She deserved a break, and I was determined to give her one.
Or two….
* * *
“So this is it.” I pushed open the door and gestured for Indy to go inside.
She hitched her backpack higher on her shoulder and tossed me an uncertain glance. I tried to give her an encouraging look, but it probably came off more like a grimace.
Indy stepped inside and after a beat, I followed her. I didn’t want her to feel pressured.
I hit the light switch next to the door and soft lighting illuminated my sparse bachelor pad. A long couch and a recliner on one side faced the 85-inch television on the opposite wall. I didn’t even have a coffee table. Some free weights stood on a rack next to the tv, and that was pretty much it.
I rubbed a hand over the back of my neck. “Uh, the spare room is over there.” I gestured to the small hallway straight back, running between the living room on the left and the small kitchenette on the right. A kitchen that hadn’t been cleaned in a hot second. Takeout boxes littered the tiny island along with assorted crumbs, and I don’t even know what else. A few dishes were stacked up in the sink. I couldn’t remember the last time I ran a load.
I winced. Shit, I really hoped the bathroom was in better shape.
“Uh, as you can see it’s the maid’s week off.”
Indy cracked a small smile at my weak joke.
“But seriously, I’ll pick up tomorrow. I swear. Maddie hasn’t been here in a while, and I guess I’ve let a few things slide…”
“It’s fine.” Indy shook her head. “Seriously. I’ve been living with my dad this last year, and he’s…definitely less tidy than you. You should’ve seen the apartment when I first moved in. It was—” She cut herself off and bit her lower lip like she was physically holding the words in.
I guess she was pretty broken up about whatever had happened to him. I wanted to ask, but she’d cried plenty tonight. No point in poking at open wounds. Maybe she’d confide in me given time.
I gave her an encouraging smile. “I can imagine. It wasn’t that long ago when I was rooming with my brother. There’s a reason we all have our own places now.”
“I’m guessing a lucrative tv deal had something to do with it.” Her eyebrows went up.
My smile grew wider. “You ain’t wrong. Come on, I’ll show you your room. No doubt you’re as exhausted as I feel.” We walked past the full bath, and I pointed it out to her. “And this is your room.”
I pushed open the door and gestured for her to enter. She hesitatingly stepped inside. After a beat, I followed her but stayed in the doorway so she wouldn’t feel crowded.
I gestured to the large cabinet on one wall. “That’s the murphy bed. Just pull it down there. I’ll get you some sheets and a pillow in a sec. Feel free to move anything out of the way.” I pointed at the easel currently standing in front of the window on the far side. “Including that. Don’t worry about smudging it or anything. It’s not important. Just something I was playing with to pass the time.”
And I was sick of looking at it. Something about the shading was all wrong. And I couldn’t get the expression on his face right. The canvas might end up in the dumpster tomorrow.
Indy stood in the center of the room, clutching at the backpack on her shoulders, and I was reminded how little she had with her. Locked out of her apartment with just the clothes on her back. Damn.
She looked around the room like something was going to jump out at her any second. Wary and just so unsettled. I hated seeing it. At her age, she should’ve been out partying with her friends and making poor decisions. Not worrying about where she’d sleep tonight or how she was going to wash her only set of clothes.
“Uh, my bedroom is on the other side of the hall. I’ll just go grab those sheets and pillows so you can settle in.” When I came back, she’d set her backpack in the corner, moved the easel out of the way, and had the murphy bed pulled down. The queen-sized mattress spanned the center of the room, large and imposing.
And reminding me that Indy was an attractive woman.
One who needed help and not another dick in her life, I reminded myself.
I tossed the linen onto the bed next to her, and she jumped.
“Uh, sorry. I grabbed a few things from my closet too. They’re clean, I swear. And I won’t miss them. They should tide you over until we can get your things out of your apartment. There should be a comforter in that closet. And that’s it, I think. Unless there’s something else you need?”
Indy shook her head as she stared down at the t-shirt and sweatpants on top of the pile.
I snapped my fingers. “Oh. I have some spare toothbrushes and toothpaste. I’ll just leave them out on the counter in the bathroom for you.”
“Thanks,” she whispered softly, still staring at the pile of linen.
