Page 10 of Give Me Perfect Love

“Where did you grow up?”

“Oh, umm north of here,” I respond.

“Not a big talker, are you?”

I shrug my shoulders. “I guess not. No.” It’s not that I labeled myself “not a big talker,” I just haven’t had a whole lot of people to talk to. Besides my regular customers who came into the diner, but I never talked about my personal life with them. I mainly listened to theirs.

“I’m Claire.”

“Kat,” I say.

“Good to meet you.”

“Likewise,” I say as the doors slide open so we can step in. The ride up is filled with Claire talking about places to eat and things to do near here. I’m grateful for her input, because I don’t know a thing about this big city and I’m sure I’d get lost in a minute.

Brass doors open, revealing a carpeted hallway with art on the walls. “Right down here,” she says. We walk side by side before stopping. Claire unlocks it and says, “After you.”

I walk past her and take in the apartment that’s nicer than the first one I looked at. The walls are clean, the kitchen smallish, but you can see into the living room, which makes it look more open.

“It includes a gym, pool, and we have an entertainment room. You can throw parties there and such,” she says with a shrug. “There is no deposit. You just have to pay the first and last months’ rent. You can lease it for six months or a year. It’s up to you.”

I nod as my eyes scan the living room area. My heart does a backflip and lands with style. She smiles big, filling my chest with a sense of awe. I run my finger over the countertops and look into the fridge. The stove is new, and the microwave door is closed.

You couldn’t shut ours back at home. The monster tore it up so if closed it would keep running. I closed the door one time and received a gnarly slap in the face. I rub my cheek as I open the door and look inside.

“Do you go to school? There’s a big discount for college kids.”

I shut the door and turn to her. “No.”

“Oh, well, I can work something out for you.” She winks.

I lift my eyebrows and bite my lip, adjusting the purse strap on my shoulder. The floor is black and white tile, the appliances all stainless steel. There is a dishwasher, and my lips lift on their own because I’ve never had one.

I can feel Claire eyeing me as I move farther into the place, down the hallway. A bathroom is to the left and a bedroom to the right. I peek in, thinking I really have no need for two bedrooms. I go farther to the back, passing a closet before I step into the master bedroom.

Walking over to the window, I see the fire escape that I noticed outside. I slide the window up and place my foot on the other side. Humidity flattens my hair and glosses my face, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.

I look up at the vast sky. The stars might be visible from here, and with that single thought, I turn around to Claire and say, “I’ll take it.”

“Great!” she says. “Let’s go do the paperwork.” I follow her out, and we make our way back to the office. “Just have a seat right there.” She points to the empty chair in front of her desk and places her soda on top. She gathers a few forms after she is seated and slides them to me. “So, I just need your work information right here.”

Shit.

“Um, I don’t have a job right now, but I have the cash to pay the first and last months’ rent and to get me by for a few months.” I open my purse and pull out a wad of cash, tossing it onto her desk.

Her eyes grow big. “Damn girl, did you rob a bank?”

I look from her to the cash. “No. I worked for every bit of that.”

She doesn’t know me. She has no idea where I came from and how hard I fought to get here. Every bruise, every god-awful encounter with that man… My eyes stare at the green paper before me. I stomached it all to ensure I’d have enough cash to get me here.

She looks at me and bites the inside of her cheek. “How old are you?” she asks.

I narrow my eyes and tilt my head, wondering the same about her. She can’t be any older than me and look at what all she has. A nice job working in this place. She’s gorgeous and seems to have all her ducks in a row at such a young age.

My insides are obscured with lacerations and my skin has scars to prove it.

I didn’t come from rainbows and sunshine.

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