by Jami Wagner
Which is exactly why I made up a reason to go over there. The fresh-baked cookie smell just made me do it sooner.
I jump in the shower and am dried, dressed, and ready in under five minutes. I’m about to call Heather to see if I can get a few minutes of talk time in with Jake when I smell something burning. I glance around my apartment, trying to remember if I shut everything off in the kitchen. The smells gets stronger, urging me to get up and find the problem. As I get closer to the door, it occurs to me that the smell might not be coming from my apartment. Yep, the odor is definitely stronger in the apartment hallway. Opening the door to Alex’s apartment without knocking was an afterthought before, but it’s completely intentional now. Smoke is coming from her oven. I grab the mitt and open the door, waving the smoke away.
“Alex?” I holler out.
Silence.
“Alex?” I call out again, stepping closer in the direction of her bedroom.
“I’m back here!” she yells back. “I think I broke something.”
Letting the oven slam closed, I drop the cookie sheet on the counter and run to her bedroom. Is she okay?
I don’t see her, but I hear a grunt from the bathroom. The door is ajar and I push on it gently.
“Hey? Can I come in?”
“Yeah, I don’t know what happened.”
The door opens fully and I find Alex standing before me in nothing but a towel and head covered in suds. She starts to bend over toward the bathtub, but remembers I’m behind her and jumps back to cover herself. It takes a lot of self-control to not think about the fact that her towel is so small it barely covers her ass cheeks.
“I smelled the cookies and went to get out of the shower and slipped. I grabbed the showerhead but ended up breaking it off the wall, and now when the water is on, it just shoots out all over the place.”
“It broke?” Showerheads don’t just break off the wall.
“Yep. Mid-shower.” She points to her hair and shrugs like she doesn’t believe it herself.
“Let me get a look at it while you go across the hall and finish up in my shower.”
She nods, sneaking by me. I glance over my shoulder and she looks back. When I shoot her another wink, she blushes and walks away. The moment she’s out of sight I rest my hand flat against the wall and release a long, deep breath. She doesn’t need to know I freaked out for a second, thinking she was hurt. I never thought my heart could pound so hard with worry for anyone other than Jake. I lean forward and drop my head. And she sure as hell doesn’t need to know that my body responded immediately, confirming how much I want her, the moment I saw her in that tiny towel.
When I’ve got myself together again, sure enough, part of the showerhead is still in the wall and another piece is in the bathtub. On closer inspection, there must be a leak that softened the drywall, probably what made it easy to budge. This building isn’t in the best shape, but this definitely needs to be fixed, and someone should have spotted it before they leased the space out again.
I turn the water on, and just as she said, water sprays everywhere, soaking me in the process. Shutting it off, I dry up the mess I made and head back to my apartment to change and send our landlord, Jace, a quick text. I turn the oven off on my way. Baking is not her thing.
The shower is still running as I step into my bedroom to grab a dry shirt. A vision of Alex dropping the towel I just saw her in and letting water glide over her body comes to mind. I freeze. She’s naked in my apartment. She’s always responded to my flirting—does that mean that if I walked in there, she’d enjoy it as much as I would? Shit, I haven’t even kissed the girl, or even planned to kiss her until this very moment, and I’m already jumping to sex in the shower.
I groan so loudly that, if the water weren’t running, I’m sure Alex would hear it as I put on a new shirt. I head back out to the living room, receiving a text that says our landlord will be by tonight to look at it. Alex now has something more important to take care of than going to dinner, so I pull out a box of macaroni. Nothing gourmet but still satisfying. The shower shuts off and the door opens a few minutes later, but Alex doesn’t come out. After a couple more minutes, I wander down the hall to see what’s taking so long.
I find her standing next to my bed, holding up a picture of me, my sister, Sara, and Logan. As much as I love the idea of Alex in a t-shirt and pajama shorts, I clear my throat. She jumps.
“I’m sorry, I thought you were still next door.” She blushes.
“Nope, sadly I can’t fix your plumbing issue. Jace will be by tonight. If he can’t get it fixed, you can use mine till he does. So I made a plan B for dinner.”
“No date?” She frowns.
“We can still have dinner and a movie, just not out. You know, in case Jace needs something.”
Alex nods and holds up the photo.
“So how did you become friends with everyone here? School? Or just work?” she asks.
“Yeah, I’m the youngest of the bunch. But it doesn’t feel that way. My sister became friends with Sara when they were in grade school, then Sara met Logan. We soon became a group.”
“What about your brother-in-law? How did he and your sister get together?”
“Oh, that’s a whole other story that you can ask them to tell you someday.” I smile—they were on and off more times than a light switch before they finally made it work.
“Alright, well, I guess I’ll go finish getting ready, sort of, and be back. I assume you’re cooking.”
“I sure am.”
I walk her to the door and then I cook dinner. The entire night feels like I’ve done it a million times before. We talk, we laugh, and the next thing I know, it’s morning and I’m waking up on the couch with Alex in my arms and a phone that won’t stop vibrating against the coffee table. Doing my best to not wake Alex, I pick up my phone and see I’ve missed three text messages from
. Each text is ten minutes apart from the last.
Heather: Meet us for breakfast?
Heather: Hello?
Heather: If you don’t want to even try this, I need to know so I can stop wasting my time.
“Everything okay?” Alex asks, catching me off guard. I didn’t know she was awake. “You look upset?”
I peel my body away from hers, already regretting it.
“Everything is great. I just forgot about something, is all.”
“Okay, well, if you need me to do anything, I’m going to owe you for the next week of showers since Jace said he has to order a part. Let me know.”
She winks at me and heads back to her apartment. I stand there smiling like an idiot, thinking of how many more times she going to be naked in my apartment. Then my phone beeps with another text from Heather. Shit, what am I getting myself into?
Chapter Seven
Conner
It’s been a week since I woke up with Alex, and because her shower still isn’t fixed, I’ve had the pleasure of two more nights and mornings just the same. She comes over in the evenings to shower and somehow we end up watching a movie, hardly ever talking, which is both nice and completely odd at the same time, until we eventually fall asleep. Her company is wonderful and everything is great, except one thing: I want to kiss her and I’ve yet to make that happen. Scratch that, two things: I also haven’t decided to stop being a pansy long enough to tell Heather I can’t give her what she wants from me.
Until I figure out what I’m going to say to Heather, keeping things uncomplicated between Alex and me is best. Her first impression of me was that I was trying to cheat on Heather, which isn’t the case, but I don’t know if I would be able to explain it well enough for Alex to understand that.
Shit, I’m about a touch away from just going for it with Alex and taking my chances.
I pull up at Sara and Logan’s house, parking my truck on the curb. As usual, Jake has his seat belt off and he’s climbing over the backseat to get out on the sidewalk. I walk around to meet him and close the door as he runs to the fron
t yard to play with Clara. Kelsey, Sara, and Beth are gathered in a circle near the front door, each one occasionally stealing at glance to watch over Clara and now Jake.
I grab the potato salad I agreed to bring and walk up to the garage door where Logan, and Ethan are standing.
“What do you think that’s about?” I ask both Logan and Ethan, nodding toward the girls.
Logan looks away from the code box on the side of the garage for a brief moment. He shrugs and then goes back to punching in numbers.
“Probably another hormonal thing.” Ethan laughs. “You’re lucky you aren’t living with someone who is pregnant anymore.”
“Kelsey wasn’t so bad to live with,” I say. Logan groans and hits a few more numbers. “Do you not remember the code?”
Logan shoots me a look that says, “Don’t ask.”
“Yeah, you’re also the brother, not the husband and father,” Ethan says, his eyebrow cocked as he glances between me and Logan.
Logan chuckles and I just shake my head. I’m going to take his word for it.
“Where’s Lucas?” I ask. “Isn’t he coming?”
I’ve always hung out with him, but it wasn’t until a few months ago he started making plans with Ethan and Logan outside the bar, too. And since he’s the only one I’ve really talked to about Alex, I thought I’d get his opinion, even if I do sound like a girl.
“Someone has to open the bar.” Logan laughs.
Like magic, the garage door creaks right before it begins to open. Logan punches his hand in the air with a “whoop” as Sara starts clapping behind us.
“Finally,” she says. “Now what’s the code before you forget again, telling me I can’t use the house key, and we have to go through this another time?”
“I’ll tell you later when there aren’t so many people around.”
Everyone falls silent and we all glare at Logan. For fun, of course.
“Yes, because I can’t wait to break into your house. The one that is directly behind my own, where climbing the fence into your backyard would be a lot easier,” Kelsey says with humor.
“Babe, climbing fences is not your thing,” Ethan says with a chuckle.
Sara then punches Logan on the arm and he fakes an injury before giving in.
“Okay, don’t laugh, but it’s 0606.”
Everyone laughs.
“Wow, I’ve never been so impressed with my husband,” Sara comments as she passes him into the garage on her way to the backyard. Everyone else quickly follows.
“So tell me about this new neighbor of yours. Lucas and Ethan both say I need to meet her ASAP,” Logan says, walking directly to the barbeque, opening the lid and holding the ignition switch until a flame appears.
“How did you get that in here if you couldn’t remember the code?”
Again, Logan shoots me a look.
“He brought it the day the inspectors were here,” Sara answers as she takes a seat at the patio table. I’m going to assume they also brought that when the inspectors were here. “Once the contractor was done and all we had left was the inspection, they told us we could move some stuff. We just can’t sleep here until the house has been approved.”
If I ever build a house, I’ll keep that in mind.
“So back to this girl,” Logan brings Alex up once again.
I can’t help but smile. It’s dead giveaway that I’m into her.
“I invited her today, but she said she had plans.”
“I was just at the gym. She wasn’t there,” Beth says, sitting next to Sara.
“She didn’t say what time she had to work,” I reply.
“Then what is she doing? She doesn’t know very many people in this town. In fact, I’m pretty sure everyone she knows is sitting right here.”
“I don’t know.”
“You should ask these things,” Beth says and then starts to text away on her phone like she always does.
“Anyway,” Logan says with annoyance. He has this thing about cell phones making people unsocial. “Is she hot? I hear Ethan almost caught you two kissing. I got to say man, it’s nice to hear you’re into someone again. I didn’t want to admit it for fear that was what you wanted, but I don’t think Heather is the right woman for you.”
“Yeah, me neither. I still haven’t figured out how to tell her either. And yes, of course Alex is hot. But the best part about her is her—”
“You know what, let’s not talk about Alex. I remember how defensive you got over her when we went boating the other week,” my sister interrupts.
“Yeah, because you were asking her personal questions. Shit, I’m into the girl and I haven’t even asked her things like that.”
“One, maybe you should. Two, watch your language around the kids. And three, can I have a word with you in private?”
My sister gives me that same glare she used in high school when I would do something to embarrass her and her friends. The “I mean business if you don’t do what I say” look. Clara better watch out. Kelsey has only perfected the look over the years.
I follow Kelsey into the house and into one of the bedrooms. She closes the door and immediately starts in on me.
“What do you know about this girl?”
“Who, Alex?”
“Yes, Alex.” She rolls her eyes at me.
“I know enough. Why, what’s the big deal?” I never did get a chance to talk to Ethan about his behavior the other day. Asking my sister is basically the same thing. “And explain to me why Ethan was being so weird on the boat.”
“Is Alex her full name?”
“I think so, why?”
“What’s her last name?”
“I don’t know.”
“Seriously, you haven’t asked her what her last name is?”
“Well the subject has never come up.”
“Not even when you introduced yourselves? It’s a basic question, Conner. Usually it gets answered on the first date.”
“Kelsey, just get to the point,” I say, annoyed that she makes a valid argument. How do I not know her last name? Whatever is going on with my sister and this mini interrogation she has going on, needs to find an end, quick. The fact that she is questioning Alex pisses me off. Alex doesn’t deserve to have people questioning her behind her back when they don’t even know her.
“Ethan thinks Alex is Logan’s sister, and I think he might be right.”
I laugh, but when I catch the blank stare she’s still giving me, I refuse to let her continue with her silly accusation.
“Wow, you two have really lost your minds.” My voice is deep and firm. “I’m not even going to ask what or how you think this, because it is so freaking crazy. Don’t you think she would have told him or someone by now?”
“Some people hide this sort of thing.”
“You know, I’m happy Alex had plans. I wouldn’t want to put her with a houseful of people who think she’s hiding something. She’s a normal woman trying to do something different with her life. It’s possible some people can start over without keeping secrets.”
I head for the door.
“Conner, I’m not saying she’s a bad person. I’m just saying maybe you can talk to her about it. If it’s true, maybe she needs someone to help her.”
“And make it sound like I’m accusing her of something the way you are? I don’t think so.”
I say goodbye to the rest of the party and head home, thankful that Jake is having a sleepover with Clara. His dad wouldn’t be much fun tonight.
On my drive I receive a text from Logan that reads “If you like this girl, don’t let your sister’s opinion or anyone else’s get in the way. If you really like her the way you say you do, this feeling only comes once in your life. Don’t let it go.”
Such a sappy line from a guy, but he’s right. It’s time I did something about my feelings for Alex. Now, all I need is for the right moment to make that happen.
* * *
I can’t remember the last time I had a Sa
turday night off. A month ago, maybe. It feels like a lot longer than that. A year ago I would have quit my job the first weekend they tried to schedule me. I would be drinking, barely able to stand by midnight, and the girl I’d be planning to take home would be a smidgen more sober than I was. I thought those were the best nights of my life. But tonight, none of that sounds even close to what I want to do. I can’t imagine a better evening than one in my quiet apartment. I’ll probably do some junk food binging and hang out in a pair of boxers not giving a damn with a beer or two. It’ll be stress-free. The perfect way to calm down after that talk with my sister. I don’t know what’s going on, but she is slowly losing her mind. Alex and Logan, brother and sister. Yeah, there’s no way that could be possible.
I switch on the TV then, in nothing but a pair of navy gym shorts, flop down onto the couch and pull out my cell phone to order a pepperoni pizza and one of those chocolate lava dessert things. They’re the shit. After I make my order, I lean back into the black leather couch, relaxing at the coolness that touches my skin.
I bet the mailbox has her last name on it. I would need a key to open it to physically look at her mail, so I can’t use that route, but maybe she leaves it lying around the apartment. I need to be more observant when I’m at her place next time. Or I could just do what makes the most sense and straight up ask her. Whatever, I need to decide quick because if Kelsey pulls that crap again, I want to be ready.
I’m crossing my feet on the ottoman in front of me when I hear my front door open and close.
Crud. I thought she was working tonight.
The stress-free aspect of the night partially applied to her. Yeah, I want to kiss her and do anything else she lets me, but I haven’t fully decided whether or not that’s the right move right now. No matter how badly I want her.