Page 15 of Roommate Wars
“You said you wanted to buy me something. This is what you can buy me.”
He shook his head and stared at me for a beat, then walked over, grabbed the apron, and headed for the checkout.
Self-checkout, to be exact, which was sexy because it was self-reliant.
And I might have admired his ass in the jeans he was wearing, because he was cute, even if I wasn’t interested in dating my new roommate. All guys who shopped patiently with women and bought them ridiculous aprons were cute. This was just fact.
ChapterSeven
Jack
We returned to the apartment,and Elise dropped onto the living room couch, toppling Target bags over her lap. She kicked her bare feet up on the coffee table and said, “Home sweet home.”
A thrill ran up my spine. For some reason her thinking of my place as her own gave me immense pleasure. Which was weird and unusual.
If my ex, who’d also been my roommate, had put her feet on the coffee table, I’d have been annoyed as hell. She was self-centered and greedy, which was nothing new, because I had a type. She’d also helped herself to my wallet more times than I could count. When she helped herself toMax’swallet, that had been the final straw.
Then there was Elise.
Watching Elise economize on the most basic necessities put me in a rage. I could tell she was holding back, not wanting to spend too much. And it made me want to buy her the entire store. Ten stores. A San Francisco city block.
If Elise was going to live with me for the next thirty days, I couldn’t get excited over stupid shit like her feeling at home. Needed to keep things distant. And there was no better way to set up barriers than with my next statement. “What’s for dinner?”
Her expression was confused.
I tipped my head toward the fridge. “I figure tonight is as good a night as any to set the stage for how things will be moving forward.” At her appalled look, I said, “Should have taken me up on the offer to buy you a wardrobe. That kind of gift isn’t likely to happen again.”
Her mouth closed firmly, and I was pretty sure sparks flew from her eyes. She stood and stomped into the kitchen, brushing past me to the fridge. I’d had the forethought to grab a beer, which I took with me toward the hallway. “I’ll be in my office working.”
“You mean your bedroom.”
“Exactly. Let me know when food’s ready.”
I settled at my desk and listened to cupboard doors banging and pots clanging. I was ninety-nine percent sure that was for show. No one made that much noise while cooking.
My mouth curved up. OperationKeep Elise safe but not closewas in full effect and running right on schedule. Though it grated on me when she’d said she wanted to seek companionship while we were out shopping. What exactly had that meant?
A lump lodged in my chest. I didn’t want to know.
Hopefully she’d hold off on dating until she moved out, because I didn’t think I could remain neutral on that front.
I put on headphones and listened to music while I took care of emails my assistants couldn’t address. I had one main assistant for random stuff and four executive assistants who filtered correspondence, not to mention business managers, financial managers, and a couple of chief executive officers for the companies I owned. Environ, the virtual reality company Thalia would be running, was one of them. The idea and programming were mine, but as soon as I came up with the concept and began executing and building business alliances, I stepped back and only interfered if things veered off course. It freed up my time to work on other projects.
Thalia was smart. I had no doubt she could handle the company, but it would take her time to get up to speed.
I sent her an email catching her up on the latest investor. For now, I’d be involved in all the investor relations, but eventually that was something I’d hand off too.
I leaned back and stretched my arms above my head, then rubbed my rumbling belly. It had been almost an hour. Elise must be done by now.
After taking off my headphones and putting my computer in sleep mode, I padded into the kitchen to see what she’d come up with.
The scent of fried food filled the air. Not a bad sign. Not healthy, but whatever—I wasn’t picky.
Elise was in the kitchen with herHot Stuff Coming Throughapron tied behind her back and her hair pulled into a ponytail. I smiled at how cute she looked.
“Everything going okay in here?” I tried to see around her to the pan on the stove.
She spun, her back to the food and blocking my view, a mischievous look in her eye. “Oh, yes. It’s all set.” She gestured to the dining table that had only been used by Sophia and her plant designs. It was another one of those pieces of furniture Max had insisted on. At least the couch was useful. This one had been a total waste up until now.
