Page 28 of The Penalty

The guys. Thinking of Dev reminds me of the reason I got no sleep last night. I spent two hours reviewing every detail of our weekend, followed by every glance and expression on his face yesterday. And when I did fall asleep, I had some of the most vivid, spiciest dreams of my life, starring his perfect hockey body. My nipples are tingling at the mere memory. But it’s only a shadow of the real thing.

The doorbell sounds again, a little longer this time, but not past the point of politeness. “Crap.”

I run over to the door, suck in a deep breath, and throw a smile on my face. I’m hoping it’s not too unhinged, but they’ve already signed the rental agreement, so they’re stuck with me either way.

A blonde with curly shoulder length hair is standing on the other side of the door. She’s got a Barbie pink rolling suitcase by her side and a beaming lipsticked smile on her face.

“Georgia. Welcome.” My volume of my voice has me wincing.Too much, Cecelia. Don’t scare them away on the first day.

She doesn’t seem to mind, throwing her arms around me in an effusive hug.

“Cece, so nice to meet you.” Her southern accent is as welcoming as her bright smile.

“You too. It’s great to meet you in person. Finally. A video call isn’t the same as a flesh and blood meeting, is it?” She’s perfectly put together. From the smooth perfection of her pinkpolished nails to the styled curls held back from her forehead by a wide blue headband.

She’s rolling her suitcase through the hall toward the living room. The living room. My stomach hits the floor. The popcorn. I dart ahead, glancing around, trying to remember where I stashed the broom. There’s no sign of it, so now I’m hunched over, scrabbling around on the floor like a scavenger, scooping popcorn back into the bowl, when my perfectly polished new roommate steps in.

“Oh,” she says.

“I’m so sorry. I was having a snack when you got here, and the doorbell startled me.” No need to let her know the bowl of popcorn was actually my combination breakfast and lunch. Clearly, she can already see what a hot mess I am. No need to drive the point home any harder.

“Not a problem. Let me help you.” And then she’s dropping down to crouch beside me, shoulder brushing mine as I’m picking up buttery kernels off the floor.

“Not the first impression I was hoping to make.”

“I don’t mind. It’s kind of refreshing, actually. My mom would have a positive conniption if I dropped a single toast crumb on the floor. College life has been very liberating.”

I dig the last couple of pieces out from under the couch, dropping them in the red plastic bowl and dart off to the kitchen. Georgia has settled right in, sprawled on the overstuffed beige couch, socked feet up on the shiny new coffee table when I get back.

“Feel that. Your mom is a bit much?” I ask her.

“I love mama to death, but she needs everything to be perfect all the time, but prim and proper is not really me. I like to dress up and look nice as much at the next lady, but I also like to let loose. If you know what I mean.” She winks at me with one of her impossibly long, thick lashes.

“Awesome. Me too.”

I drop next to her on the couch. “So, you’re working on your MFA, right?” After going through endless applications and a series of video calls that drained me for a week, I selected a group of roommates I could live with who also passed my father’s scrutiny.

“Sure am. Writing is my passion.”

“And you write horror and paranormal stuff?” My eyes travel down the pink highlights on her outfit, the perfect blonde hair and shimmery eye makeup.

Her laugh is like a tinkling bell. “I sure do. I love a spooky story.”

The doorbell rings again, interrupting my curiosity, and she joins me to greet our next arrival.

It’s actually two arrivals. Anna and Blake are both waiting on the other side with smiles on their faces. Did I neglect to mention Blake to my dad? Maybe. I’m a hundred percent certain he would not be all in on the idea of me living with a guy, but he and Anna came as a package deal. They’re best friends and have been living together since they started at Lakeview. Their last rental house got sold and they couldn’t renew their lease for senior year, so here we are. Anna slid through his background check, and I told Dad I needed to usethe fourth bedroom as a library. I’m sure Blake will keep some books in there, and my father won’t take the time to drive all the way from Fox Chapel for a visit.

“Anna, Blake. Nice to meet you.”

“You too.” Anna’s smile is a little more tentative than Georgia’s was, and she’s dressed much more casually in a graphic tee that says Game On paired with worn jeans. Blake’s got on a similar outfit and his blue eyes are shining with warmth behind his dark glasses. He steps ahead of Anna to hold out his hand for a shake.

Blake is craning his neck, taking the place in, while Anna untangles herself from Georgia’s embrace.

“I’d love to check out our rooms and grab the rest of our stuff.” The deep tone of his voice catches me by surprise.

“Umm, I’ll show you the rooms and you can take your pick however you want. Swords at twenty paces would probably be my choice, but it’s up to you.”

That steals a giggle from Anna.

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