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Instead, she felt tired.

Not the kind of tired sleep fixed. The kind that came from spending years proving you could handle everything yourself.

She ignored that thought immediately.

Claire Bennett did not have emotional revelations while waiting for general chicken.

That was dramatic.

And unnecessary.

And exactly the kind of thing the new Claire was avoiding.

Five minutes later, there was a knock. Claire opened the door expecting food waiting for her at the door. Maybe a glimpse of the delivery driver.

Instead, a man stood in the hallway, with his arm stretched out holding a takeout bag as far away from himself as he could, as though the food was going to hurt him.

Tall.

Dark hair.

Gray T-shirt.

Jeans.

And a smile that made it immediately obvious he found this situation more amusing than she did.

He looked like someone who’d lived here long enough to lean against the doorframe like he owned the building.

Claire stared. “Can I help you?”

He stared back. Then he looked down at the bag. “I think this is yours. I’m sorry to bother you, I just didn’t want to leave it sitting outside.”

She didn’t say anything.

He lifted the bag slightly, extending it even further towards her. “Your delivery. Looks like dinner.”

Claire looked at the bag. Then at him. Then back at the bag. “Why do you have my food?” she said quizzically, taking the bag from him.

His eyebrows lifted slightly. “Because it was delivered to my apartment.” He paused. “Which would be weird if we weren’t neighbors.”

Claire narrowed her eyes. “You live here?”

“Unfortunately for you, yes.”

That caught her off guard. Mostly because he sounded amused.

Just how unfortunate could a hot neighbor be?

She shoved the thought aside almost as quickly as it appeared. The fact that she noticed he was attractive was irrelevant. Completely irrelevant.

Her carefully planned start in Manhattan did not include a ridiculously, annoyingly attractive neighbor, and it certainly did not include developing a crush on said neighbor.

After all, the boy next door?

That would be too cliché.

Claire Bennett did not do clichés.