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“Why doesn’t Hunter stay with her?”
CHAPTER FOUR
Sebastian
It’s not oftenthat I’m taken by surprise. I’ve gotten pretty damn good at figuring out what most people are going to do or say before it actually happens. But I didn’t in a million years expect Willow’s suggestion to come out of her mouth so casually. I know it takes Alec a moment to process what she just said, but I also know the second the idea resonates with him. He nods his head a couple times then turns to me.
“That’s not a bad idea. You don’t have any other jobs in the works right now, and if Tanner can pull something from the knife, then it should be more than a day or two.” The way he saysother jobs, makes it damn clear that that’s exactly what this is. I don’t have a choice but to accept. We’re able to turn shit down, but it’s an unwritten rule that we have to have a damn good reason. Something tells me that saying I want to bang my boss's sister isn’t the smartest thing to admit right now. I try to rifle through my mind, coming up with any possible excuse as to why I can’t do it, but I can’t think of anything.
Two days.I can hold on to my self-control for two days. I have no choice. I nod my head once, already willing my body to calm down from the knowledge that I’m going to be in that tiny-ass apartment with Anya for two fucking days.
“Yeah, I can do it.” At least I really fucking hope I can do it.
* * *
The moment I step foot into Anya’s apartment, I regret taking this job even more than I already did. The place is just so…her.She still has a few stacks of boxes against the far wall, but that doesn’t stop the place from feeling comfortable and homey. It’s better than anywhere I ever grew up, that’s for sure.
She has a light gray couch that looks plush and comfortable as hell just by looking at it. It’s accented with a couple of peach-colored pillows. Two paintings, probably done by Nicole, hang on her walls, along with a few personal photos of her with her parents, with Alec, and with Willow. Her walls aren’t overcrowded, but they still show her personality. Welcoming and fun. Even the frames the photos sit in aren’t just plain black or silver. They’re light blue, and soft green. The entire living room is done in a color scheme of neutrals and pastels.
Even the subtle scent of lavender and honey that fills the spaces gets to my head and practically dizzies me with sensory overload of all things Anya.Fuck.
“Sorry,” Anya mumbles as she paces her living room uncomfortably. “I haven’t had a chance to finish unpacking.”
I avoid looking at her directly, opting to just shrug my shoulder in response. I know Anya thinks I’m an asshole, and as much as I would like to correct her thinking, I know it’s best that I don’t.
“Um, the guest bedroom is also full of boxes, and I don’t have a bed in there.” I’ve never heard Anya sound so uncertain before. She sounds regretful, and I really hate it. This isn't who she is. Not to me. She’s bright and cheery.She’s sunshine.
“Couch is fine.”
Her eyes widen as she looks from me to the couch and back a few times. I know what she’s thinking. The couch is basically half my size, but I’ve slept on much worse throughout my life. I’m not worried.
“Oh no,” she says hastily with a hard shake of her head. “I can sleep on the couch. You take my-”
“No.” I refuse to even let her finish that sentence. Just the thought of myself in Anya’s bed is too fucking much to handle. She looks at me with wide eyes, and for a second I think I scared her. It’d probably be a good thing for me in the long run if she were scared of me, but the thought of that doesn’t sit right. I force my tone slightly calmer and repeat, “couch is fine.”
Her head moves up and down slowly as she begins to inch toward the small hallway where I know her bedroom is. One of the first things Alec did when Anya found this place, was pull the building blueprints and get the lay of it. The fact that the place doesn’t have an elevator is one of the reasons why rent is so low. But with the fact that it has two bedrooms, small as they might be, a full-size bathroom, with a decent living room and kitchen. It makes the place practically a steal.
“Well, I’ll let you get comfortable then. I have some work to do, so-” I want to tell her that she can stay out here. This is her home, and I don’t want her to feel uncomfortable in it. But before I can get the words out, my phone pings with a notification. I sigh because that particular sound is only for one thing. I slide my phone out of my pocket, and by the time I glance up again, Anya is out of sight.
I read over the bank notification and quietly curse to myself. I’m not going to be able to put off going out there much longer. When these notifications start coming this close together, I know things are really bad again. I know what I’ll find when I get there, and as always, I’ll do my best to clean it up.
With an annoyed shake of my head, I shoot off a quick message to Alec, Wyatt, and Tanner, telling them that I need to take a few days off next week. They don’t question it because they all know that I only take time off for one reason and one reason only. I get a response back almost immediately from Tanner confirming that the timing will work just fine. I breathe out a sigh of relief. Not because I thought they would say no, but because at least I know that next week I’ll be able to get away from Anya.
A loud knock on the front door has my eyebrows pulling down. I’m not sure how many people she’s met or made friends with since she moved here, but she didn’t mention anything about someone coming by. I walk toward the door, but before I can make it, Anya comes out of her room in a flurry and without even looking out the peephole, she pulls the damn thing open.
“Oh, hey Zach!” I peek around her to see a guy, probably a couple of years younger than Anya, slim and clean-cut standing on the other side. His dark curly hair is perfectly styled and he’s wearing dark blue slacks with a light blue dress shirt.
“Hey. I’m glad you’re home. I heard some noise last night and saw you leaving. I wanted to make sure everything is okay?” I hold back my retort over the fact that the fucker thought she might have been in trouble last night but waited until mid-afternoon the next day to check on her.
“I just got done with my rounds, so I figured I would stop by.”
“Oh, I’m fine. I just ended up staying at my brother’s last night.” I’m not sure if Alec told her not to tell anyone what happened last night, or if she just figured it would be best not to. Either way, it’s a good thing she didn’t say anything.
I see the guy's head bob a couple of times, and he rocks back on his heels a bit. He hasn’t noticed me, which is a good thing because it gives me the chance to really observe their interaction. It’s clear the guy is into her, but I can’t quite read if she’s into him too or not.
“Well, I stopped at that bakery down the street to grab some lunch, and they had that eclair cake you love, so I grabbed you a slice.” He holds out a plastic container and her face lights up with excitement. I hold my breath, otherwise I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to breathe at all right now. She’s so fucking breathtaking when she smiles.Fuck.
“You’re amazing! Thank you!” She wraps her arms around him in a hug and my entire body stiffens in anger. He glances over her shoulder and finally sees me, which thankfully has him pulling away from her.
