Page 16 of Off Limits

Asa had always been a loner who preferred to spend his time reading or writing. It wasn’t inconceivable that he wouldn’t have anyone he could crash with.

“We both know I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t desperate.” He dropped his gaze to the floor. “I just… I don’t have anyone else I can ask for help.”

I sighed and raked a hand through my hair. I wanted to tell him that his issues weren’t my problem and he should talk to our parents, but I couldn’t get the words out.

I didn’t like him, and we clashed like oil and water, but I couldn’t turn him away. Not when his only other option was homelessness. And even without my stupid empathy, our parents would kill me if they found out I’d let him sleep in his car after he’d come to me for help.

“How long do you think it’ll take to find a place?” I asked, my tone as resigned as the rest of me.

He shot me a surprised look, but under that shock was something I couldn’t quite place. It almost looked like hope, or maybe it was just relief. Asa was hard to read, even after all these years of dealing with him. “Not sure. Maybe a month, hopefully less.”

“Do you have any leads?”

“I’ve applied to every place I can find in my price range.” He chewed on his lower lip. “I’m still looking, but everything is so damn expensive that’s not a long list of places.”

“What’s your price range?”

I internally groaned at the number he told me. A few years ago, that would have been enough for a one-bedroom in a decent area. Now it was barely enough to cover a studio on the outskirts of town.

I had no idea how much Asa made as a mechanic, but from what I remembered, he’d only finished his apprenticeship sometime in the last year. He was probably making a lot less than his coworkers based on his experience and time in the trade.

I huffed out another deep sigh. This was a colossally bad idea, and it would be beyond inconvenient as fuck, but it wasn’t like I had a choice.

“You’ll have to sleep in the den,” I said after a pause. I really didn’t want to lose my office, but I’d rather have him in there than on my couch. At least there’d be some separation between us if he was in the den.

His eyes widened. “Yeah, sure. That’s fine.”

“It doesn’t have a door,” I warned him. “And it’s small. You’ll have to use my camping mattress if you don’t have a single bed to move in, because it won’t fit anything bigger.”

“A camping mattress is fine,” he said quickly.

“You said your eviction goes into effect tomorrow?”

He nodded.

“Come on, I’ll give you a quick tour.” I waved for him to follow me. “That’s the kitchen.” I paused so he could poke his head through the door to check it out. “That’s the living room.” I motioned to the open space as Asa’s eyes darted around the room, pausing on the fireplace.

“This room is bigger than my old apartment,” he mused.

I waited for him to make a disparaging remark about me or the room, but he just gave me an expectant look and waited for me to continue my tour.

We walked down the small hallway off the communal rooms and stopped in front of the bathroom.

“I’m assuming this one is self-explanatory,” I said, waiting for him to toss a few barbs or thinly veiled insults when he saw it.

He peeked inside the bathroom. “Jesus, this is fancy,” he exclaimed, his eyes as round as saucers as he looked around the space. “What the fuck is with that sink?”

“Crazy, isn’t it?” I grinned at his gobsmacked expression.

“How do you not make a mess every time you use it?”

“It drains quicker than it fills. It’s a bit of a mind fuck the first few times, but you get used to it.”

I waited as he scoped out the room for a few more beats, then pulled open the door to the room directly next to it. “Laundry,” I said unnecessarily.

His eyes widened again, but he didn’t say anything.

“That’s my room.” I pointed at my door. “Next to it is the closet. The den is here.”

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