Page 33 of The Price of Forever

I opened the door to a minimalistic spare room, an add-on by the previous tenant.

“Couldn’t even finish the walls, huh?” Jordan teased.

The walls didn’t fully touch the ceiling, a common tactic to get around the strict Manhattan renovation codes, according to the agent who showed me the apartment. I hadn’t gotten around to setting it up as a true guest room since arriving in the city.

Well now I had a guest. The most unexpected one imaginable. And the brothers had already ordered her a brand-new king bed, which was en route to my apartment.

“I didn’t think I’d have a house guest,” I told her.

“How am I supposed to use my vibrator in peace?” she countered. “You’ll hear every second of it.”

I clenched my teeth. Not the mental image I wanted to start our cohabitation with. I was already tortured enough by seeing her on a near nightly basis under purple lights, writhing against a steel pole in little more than a strip of spandex and a few pieces of glitter.

“Would it trouble you to believe that you can do whatever you want in these four walls without me giving a damn?” I turned toward the kitchen. The Fairchilds gave me a blank check to outfit this place as I wanted, including hiring an interior designer to completely make over the space. The result really was the bachelor pad of my dreams—minimalistic, tasteful, and modern. All new appliances. Gorgeous black marble countertops. An entire set of weights and resistance bands next to a flat-screen so large I could climb inside if I wanted.

It was my oasis from the outside world—the chaotic NYC I was still getting used to but already loved.

And though part of me was eager to latch on to the idea that Jordan was invading my oasis, a larger part of me was curious to see what happened.

“So where’s your room?”

I tipped my head toward the tiny hallway tucked behind the kitchen. “That way. Bathroom too.”

She watched me expectantly.

“You need to see it all, huh?”

“I’ve seen you in your underwear; now I need to see what color sheets you have.”

It amused me that she was interested enough to mention it, but I made sure to school my reaction to zero. I led her to my bedroom door, opened it, and let her peek inside. The bed was still made from the morning before, light-blocking shades drawn over the windows that overlooked the busy street ten floors below.

“Gray comforter…” she began.

“Gray sheets,” I finished for her.

She nodded to herself, as if this confirmed something. “Just a bed and a rug. Not even a dresser.”

“I have nightstands,” I corrected her. “And my clothes go in the closet.” I couldn’t believe I was rationalizing my bedroom to her, so I clamped my mouth shut.

“I’m surprised you even have a bed in there, since I was sure you just roll into the closet at night to plug in.” She sniffed, heading down the hallway for the bathroom, pushing the door open. “Nice. Roomy enough for my skin care routine. Yeah, I think I can stay awhile.”

“Temporarily.”

“Right.” She smiled brightly at me, blinking a couple of times. “So do you have sweatpants inside your closet or do you just have thirteen sets of this exact outfit?”

I brushed past her, heading to the kitchen. It was time for a protein shake. “You’ll never know.”

“Well now we’re roommates. I can snoop. I’ll find out if you’re secretly a robot.”

“You don’t want to start that game,” I warned her, pulling open the fridge. “There will be consequences.”

“Now that I know you sleep with guns, I don’t doubt that. Can I at least borrow a comfy T-shirt?”

I gritted my teeth, studying the contents of my fridge without having any idea what I was looking at. “All your things are being packed up for you. They’ll be delivered later.” Besides, seeing her in one of my T-shirts would be the final straw. I was hanging on by a thread as it was.

“But yours would be better.”

I finally remembered I was looking for a protein shake and snagged the bottle from the shelf. In lieu of a response, I twisted the lid and chugged. When the bottle was half drained, I sent her a stern look. “What are your plans for today? Because I have some things to take care of.”

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