Earning Edie (Espinoza Boys #1)

by D. J. Jamison

  “We’re not all naturally attractive and— Wait. What did you say?”

  Did she just apologize? Did a girl say she was sorry? I thought that was against all laws of nature.

  “I was rude ... and stupid. Of course, you need to come in here to get your clothes. And, I had a little fun at your expense this morning, and I’d have been super pissed if you did that to me. So, I’m sorry.”

  All the aggression drained out of me. “Wow, that’s a good apology.”

  She smiled. “I have lots of practice.”

  “Dare I ask?”

  She shook her head no, so I let it drop. I had to get back to work, so I grabbed my keys from the dresser and hesitated in the doorway.

  “I’ll see you after work?”

  She nodded. My rant seemed to have turned her quiet. I hoped I hadn’t killed her sassy spark in its tracks. When I wasn’t being all sensitive, it was kind of fun.

  “Thanks for the apology. And um ... sorry if I over-reacted.” I shook my head at the absurdity of it all. “Guess I deserve anything you can dish out anyway. Catch you later.”

  Without waiting for a response, I booked it out of there.

  Jesus Christ, I was such a baby. I had absolutely no right to call Edie out for judging me. I’d given her the worst first impression possible, and I’d only reinforced it by being a cocky asshole when she confronted me in the newsroom.

  And with that pleasant thought souring my mood, I headed out to my interview with an even more sour councilwoman. Well, at least I wouldn’t be the only cranky person in the room.

  EDIE

  I changed into shorts, now that I was done with work, and went to the kitchen to make a sandwich.

  Joy had sent me home because the place was so slow. I’d tried to convince her to give me more hours, but she didn’t have it in the budget, so I’d have to look for a second job soon.

  While I ate my PB&J, I couldn’t help replaying my argument with Nick. I was surprised he’d been so touchy about my attitude.

  Nick was gorgeous, and I’d assumed he was vain because of it. The blue of his eyes against his warm complexion was vibrant enough to make anyone look twice. His hair, even when unstyled, had curled into cute, messy waves.

  He certainly had the cocky smile down to an art form, and I’d expect a confident guy like that to shrug off any criticism I could make. But maybe I didn’t know him as well as I thought.

  My phone rang, interrupting me before I could overthink it.

  I answered it between bites. “Hey, Lil.”

  “Hey. How’s the living situation?”

  “Good. Okay. Sort of.”

  “What does that mean?”

  I swallowed another bite, and reached for a glass of milk. “We kind of had a fight already.”

  She snorted. “Go figure. What did he do?”

  “Um. ...”

  “No, wait. Let me guess,” she said in a sarcastic tone. “He either hit on you already ...” As if! “Or he brought home some skank and made you listen to their gross sex all night.”

  “Ugh, God, no,” I said with a shudder. “Neither.”

  “Really? Well, color me surprised. What did he do?”

  “Nothing. He didn’t … it was just, you know, nothing major. He really hasn’t done anything to deserve your hate.”

  She scoffed. “Oh, really? So using you for an article that got you kicked out and ruined your already strained relationship with your parents was a good thing?”

  “Oh yeah, there’s that.”

  “There’s that,” she repeated flatly.

  “Okay, so that’s why I’m here, so Nick can atone for his mistake and so next time he’ll think twice before manipulating someone like that.”

  I picked up my empty plate and glass and walked over to the sink. I turned on the tap as Lil continued to tear apart my arguments.

  “Well, yeah that’s the idea, but I’m not sure you being there is going to be much of a chore for him. What did you do? Clean his kitchen? He must be horrified.”

  She heard the running water and gasped. “Are you doing the dishes right now? Oh my God, I was only joking!”

  “Shut up! I’m just rinsing the plate I used. And if you want to know the truth, I was a bit of a bitch to Nick this morning and now I feel bad. So you should be happy, I guess.”

  She sighed. “Edie, I doubt you know how to be a bitch, but regardless … I know it was my idea, but I’m worried about you being there. Nick is … I mean, a guy like that. …”

  “I know,” I said quietly.

  “You like him, don’t you?” she asked in a resigned voice.

  “Not like that. That’s so not happening, Lil. I’m here for a place to stay. That’s it. And Nick may as well be my meal ticket, right?”

  “So, can I come over? Carlos is busy, and I’m bored. I want to snoop through Nick’s stuff and learn all his secrets so I can blackmail him after he breaks your heart into itty bitty pieces.”

  “Thanks,” I said dryly.

  I thought she was the pot calling the kettle black. No way was a relationship with Carlos going to end happily. But I gave in anyway.

  “How can I refuse an offer like that?”

  “Be there in 10.”

  ***

  As soon as Lil arrived, I regretted letting her come over. Making a beeline for the bedroom, she lost no time in digging through Nick’s belongings.

  “So is Nick a boxers or briefs guy?”

  “I don’t know.”

  I trailed her to the bedroom and hovered in the doorway while she squeezed past the foot of the bed to get to the dresser in the cramped room.

  She paused to look over her shoulder. “Haven’t seen him in his underwear yet? There’s a shocker. I thought all men liked to strip down the second they got home. Tell me you’ve at least seen him without his shirt?”

  My cheeks heated. I was so not telling her I saw Nick in nothing but a towel. Or that I’d seen him shirtless not once, but twice in the span of 24 hours.

  “I thought you were advising against crushing after Nick?”

  The drawer slid open.

  “Well, sure … but crushing and a little entertainment at his expense are two different things.” She closed the drawer and opened another. “Jackpot! Boxer briefs. I totally knew it.”

  She displayed his underwear over her shoulder, and I felt like a total creeper. I left the room, but not before noticing it was a dark blue that would go great with his eyes. My memory immediately called up the image of Nick’s smooth, toned skin fresh from the shower.

  Great, just the visual I needed.

  “This is immature,” I called from the living room as I dropped down onto one of the two gaming chairs.

  I couldn’t wait for the couch that was being delivered this afternoon. Nick had texted to ask if I could be here for the delivery. I said yes. I didn’t have much to do besides work on my resume and search for jobs and scholarship opportunities.

  Deciding to make use of my time, I grabbed one of the printouts I’d made off a website listing college scholarships and grants nationwide. It was a little overwhelming, and I didn’t hold out much hope, but I felt I should at least give it to ole’ college try, as it were.

  Lil gave up the underwear rifling and wandered around the room, reading the titles of his books and glancing through a stack of papers on his computer desk.

  “Ooh, I have an idea,” she said.

  I glanced over to see her snatch up a reporter’s notebook and flip through the pages. She was grinning.

  “Let’s hide this,” she said.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Really? That’s the best you got? He might not even need that anymore.”

  Not to mention, screwing with his job seemed over the line, even if his job had screwed with me. That job was paying my rent.

  She frowned, flipping through the pages a little more slowly, examining the content. I could only imagine she was searching for a date or reference that would tell her this wa
s for a future story and not one already published.

  Lil made a face. “Yeah. You’re right. These are the notes for the column he wrote about you.”

  “What? He took notes?” I shook my head. “I must have drank more than I thought, ’cause I could swear I never saw a notebook in his hand.”

  “Yeah, same here.”

  She paused reading a paragraph or two, then nodded.

  “You know, it kind of looks like he just wrote down some of his impressions along with your quotes. Maybe he wrote it down after we left? Before he forgot your conversation.

  I held out my hand. “Let me see it.”

  She ignored my request. “Listen to this: This girl wasn’t dressed up like the other girls at the party. She looked like she’d run a brush through her hair and run for the door. She didn’t wear any makeup and I could tell—”

  “Just stop. I don’t want to hear it.”

  The last thing I needed was to hear Nick’s rundown of my plain Jane appearance.

  “—this wasn’t her scene.”

  I stood up and yanked the notebook from Lil’s hands.

  “Hey!”

  I walked into the bedroom and shoved it in one of his bedroom drawers before returning to the living room.

  “I said enough.”

  She pouted. “I was just about to get to the good stuff.”

  “What? Like the part where he sold me out to my family and I ended up homeless?”

  I was angry at him all over again, but peeved at Lil for being so dense too.

  “Sorry, you’re right. I got sidetracked, but now I have the perfect retribution.”

  “Really?” I asked skeptically.

  “Yeah, it’s perfect. We’ll find another notebook and change his notes, so everything he writes is wrong. Then he’ll totally get fired!”

  Bad idea. Very bad idea.

  “Lil, no!” I gasped. “Do you really want this to happen to someone else? Besides, if I wanted him fired, I could have gone to his boss. I don’t want him to lose his job, I just want him to learn a lesson. And I want a place to stay. If we screw up his life, he’ll kick me out.”

  Lil looked skeptical. Sighing, she turned back to the desk.

  “Fine, I guess,” she muttered, going back to riffling papers.

  “Okay, wait, I’ve got it!”

  “What?”

  I wished she’d just drop this retribution plan of hers.

  “The perfect way to teach him a lesson. And if you say no to this—”

  “What is it?” I interrupted before she could start lecturing.

  She held up a credit card application. “Nick is about to pay you back. And before you start arguing, just think: No more hot, smelly bus. We can use it for gas, and I’ll give you rides to work in my car. What do you say?”

  What could I say? Everyone had their Kryptonite. Lily had just found mine.

  “Fine. But only gas. No wild trips to Vegas, you have to promise.”

  “Yes!” She threw a fist in the air in celebration before using a finger to draw a cross over her heart. “You have my word.”

  NICK

  That evening, I went home determined to make peace with Edie. If this girl was going to be living with me, we needed to find a way to get along.

  I felt silly for getting all bent out of shape with her. Her snarky comments had hit some sort of nerve, and I’d over-reacted.

  I stepped inside, a couple of pizza boxes under my arm as a peace offering. I’d paid enough attention to Edie’s rant at the news office to know she was saving money for college, so a free meal seemed like a good start.

  “Hey, honey, I’m home!” I called with a grin.

  The sleeper sofa had arrived. It was a deep burgundy color that looked great but also highlighted how not great everything else in the room looked. Despite the new comfy furniture, Edie was seated at the computer.

  She turned to me, a sour expression on her face. “Hilarious, but don’t you dare ask me to put dinner on the table.”

  I lifted the pizza boxes. “Actually, I thought I’d bring home dinner. That work for you?”

  She turned back to the screen, and tapped a couple of buttons. Then stood up hesitantly.

  “You don’t have to feed me.”

  “Good, that might get awkward,” I teased. “How about you get the plates, and you can feed yourself.”

  I slid the pizzas onto the kitchen bar separating the living area from the tiny cooking galley while Edie circled around to grabs plates and napkins.

  “Thanks,” she said, as we dished up a few slices each.

  For a thin thing, she had hungry eyes. We’d have to see if she could actually pack away as much food as she thought she could.

  We made our way to the couch, considering I didn’t have a table or even stools to sit on at the bar. Once seated, I slid my plate onto the arm of the couch and picked up a game controller.

  “What do you say? Loser has to do dishes?”

  Edie grinned at me. “You sure you want to make that bet?”

  Uh-oh. Did I have a hustler on my hands? I definitely had to find out.

  “I’ll take my chances.”

  CHAPTER 6

  NICK

  Over the next few days, we fell into a routine. In the mornings, I got up first and got ready. After that first day, Edie had never rolled out of bed before 9 a.m. In the evenings, I ordered in and we played video games until Edie retreated to do more research and I grabbed some clothes from the bedroom before she went to bed.

  She used the computer a lot. I’d looked at the browser history, so I knew most of her research related to a hunt for college scholarships or grant money. The girl didn’t hide her stress well, either. I could see it in the tension that sat in her shoulders, the sad look in her eyes. Her smiles were too weak and too rare.

  None of that was my fault, I told myself. Too bad I didn’t believe it. If I hadn’t messed up her family situation, would she have more help with her college expenses? I didn’t know, mainly because I was too much of a coward to ask. I just didn’t want that guilt on my conscience; suspecting it was true was still better than knowing for sure.

  Tonight wasn’t much different from so many others. I came home, and challenged Edie to another game. To make it interesting, we usually set bets. It was fifty-fifty on who would win. She tended to beat me in racing games — which hurt the part of my male ego that was certain men were better drivers — but I usually kicked her butt at fighter games.

  It was my turn to choose a game, so of course I picked a street fighter one that I’d be sure to win.

  “It’s on Edie-san,” I teased.

  “You’re sure of yourself.”

  “Always,” I said with a grin.

  I plopped onto the couch and pointed to the spot next to me. “Get your ass over here, and let’s see who has to clean the bathroom this weekend.”

  EDIE

  “I am so kicking your ass!” I followed my outburst with an upper right hook to his jaw.

  “Ouch. You’re breaking my heart, kid.”

  I laughed. “Your gaming skills are breaking my heart.”

  “You’ve been practicing on the sly,” he complained.

  Nick and I punched the buttons on our remote controls frantically, each trying to best the other. In retrospect, I shouldn’t have trash talked him quite so hard. He’d become even more determined to win.

  I squeaked as his character kicked mine in the chest, sending her flying across the screen. Her purple ponytail flew straight up as she somersaulted. But I wasn’t giving up yet. Once she was on her feet once more, I decided distraction was my best hope.

  “Can you believe how unreal those breasts are?” I commented. “In real life, a girl wouldn’t be able to walk with a rack like that.”

  Nick snorted beside me as I attempted a combination jab-kick-jab. “They fill out her crop top nicely, though. And they totally— HEY!”

  I cackled as she took his chauvinistic ass down a notch
. Nick’s character went down for the count. He tossed his remote on the floor in disgust.

  “That was a cheap shot.”

  “What?” I glanced over at him, feigning innocence, but couldn’t keep the grin off my face.

  “You used your feminine wiles on me—”

  “Not my feminine wiles,” I retorted.

  Nick was shaping up to be a poor sport. I smirked. “I guess animated feminine wiles work on real boys, huh?”

  “Ha,” he said dryly. “So, what now? Order a pizza?”

  I shrugged. “Sure …”

  I paused, looking at him. Nick was a good-looking guy. A really good-looking guy. He knew it; I knew it. So, I couldn’t figure out why he appeared to have no life.

  “Why don’t you go out?”

  He was preoccupied scanning the pizza coupons that cluttered the mail each week. “You mean for dinner?” he asked without looking up. “I guess we could …”

  “No, I don’t mean for dinner.” He glanced up at me, puzzled. “I mean in general. You never go out. Why? You’re not coming home and hanging out with me for my sake, are you?”

  “Uh.” He rubbed the back of his neck uneasily. “I don’t know the correct answer here.”

  “How about the truth?”

  “It feels like a trap.”

  “It’s not a trap.”

  He sucked his bottom lip in consideringly. Gradually, he lifted his eyes to mine. “Nah, you’re not the reason. If I’m smothering you, just tell me. I can take a hint and get lost some night.”

  “Of course not, it’s your apartment.” I rolled my eyes for good measure. “I’m just surprised you’re not more …” — He raised his eyebrows at my pause. —“active.”

  Nick chuckled. “You and Mama both.”

  Surely I heard that wrong. “Mama?”

  “My mother. She’s dying to see me in a serious relationship. You know, on the road to marriage and babies and all that.”

  Wow. Nothing like bringing our age difference home. Most of the time, Nick didn’t act much older than me. I was naturally mature, and he was naturally … less so. But now, hearing him talking about his mother’s hopes for grandbabies, my eyes bugged out.

  “What’s with that look?”