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He mimics my pose, eying me with his arms crossed over his chest. “Do you… work in a diner? A waffle house?”
I wrinkle my nose, head shaking. “No. I’m a barista.”
He stares at me, unblinking. “And you work the night shift?”
“You’d be surprised how many people keep odd hours. Coffee is in demand when you work while the sun sleeps.”
His lips edge upward. “I see.”
I rub my hands over my eyes, suddenly exhausted. “What about you? Why the Hell areyouwalking around the city at night? You in the mafia or something?” I smile, giggling inwardly at my joke.
He doesn’t laugh.
Instead, he moves to the side, bumping me with his shoulder. My stomach does somersaults. “You’re lucky I was in the lobby to begin with.” He frowns at me, brows threading with confusion. “Buy a gun. Keep it in your bag.”
I scoff, side-stepping away from him to put extra space between us. “A gun? No way.”
He purses his lips, dark, floppy hair skimming his forehead. “Are you anti-weapon?”
I shrug. “Not when it comes to women protecting themselves. It’s just,I’mnot okay with carrying a weapon of mass destruction.” I gulp. “I’d probably blow my foot off.”
He sighs. “Get one anyway. Leave it unloaded. Hu-Criminalsnormally run at the first sight of shiny metal.”
The elevator doors shudder open, causing me to jump. Samuel remains unmoving, looking from the doors to me with humor in his dark eyes.
He extends an arm. “Ladies first.”
I collect myself, straightening my spine as I exit the lift. “Thanks for the sound advice, Samuel.”
He falls in step beside me. “Are you going to take it?”
An icy breeze kisses my cheek, causing me to shiver again. “Probably not. Like I said, I’m not really the gun wielding type. Besides, you were right. I’m sure it was just a psycho aimlessly wandering the city.” My gut clenches, as if my intuition is telling me that no,it wasn’t.
What are the chances that I ban a customer for being unruly towards me, he returns the next night acting ruthless in front of another customer, I get a message from an unknown ID calling me a bitch, andthenI see a masked menace leering at me on my way home? Fucking one in a million?
When I realize Samuel hasn’t said anything about my rejection of his suggestion, I glance at him. He’s keeping pace with me, but his eyes are darker, clouded with inward turmoil.
I tell myself Idon’tneed any more drama in my life. But… he seemed worried when I fell into his arms in the lobby.
I stop in front of my door, watching as he trails lazily to his own threshold. Pulling my keys from my bag, I call over to him. “Thanks for helping with my freak out in the lobby.”
His head snaps over, the angry frown evaporating, replaced with a casual grin. “No problem. Stay safe, Jane.”
He waits until I’m safely inside my apartment before he unlocks his door.
I force the tension out of my sore muscles by way of steam. A piping hot stream of water cascades over my head, sliding down the length of my body. I’m not sure how long I stand there, doing nothing but absorbing the warmth, but eventually the water turns from hot to lukewarm. Within two minutes, my body is scrubbed and my hair is washed.
I step onto my cushioned bath mat, wrap one towel around my head and another around the width of my body, and leave the bathroom.
After checking that my blinds are indeed closed, I let my towel fall to the ground and allow my body to air dry. One perk to living alone is the freedom to wear my birthday suit whenever I feel like it. And tonight is one of those nights.
It’s weird, but being naked and locked inside of my home calms me. It’s like my brain finally accepts the fact that we’resafe.Being exposed means there’s no one around but myself and my thoughts.
The sun is out fully, creeping into my room through the blinds and shitty red curtains that weresupposedto be blackout. However, the filtered light turns my apartment pink, and I can vibe with that sort of ambience.
I snack on popcorn and two bottles of water, trying to soothe myself to fulfillment. Full belly. Completely hydrated. Still, satisfaction evades me. As soon as I close my eyes, the text flashes behind my lids.Ur gonna pay, bitch.
Pay what? My rent? I’ve done that already. Taxes? Do that on every payroll. I’m sure as Hell not going to pay for doing my job and expecting my customers to behave.
