Page 32 of Stuck On Them

“Just a little sore.” She sighed and tried lifting her leg.

“A little? What did you do? Run a marathon?” I went to her and put my hand on the small of her back to guide her away.

She stiffened. “Seventy flights of stairs.”

I turned her to face me, which was a mistake because now she was practically pressed against my body. “What do you mean seventy flights of stairs?”

“I went down them, okay? I’m a glutton for punishment.” She traced her finger around one of my shirt buttons. “I made it up into my loft earlier, but I hurt a lot more now.”

I grabbed her hand, stopping the torturous touch. “Is it okay for me to go up there and pack for you then?”

She nodded. “It’s kind of a mess. Whatever you grab is fine.”

“Why don’t you go throw the trash out.” I gave her a small smile and made my way up the ladder. The loft was small but cozy, with a mattress shoved against the wall and piles of clothes scattered everywhere like she’d been trying to organize them. There was no way to stand so I crawled onto the bed.

I didn’t know why I cared about this woman so much. It had killed me to leave her in that hotel room and killed me even more to fire her. But it wasn’t like I really had a choice.

“You have a choice to be happy, Rykie. You just choose not to be because that’s easier for you and your heart.”Luca’s lecture from earlier had been playing in my mind all day and it took me seeing this place and the rat for it to make sense.

I had the choice to leave Paige in this dump and be miserable thinking about it or take her out of the situation. I got to work packing, ready to go home and sleep off all the conflicting feelings I was having with every single decision when it came to this woman.

Paige already had a half-filled suitcase, so I just piled essentials into it to fill it the rest of the way. Was this all she had?

“Everything okay up there? You aren’t doing something gross like rubbing your dick all over my panties are you?” Paige said from downstairs. She didn’t even have to yell for me to hear her; that’s how small the space was.

“No, but that’s a good idea.” I smiled as I zipped up the suitcase. “Anything else besides your clothes you need? Vibrator? A special blankie or plushie?”

It had been a long time since I’d dated a woman—not that I was dating Paige—and there was usually at least one stuffed animal somewhere.

Paige laughed. “No, I’m good. Just get your ass down here so we can get out of here. I think I heard a scratching sound under the sink.”

As I climbed back down the ladder, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief that I was getting her out of this place. It was too cramped, and she deserved better.

She deserves better than you.

I shook the thought from my head. Did this woman have some kind of pheromone that was making me and Garrett think stupid thoughts? He wouldn’t have kissed her if he wasn’t having them too. And Luca? Who knew with him?

“Do you need anything else?” I rolled her bag to the door. “What about stuff from the bathroom?”

“It’s kind of like living in a dorm here.” She grabbed a plastic bag and came toward me. “My bathroom stuff is right behind you.”

I moved out of the way, and she uncovered a three-tiered rolling cart. She put a shower caddy in the bag and filled a large cosmetic pouch with other bits and pieces that were scattered on the top shelf.

“Do you mind if I ask how much you pay for this place?” The city was expensive, so I couldn’t exactly blame her for picking a shared bathroom arrangement.

She brushed past me and pushed open a curtain under her stairs that hid storage. “Fourteen.”

“Hundred?” Her barely touching me must have short-circuited my brain.

She pulled out an overnight bag and put all of her bathroom items in it. “No, thousand.”

“For the year?” I was about to go to prison if she said a month. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d heard about landlords taking advantage of new residents.

What was wrong with me? There was no way she meant for one month.

“I was joking. Fourteen hundred a month.” She glanced up at me. “How much doyoupay?”

“Too much, that’s for damn sure.” It killed me to watch so much money leave my account every month for taxes and common fees. I didn’t even want to imagine what it would be if I had a loan on it.

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