, Wednesday, or Friday.

Bathrooms are to be cleaned weekly. Supplies can be found under the sink.

If you use the common areas, you will be added to the regular cleaning schedule.