Page 63 of The Jerk in Apartment 1B

“You want to see it?” I say to Trina.

She races up behind me and I step back so she can come into the bathroom.

“I love it! It’s so much better than the other one. I think I’ll take a shower and test it out.”

An image of that pops in my head and I scold myself for it. I’m not supposed to think of her that way. And yet it keeps happening, like this morning when she was in my bedroom.

Cole was right. I’m attracted to her, more than I want to admit, which is why I shouldn’t be spending time with her. Not that anything would happen. She’s committed to someone else. But why be tempted? It’s better to just stay away.

She shuts off the shower and comes out of the bathroom. “It’s a lot better. Thanks for fixing it.”

“Sure. You need anything else?”

“About what Cole said.” She walks up to me. “Are you really looking to hire someone?”

“Not really. I mean, yeah, I’ve been wanting to get those storage units organized, but it doesn’t have to be done right away.”

“I’m available if you want me to do it. I’m only working nights for now so my days are free.”

“Don’t you want to spend that time looking for a job? A job you actually want?”

“I’m not sure what I want. I don’t think I want to go back to working for a designer.”

“What do you want to do?”

“I haven’t decided. I want something in fashion, but maybe not on the design side.” She smiles a little. “That’s the first time I’ve admitted that. I’ve spent my whole life telling people I want to design clothes. It feels strange to say I don’t want to do it anymore.”

“Why? You’re allowed to change your mind.”

“But this has been my plan since I was a little girl. I was going to go to New York, go to fashion school, and become a famous designer. If I don’t follow through, I feel like I’m giving up my dream.”

“You’re not giving it up. Like you said, you can still work in fashion.”

“Yeah, I’m just not sure what I’d do. Anyway, back to the job. If you want help with your storage units, I could really use the money. I’m excellent at organizing. I did it all the time at my old job. I could get you references, if you want.”

She’s really eager to do this, and I know she needs the money. But having her work for me means having to see her all the time. I’m not sure that’s a good idea.

“Would you at least consider it?” she asks. “I’d really like something to do during the day. It’s kind of depressing being in this apartment all the time, and then I think about Asher and—”

“Yes,” I blurt out. “I’ll hire you.”

Her face lights up. “Really?”

I shouldn’t do this, but I’d rather have her working for me than spending all day thinking about her ex. And it would be nice to get those storage units cleaned up.

“You can start this week if you want.”

“That’d be great!” She bites her lip. “So, um, what does it pay?”

I pause to think about that. “How about I don’t charge you rent this month? I’ve already deposited the money, but I can transfer it back to you.”

“Are you sure? That seems like kind of a lot for just working a few hours a week.”

“I think it’ll be more than a few. Those storage units are a mess. We can go take a look at them now if you want.”

“Yeah, I should probably see what I’m getting myself into.” She grabs her keys from the counter.

“Hey, before we go, I’m sorry about this morning. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

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