Accidental Roommate Read online

  “I know, right? It was definitely one of my favorite things about the place when I made the decision to take it.” She looked off across the city and breathed a deep sigh.

  “So, did you just recently move in?” I asked.

  “Yes, I just moved in, in fact.”

  “Well, when I saw you at the gym, I thought you might live in the neighborhood. You do go to Flex, the gym I work at, right?”

  “I do. I thought I recognized you,” She looked down for a moment, trying to hide the lie, but I knew she’d recognized me the minute she opened the door. “No, my office is near there. I’m an attorney.” That point seemed to spark some pride. She looked back up at me. “So, that’s what you do? You work at the gym?”

  She didn’t use the word just, as in, you just work at the gym, but I felt it even though it wasn’t spoken.

  “I work at a night club as well, as a bouncer. I also,” I had perfected the art of saying the next phrase with a mixture of bragging and humility that usually got me into women’s pants. I suspected that Lavender Girl, though, wasn’t most women. “I also do a bit of modeling.”

  She scanned my face, and I waited for it. Next would come the look of, “No, that can’t be you,” and finally would come the look of resignation, and hopefully appreciation, that, yes, I was that guy from their favorite fashion or underwear ad. As of that week, my face and torso were literally larger than life, standing forty-seven feet high and twenty-two feet wide in Times Square.

  “I thought you looked a little familiar,” she said, finally.

  Showing me around, she was enthusiastic about the place. I couldn’t help but think this place represented more than just a place to live as far as she was concerned. For me, it couldn’t have been more perfect. Plenty of room, a little peace and quiet, and a gorgeous roommate. It was the perfect place for me while I plotted my next move, whatever that was. I had to have it.

  “Anyway,” she said when we got back to the living room, “you do understand. I’d just be more comfortable rooming with a woman. Your references were impeccable, and your background check was the best out of anyone I’ve talked to.” She grinned up at me.

  Damn she was stunning! What was that scent she was wearing? Musk and vanilla, maybe? I could get drunk just breathing in the air around her.

  “…but I’m sure you’ll find something,” she said.

  Shit! I was sure I had missed part of what she had said.

  “When do you have to be out of your current place?” She was walking toward the door.

  “Oh, well,” I said as I ran my fingers through my hair, wondering if I should tell the truth. Something told me this was not a woman you lied to, though. “This morning, actually. All my stuff is in my Escape downstairs. My buddy is getting married tomorrow. I’m throwing him his bachelor party tonight, actually. When he goes home, it’ll be just him and his fiancée.”

  I shrugged, and as I scanned her face, I thought I saw a little sympathy there. I hung my head and looked up at her from under my brows.

  “So, yeah,” I continued, “it didn’t seem right to let them start their new married life with me hanging around. That’s why I was really hopeful that you’d be the one.”

  “I’m—I’m sorry?” she asked, raising her eyebrows.

  “You’d be the one – the roommate I’d been looking for.” I took a step toward the door, but she’s stopped in the entryway. “Hey, by the way, I never did get your name.”

  Please Lavender Girl, just cave. Give me the place, I thought, willing her to change her mind.

  She had her right hand in the front pocket of her jeans. Her left hand crept up to the tips of her hair, and she began twirling one curled tendril with her fingertips, those little red tips of her fingers poking through the dark strands. Damn, she was sexy.

  “I’m Grayce,” she said. “Grayce Gladden.” She stuck her right hand out, and I felt something solid and metallic in my palm. “First and last month’s rent, plus utilities. No parties unless we talk about it first. If you fail to pay the rent, I will start eviction proceedings. I am a lawyer, after all. Will that be a problem?”

  I opened my palm. She’d given me the apartment key. I met her eyes and she looked serious, but those incredible blue eyes were shining brightly. My saving Grayce, I thought.

  “No, it won’t be a problem at all,” I said. “Thank you so much. I’m sure we’re going to get along great.” I gave her shoulder a pat and winked at her.

  We stepped into the kitchen, and she pulled a document out of her briefcase, which was on the floor by the island. She stood at the island, going over the sublet agreement with a pen, pointing out different parts.

  “Sorry, small print,” I said, stepping around to stand behind her and look over her shoulder.

  She must’ve been about five-foot four or five. She had flipped her hair back behind her shoulder, and it cascaded down to just between her shoulder blades, exposing her neck on the side closest to me. It took all of my resolve to not lean down and kiss her in that place, under her ear, where the line of her jaw curved around into her neck. From my angle, I could just see a tiny slice of skin breaking the line of that red blouse. Her breasts weren’t huge, but their curve was a nice balance to the curve of her amazing ass.

  “Any questions?” she asked.

  “No, I’m good,” I replied, staring down into her intense blue eyes.

  She handed the pen to me. I bent down, grasping it, and signed.

  “Oh, wait, there is one thing,” I said. “There’s nothing in here about the shirt,” I smirked.

  “Shirt? What shirt?” she asked.

  “The one you owe me. You did spill coffee all over me, after all, and ruined one of my best workout shirts.” I smirked, raising my eyebrow at her.

  “I? I spilled coffee all over you?” She seemed a little put out, but at the same time, I thought she was putting on a little. “You were the one who spilled coffee all over me! I was a mess, and I had a client meeting right after as well. If anything, it’s you who owes me a shirt.”

  She turned to face me, crossing her arms, and looked up at me smugly. That was definitely a lawyer’s expression, and the look of one who thought she had just won her case, at that.

  “You were the one who was on her phone,” I replied. “Isn’t texting and walking a serious offense in this state?”

  She rolled her eyes and shook her head, clearly annoyed, but smirking a little. It was fucking adorable.

  “Okay, okay, I concede, counselor. I tell you what, when you need another shirt, I’ll happily give you the one right off my back. Deal?” She laughed nervously at that.

  She had a good sense of humor. Yeah, this was going to work out just fine.

  “Shouldn’t you be getting your stuff from your truck? Don’t you have a bachelor party or something to get to?” She turned away, signing the agreement herself. “I’ll get you a copy, by the way,” she said, tucking it into her briefcase.

  I spent the next hour unloading what few belongings I had and putting them in my new room. I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. For the first time in a few weeks, I felt like things were starting to look up.

  Chapter 9

  Grayce

  What had I done? I sat in the living room while my new roommate moved his stuff in. He had only brought in a few boxes, which surprised me. Who has so few things? Then I remembered how little I had left the house with when Carter and I had split.

  Having a male roommate was certainly going to be a new dynamic. If it had been a woman moving in, I would’ve offered to help her bring in her boxes, ordered some take-out, and we would have been sitting on the sofa now, getting to know each other. With a man, though, what would our roommate relationship even look like?

  Sure, I’d had plenty of male friends in college. Those relationships grew organically, though. We’d compare notes on a class, or they might be dating one of my friends, and hanging out felt natural. This, however, felt anything bu
t natural.

  “So, I think I’m all set.”

  The deep voice startled me, and I looked up from where I sat cross-legged on the sofa.

  He was smiling, and his white teeth were made even more brilliant in contrast to his tanned skin. He ran his hand through his hair and it fell to the side, looking messy and perfect at the same time. The button-down shirt and fitted khakis he was wearing emphasized his broad shoulders and narrow waist. My breath quickened just drinking in the sight of him.

  “Oh, okay, great.” I replied.

  “Look, I’d love to hang out and chat, but I’ve gotta get to my buddy’s party.” He pushed his sleeve up a bit farther and looked down at a chronograph watch on his wrist. The big dial made his already muscular forearm look even more masculine. “So, I’m going to hop in the shower and get ready.”

  I nodded, and he turned to walk back to his room. I enjoyed the view of his muscular ass as I watched him walk away.

  I. Was. Fucked. What had I been thinking? I rented, not only to a man, but to a man that I’ve been drooling over and dreaming about for days? Was this the level of desperation to which I had sunk?

  My phone buzzed. Carter. Perfect timing, as usual. I hit the green button. “Yes?”

  “Good afternoon to you too, Grayce,” Carter said in his typical smug tone.

  “Well, you don’t exactly make social calls, so what do you want?”

  “I need you to…,” I cut him off.

  “I know, take the money, sign the papers. I’m not letting you off that easily, as much as I want you out of my life.”

  “I’m serious!” he barked.

  Ooh, scary! I thought. What was he going to do to me now? He had cheated on me, put me out of our home, and whether he knew it or not, he’d cost me a client. There was little damage that Carter Gladden could inflict that he hadn’t already done to me, in one form or another, already.

  “You will not talk to me like I’m your employee. Believe me, I have no desire to prolong this, either,” I replied sternly.

  “Look, we are not getting back together. I don’t know why you’re—”

  Just then, Tyler walked into the living room. “Hey, I’m going to head out.” His deep voice washed over me like a thick wave. “I’ll see you later?”

  “Yeah,” I said, smiling.

  Tyler put his palm up, giving a single wave before turning and walking out the door.

  “Who the fuck was that?” Carter asked.

  Shit! I had forgotten for a moment that Carter was still on the phone.

  “It’s really none of your business who that was,” I said.

  “Are you still at Ella’s?”

  I couldn’t quite make out if this was fact-finding, or just his attempt at a dig. “As a matter of fact, I’m not. I’m in a beautiful new place in Astoria. Right by the river.” Suck on that, asshole.

  “Hmm, I’m surprised you can afford that, Grayce. I hear you’ve been losing clients.”

  How could he have known that? “Don’t worry about me, Carter. I can take care of myself without you just fine. Just like all those nights while we were together when I had to take care of myself.”

  The double-beep and dial tone let me know he had hung up. I smirked with satisfaction.

  With my new roomie out for the evening, I went and ran a few errands. I picked up some groceries and a nice bottle of wine, deciding to have a relaxing dinner. Solo. I had imagined, when I first looked at the new place, all the solitude I would have. A roommate had not been part of the plan then. Still, with three jobs, I suspected my new roommate would afford me a little more enjoyment of time alone than I might have expected.

  I did some yoga before dinner. I had a nice green salad and a glass of wine, then another glass. I decided to take the wine party to the Jacuzzi tub in my room. I undressed and pinned my long hair into a loose bun on top of my head.

  As the tub filled with warm water, I surveyed my naked form in the mirror. The work I had put in on my glutes was definitely paying off, I observed as I looked at the curve of the muscle that ran down to the back of my thigh. My flat stomach was one of my best body features, I thought. My breasts weren’t as big as Ella’s—not by a long shot—but there was certainly enough there to fill out my own blouses.

  Kay didn’t have my curves. She was petite, rail thin, with hardly any curves at all. Was that what Carter had wanted? In my head, I knew he was just an asshole, but there was still a tiny part of me that wondered why I hadn’t been enough for him.

  I sank down into the warm water of the bath and took a sip of my wine. I flipped on the jets, and the warm pulsations kneaded my muscles, releasing all the stress of the day. I tried to stop the image of my handsome roommate from filling my mind, but it was futile.

  I remembered him standing behind me in the kitchen as we went over the sublet agreement. His body had been so close to mine I could feel the heat radiating off of him. When he bent forward to read the contract, his breath glanced across my skin. As he spoke, the vibrations of his voice sank deep into my body.

  I imagined that moment differently. His lips on my skin, our tongues intertwined, his hands kneading my flesh. I slid my hand down into the water and circled my clit with my fingers. I closed my eyes, imagining his hands there – his lips there. It didn’t take long for the muscles in my body to tense. My legs grew suddenly stiff with the climax, and I sloshed water out onto the floor.

  I dried off and put on a nightgown, then headed to bed. Knowing I wouldn’t have to worry quite so much about making the rent on my new place was a load off of my mind. Relaxed from the wine, the bath, and the release, it didn’t take long for me to doze off.

  The bang woke me, bolt upright, out of sleep. I went to grab my phone to check the time, but I must’ve left it in the living room. Trying shake the sleep from my head, I sat up. I listened intently to see if more sounds would follow, wondering if what I had heard had even been real.

  The next thing I heard sounded like the scraping of furniture against the floor. Shit! I looked quickly around my room, trying to find something I could use as a weapon. My eyes landed on the small, pink kettlebell that was sitting next to my sneakers.

  My breathing was shallow as I tiptoed out of my room, the heft of the eight-pound weight in my right hand. As I turned the corner to see if I could peek into the living room, I ran smack into a firm chest and rippled abs. I shrieked and dropped the kettlebell.

  “Whoa,” Tyler said, putting his hands up as if I were holding a gun on him. “Sorry I woke you. I was trying to be quiet, but I don’t know my way around the place yet, and I walked into a chair.”

  My shoulders moved up and down as my chest heaved with panic from thinking I had an intruder in the house. Tyler put his hands on my shoulders. The touch of his hands on my bare skin sent a shockwave that went from his fingertips to the ache between my thighs. I had put on a racerback tank nightgown, but I had nothing on underneath it. Suddenly embarrassed at my half-dressed state, I crossed my arms.

  “You okay, Grayce?” As he spoke, his deep, husky voice vibrated so that I could feel it in my very bones.

  “Yes, I’m fine.” I replied, trying to get myself together.

  Tyler leaned forward as if he were about to kneel, and started to move his left hand forward. What the hell is he doing? I shifted on my feet and clamped my thighs together, trying to stem the growing wetness between them.

  The crisp, striped shirt he was wearing seemed to strain across his broad shoulders as he moved. Most guys would come home from a bachelor party, and presumably a strip club, smelling like smoke and liquor. Tyler smelled earthy, like wood and leather. He lightly grazed the side of my calf with his arm as he picked up the kettlebell I had dropped.

  “Here you go, killer,” he said with a smirk. “It looks like it left a bit of a mark where you dropped it, but I can take care of that for you.” His smile beamed as he looked me up and down, making me feel exposed and incredibly turned on at the same time.

&
nbsp; “I thought you were an intruder,” I said, my fingers grazing his as I took the weight from his hand. “It’s the middle of the night, after all.”

  “It’s actually early morning,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck with his palm. “Again, sorry. My friend’s bachelor party went pretty long.” He put his hand on the outside of my arm, “I hope you can get back to sleep. Assuming you were sleeping, that is.” He winked, and I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. “Goodnight, Grayce.”

  I went back to my room, put the weight down by my sneakers, and climbed back into bed. I was wide awake, every nerve ending pulsing. I could hear a faint noise in Tyler’s room, and realized it was the shower. Insanely hot model, naked. In the shower. In my apartment. Holy shit, I was in trouble.

  I tried to go back to sleep, but it was no use. I was too keyed up. I slid my hand inside my nightgown and idly circled my taught nipple with my fingertips. Had he seen my body react to him? I wondered. Was he touching himself in the shower at that very moment?

  My hand slid down to the slick spot between my thighs. It had been almost seven months since I’d last had sex. Carter and I hadn’t done it in several weeks by the time we split, and I’d been on Ella’s couch every night for the past six months.

  My earlier release in the tub had been serviceable. This time, though, with Tyler’s scent still wafting in my nostrils, his image still fresh in my mind, I climaxed quickly and intensely.

  * * * * *

  I had been half-awake the following morning when I heard the front door open and shut. Knowing my roommate was already out for the day, I slid out of bed and went to make some coffee. I flipped on the radio and then put the coffee on. I was stretching, trying to wake up while I made my first cup of caffeine for the day.

  I had my arms stretched high over my head, fingers laced, looking skyward when I heard husky voice say, “Well, good morning indeed!”

  Startled, I looked over and saw Tyler standing in the doorway of the kitchen in running shorts and sneakers, but no shirt. His firm chest glistened with sweat, his hair slightly matted to the sides of his forehead.