Page 11 of Dear Roomie
I hang up the phone.
I’m paralyzed for several seconds, with silence ringing in my ears. That wasn’t the Tanner I know. He’s never spoken to me like that before, and I’m sure as hell not about to let him start. If he wants to finish this conversation, then he can apologize and talk to me about it like an adult. Not whatever the fuck that was.
The music resumes, kicking my ass back into gear. I don’t have it in me to finish my run, so I turn toward home. Angry tears sting my eyes, and I fight to keep them from spilling over. Attempting to distract myself, I focus on the lyrics blasting in my ears, but even that fails once I make it back to the apartment. I let Grover off his leash and beeline toward the bathroom. The floodgates openas soon as I cross the threshold. I splash a handful of cold water on my face, and when I look up, I realize I’m not alone.
My gaze locks with my roommate’s wide-eyed reflection. He’s standing in the shower with the faucet running, frozen like a deer caught in headlights.
A verynakeddeer.
I could tell he worked out from his honed back muscles, but that didn’t prepare me for how cut he actually is. Morgan isn’t an exceptionally large man—his muscles are lean instead of bulky—but every inch of him seems to have been chiseled out of stone. I didn’t thinkthiswas what he was hiding under those stupid Oxford shirts.
My eyes move of their own volition, trailing over every perfectly sculpted line on his tanned torso. They drink in his defined abs, dropping lower to follow the carved V all the way to his pelvis and stop on what lies below.
Maybe heisa large man.
What the fuck, James?
My eyes snap back up to his, and a hot blush spreads over my neck and face. I just checked him out. I just checked him out andliked it.Maybe Tanner was right; we aren’t even two days into this arrangement, and things are spinning out of control.
My boyfriend is the only other person I’ve seen naked, and he stays in shape, but it’s nothing compared to Morgan’s physique. A wave of guilt crashes through me, turning my stomach to lead. But an undercurrent of curiosity comes with it. Part of me wants to look closer, to compare the two even further, but I keep my eyes glued to the reflection of Morgan’s.
He stumbles out of the tub, his lips moving with silent words. I yank the earbud from one ear and catch the last few words of his question.
“—you all right?” He places a gentle hand on my shoulder and looks at me with concern etched on his face. He doesn’t share that same concern for his state of undress.
“Morgan…naked…” I stammer and slam my eyes shut. That’s what I should have done the moment I saw him in here.
He jerks his hand away like it was burned by my touch. “Ope, yeah, no, sorry.”
The damp plodding of footsteps, followed by light rustling from his room, signals his exit, but I don’t hear the door close, so I keep my eyes sealed shut.
“Seriously, James,” Morgan says, sounding closer than before, “are you okay.”
The genuine care in his voice catches me off guard. I risk it and crack my lids open. Morgan is standing in the doorway, thankfully fully clothed in plaid pajama bottoms and a T-shirt. He’s looking at me with a furrowed brow, the worry clear on his face.
“Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” My voice carries the lie an octave higher than normal. “You weren’t what I was expecting to walk into, and I’m still reeling from that shock.”
“You were crying when you ran in here,” he challenges and folds his arms over his chest. “That doesn’t seem all right to me.”
Shit. I was hoping he hadn’t noticed that. I don’t want him to see me weak.
“I don’t think that’s any of your business.” I throw up my defensive walls, snapping at him with a bitter-cold edge. Anger is safe. It’s an uncomplicated emotion. One I cling to despite knowing it will do more harm in the long term.
Morgan takes a step back and raises his hands in mock surrender. “There’s no need for that, now. I was just checking on you, not trying to pry. Won’t happen again.”
“What the fuck were you doing in here, anyway?”
Morgan flinches at my hostile accusations, and I have to shove down my creeping guilt.
I thought we could be friends, but I was wrong. He doesn’t seem like a bad guy; he seems like someone I could grow to actually like, and that’s the problem. Tanner’s words run on repeat in my head, urging me to burn this bridge once and for all.
It’s better for everyone this way.
“I was about to shower.” It sounds more like a question than a statement.
“And you just happened to leave the door unlocked? Yeah, right,” I scoff. “You set this up, didn’t you? You wanted me to walk in on you.” I ignore the pain that flashes in his eyes as my baseless accusations hit their target.
“Jesus, James.” He runs a hand through his hair and lets out an exasperated sigh. “Why would you even think that?”
