Me:May I come down and go over things with you about your case and what I found out today? Or I can come get you and you can come back up here.
Not even a second later she texts back.
Carissa:Sure, come down. You can meet my roommate. Plus I think it’s best if we aren’t alone together right away or we’ll get nothing done.
I chuckle. She’s not wrong. If I could, I would love a day where we did nothing but have sex and occasionally stop for food. It’s good to know she’s not turned off by the idea of being with me now. I didn’t get that feeling from this morning, when she pulled me into that heated kiss, but it’s been several hours, she could’ve changed her mind in that time. We still need to talk about how we feel about her dad being my best friend, but I hope she won’t mind moving forward with a relationship because that’s what I want.
The thought of her being with someone else after me turns my stomach still.
Me:I’ll be down in five. What’s your apt number?
Carissa:510
I check myself in the mirror to make sure I still look good and spritz on some cologne. I make my way downstairs and to her apartment.
I knock twice and a second later the door opens. A blond man greets me, and I frown. Did I get the wrong place?
He smiles. “You must be here for Carissa. I was just on my way out.”
My insides turn territorial. What the hell? Who is this guy and why does he talk about her so casually?
“I’ll see you later, babe. Text me when you get to work.”
My gaze turns to a petite blonde woman. She stands on her toes to kiss the man, and I instantly relax. He must be her roommate’s boyfriend. I don’t have to worry. I feel foolish for turning into a caveman so fast, but I don’t want anyone else getting to touch her after she’s become mine.
He gives me a nod before passing around me. She holds open the door in his stead. “You must be Knox. Carissa is freshening up in the bathroom. I’m her roommate Mary. It’s nice to meet you. Come in.” She motions for me to enter and I do so.
“It’s nice to meet you, too, Mary. Carissa has spoken highly of you.”
I’m surprised to find that the entrance starts at the kitchen, which is much smaller than mine. She’s right. My living room alone is the size of her place. Plus I have three other rooms besides mine. I didn’t need a place as big as the one I have now, but I wanted it for the view.
Now that I’m considering a life with her, it might become more sensible with having multiple rooms. It might be a while before she wants kids, but I’m willing to wait for as long as she wants. And if she doesn’t want them later on, that’s fine, too. I would just be happy to be just being with her.
Chapter Thirteen
Carissa
I let outa breath before exiting the bathroom. I’m excited to see him, but I feel weird about it. I don’t know if this feeling will go away. My attraction to him is still strong and I want him, but I’ll have to put aside the fact that he used to be my dad’s best friend.
He’s helping Mary set up our fold-out dining table as I come down the hall. We only bring it out if we eat together, as it takes up the rest of the open place in the room, and borders the living room and the kitchen, but it makes sense to put it down now if we’re going to go over things.
I help unfold three of the chairs in case Mary wants to stick around. I hope she does because I want to go over things without being distracted by how much I want him again. It would probably be best for us to spend time together where we aren’t compelled to rip off each other’s clothes.
Knox greets me with a brilliant smile and a light touch to my lower back that radiates warmth through me. “Have you two met? Or do I need to do introductions?” I ask.
They shake their heads. Mary smiles. “Nope, already said hello.” She comes over to stand next to me and whispers in my ear. “He’s really cute.”
I lean back toward her. “Right?”
Knox must’ve overheard because his smile turns to a grin as we take a seat at the table and he pulls a laptop out of a bag. Mary and I also take seats at the small table with me sitting between them.
He glances over at me. “First, I have to apologize. I know I said I would get your belongings, but your boss wasn’t in at all. I’ve been trying to arrange a meeting with him or someone at a high level since then and it’s like they’ve all disappeared. I’ll keep trying. There’s a chance we could settle all this outside of court if we can go to them with evidence of who did it; plus have them pull the security footage of you being with me, they’ll have no choice but to drop the charges against you. You won’t even have to go to court. And I’ll be able to get the arrest removed from your record so that you can continue to get jobs here in the casinos. You have to have a clean record for that.”
I nod already knowing that. I needed to pass all sorts of things to get my gaming license in order to work on the floor of the casino. “Do you think it will be possible to do all that? Like what is the likelihood of this happening?”
He thinks for a second. “I’m not going to say I’m one-hundred percent certain they’ll be willing to settle outside of court, but given the fact that casinos like to hold on to their money and avoid legal fees, they’ll drop it when we prove to them you were with me last night. As for clearing your record, that should be simple once the charges are dropped. I can help you with all that, so you don’t have to worry about that.”
Reaching out, I take his hand. “Thank you. I would be so lost if it wasn’t for you, and still being held in jail.” Tears enter my eyes as the reality of what could’ve happened finally hits me. I haven’t had a chance to process anything that happened last night or how it could’ve been so much worse.
