Page 24 of Dear Roomie
I don’t look back as I bolt for the hall.
Chapter 10
Morgan
The sound of a door opening down the hall interrupts the low murmuring coming from the TV. I jump at the unexpected noise and turn my head right as James bolts out of the darkness. Skimpy shorts barely cover her ass, and her hard nipples peek through a thin camisole, but that all fades away when I spot her black-rimmed, tear-stained eyes through the damp hair framing her face.
She looks wrecked.
Idon’t think she’s noticed me yet; her frantic eyes are locked on the front door while her chest heaves. I’m on my feet before I have a plan. All I know is I have to fix it.
“Hey, are you all right?” Slowing my steps, I approach with an outstretched arm. I want to touch her and offer her comfort in my arms, but if I do that, she’ll flee. Heck, she’s already eyeing my hand like it might bite her if she lowers her guard. I run it through my hair and let it drop to my side, halting in place as I do.
“What are you doing out here?” She wipes the moisture from her eyes, but her voice is still steady, biting even.
“Watching TV,” I tell her. “I like to come sit out here when I can’t sleep.”
“Oh.” Her eyes lock on the screen, which strobes in the darkness behind me. She moves toward it with ghostlike grace. It’s a stark contrast to how she fled down the hall like a bat out of hell. She observes the screen for a moment with a furrowed brow and then turns back to me with narrowed eyes. It’s the first bit of life I’ve seen on her face since she ran out here.
“What the fuck is thisLord of the Ringsshit?” The disdain in her words is emphasized by the clang of clashing swords.
This is the she-devil I’ve come to expect. After this morning, her venom doesn’t hold the same sting. She’s deflecting, trying to make me mad so I forget something was bothering her in the first place. It’s exactly what she did that day in the bathroom and at Cutter’s, but I won’t let her do it again.
“It’s calledMerlin,” I tell her and hit pause. I finished my watch-through ofThe Adventures of Sir Lancelotlast week and moved on to my second favorite show. “It’s a version of the King Arthur legends. This episode is almost over. We can put something else on after if you are planning on staying out here.”
“Are you inviting me to hang out and watch nerd shows with you?”
“Or other shows. I mean, it’s your apartment and your TV. Inviting you doesn’t seem necessary. I’ll be out here either way, but I’d like it if you’d stay.”
“Why on earth would you like that?” she asks, her voice ringing with genuine curiosity.
WhydoI want that?
Images of her breakdown this afternoon flash through my head, and that overwhelming need to take care of her floods through me again. That was a whole new James, a vulnerable one with no walls, and seeing that roused something in me. I want to see more of that. More pressing, I want to see what an unguarded James is like when she’s happy. I bet she’s breathtaking.
“I’d like the chance to get to know you. Maybe patch things up enough between us that we can live together peacefully. I don’t think we will ever become friends or anything, but I’d like to get to a place where I can pass you in the hallway without worrying that you are going to accuse me of something crazy or criticize my every action.”
“Is that why you’ve been avoiding me?”
“I haven’t been avoiding you. You told me to stay out of your way. I took it literally.”
“That’s the very definition of avoiding me,” she says with an exasperated huff.
“Would you rather have had it the other way? I didn’t get the impression you liked me very much.” I give her a pointed look, watching her fidget as she mulls over the question.
“Yes. No. Maybe. Fuck it, I don’t know. I don’tnotlike you. It’s just that Tanner isn’t happy with this whole situation, and it’s easier if I keep away.” She flops down on the far side of the couch and throws one arm over her face while looking up at the ceiling.
“Is that why you came out here so upset? Did you fight? I can talk to him if you want me to.” I don’t know what I would say to him. But the last thing I want is for James to be hurting. If my being here is putting strain on their relationship, I’ll need to sit down with Tanner and make sure he knows I’m not a threat to them.
“No. At least not this time.”
“But he upset you?” My hands clench by my side. I might need to set him straight regardless.
James pauses for a second, before letting out a deep sigh.
“Yeah, I guess he upset me. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. Just put your nerd show back on. Please.”
As much as I want to push her further, I bite my tongue. She will tell me if she wants me to know. If I push her too hard, she will be gone faster than I can blink. I resume the show and settle back on the couch, keeping my attention on James out of the corner of my eye.
