Page 62 of City of Sin (Men of Manhattan 1)

I opened up the cabinet under the sink and pulled out a bunch of cleaning supplies. I was finally ready to move on. The first step was to rid my apartment of all things Patrick.

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I rested the broom against the wall and leaned down to pick up a slip of paper that was on the floor. I unfolded it and let my eyes dart across the words.

I'm holding a package for you because it wouldn't fit in your mailbox. Stop by anytime after 8.

-Naomi

Mason's words from last night came back to me. He had said that the super had a package for me. He sent me something? I opened up my door and quickly walked downstairs. I wished I had seen the note earlier. Naomi was usually more agreeable earlier in the day. And I still needed to bug her about fixing my heater. I knocked on her door.

After a minute she opened it, keeping the chain lock on. "You look a mess," she said through the small gap in the door.

"Oh." I touched the side of my head. My hair was in a ponytail and my face was probably greasy. Or maybe she was just referring to the fact that I was wearing two pairs of pajama bottoms.

"Tsk. And you wonder why you can't keep a man. Tsk."

I hated that noise she always made. I took a deep breath so I wouldn't snap at her. "I was cleaning and found the note you left." I held up the piece of paper. "You said there was a package for me?"

She closed the door.

"Naomi?" What the hell? I knocked on the door again.

"You can add patience to the list," she said as she opened up the door again. "I had to unlock the door. Tsk."

Growing up in the suburbs meant no chain locks. When someone stopped by, we welcomed them in and offered them tea and crumpets. Well, maybe not exactly, but we were friendlier than this. "Sorry, Naomi."

"Your rent is due soon. Are you going to be late again?"

"No. I won't be. Actually, there was something else I wanted to talk to you about. The heater in my apartment seems to shut off every night and..."

"It's already on my list."

I bit the inside of my lip. "I know, Naomi, but it's been on your list since November. The winter will be over before..."

"Your problem isn't any more important than anyone else's."

"But it's freezing up there."

"It's a New York winter. You'll get used to it." She grabbed a package off the floor and shoved it into my arms.

"Maybe my rent can be a little less then, since I'm saving money on heat?"

She squinted her eyes as if she was just really seeing me for the first time. "I'll think about it," she said and slammed the door in my face.

I'd take her thinking about it. If I was going to freeze to death, at least I could save a little bit of money in the process. I looked down at the box in my hands. It was wrapped in brown paper and there was a silky green ribbon around it. There was no address anywhere on the package. My name was just scrawled on the side. And it looked like Naomi's handwriting.

Had Mason hand delivered this? That would mean that he had seen my apartment building and met Naomi. I knew I was financially beneath him. But he hadn't written me off after seeing where I lived. He had still left the package. Maybe he didn't care about stuff like that. I still felt a little embarrassed though. He lived in a freaking hotel. And I lived here.

I opened up the door to my apartment. At least it was clean now. I put the package down on my bed and stared at it. What on earth was in there? Mason and I still barely knew each other. Maybe it was a hangover kit or something.

No. He had sent me this before I had even drunk texted him. Which meant he had been thinking about me since our lunch date. And not just thinking about me, but buying me something. I had wanted him to come up last night. I had been pretty surprised that he hadn't said yes. But it made me like him even more. He was respectful. He thought I was too drunk to make that decision. But I wasn't. And I remembered every part of our conversation last night.

I sat down on my bed and untied the green ribbon. I pushed it out of the way and ripped the brown paper. There was a white box with a small envelope on top of it. I opened up the envelope and pulled out the card.

Bee,

I'll be picking you up at 7. I can't wait to see you again.

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