“Is this your first home together?” The realtor didn’t seem surprised when I nodded, still looking around, and she clasped her hands over her navy skirt to continue talking. “Well, the neighborhood is good- there’s not a lot of crime going on, and it’s very quiet. Thankfully, there’s no HOA to have to contend with, either. There’s a public bus stop on the corner right across the street, and there’s a few little stores right down the road.”
The living room was faced with a wall of glass that led to the backyard, and the realtor gestured us to follow her again. Sharing an irritated look with Lucy at how clearly she was trying to rush, I clenched and released my jaw while the woman opened the sliding glass door to a sizeable deck. The deck had to beat leastthree hundred fifty square feet, with a wide staircase leading to a yard of impressively green grass.
“This deck is probably the size of my efficiency. Maybe a little bigger.” The realtor turned to me at my declaration, and for a fraction of a second, I felt the absolute contempt she had for me. How dare I have the audacity to look at a house when, obviously, I was too young and poor to afford it! I leveled my stare with her as she hid her feelings behind a polite, professional smile, and she nodded before opening her mouth.
“The previous owners had a rather large family and enjoyed having people over. This is a great house for social gatherings. Let’s go inside and take a look at the bedroom and master bath.” Just because of the yard, I wanted to buy this house— Ketchup and Sriracha would love this place. Instead, I gestured Lucy back in as she shot me a glance glimmering in impressed approval. “There’s another full bath upstairs and a half bath off the hallway to the garage right next to the laundry room.”
I don’t know why . . . did this woman think we were just wasting her time? Did people book with her and then tell her to her face that they weren’t buying, just wanting to look? Did she have a bad morning? Was her coffee decaf instead of regular or something? She didn’t glance a second time at the master bedroom, didn’t stop even as Lucy and I hung around another set of sliding, wooden doors.
“That’s cool that they’re double sliding doors. We’re gonna have to paint them, probably. They’re not even stained.” Lucy’s murmur drew down my chin, and I glanced over the bedroom; it was just four walls, and the carpet was the color of her dog with cream accents.
“So, the previous owners actually used this as a guest room as they have small children. The bathroom was completely remodeled.” Lucy wandered off toward the door in the corner, and I made my way to the other side of the room to open another. The closet was clearly for a woman that liked shoes and jewelry, judging by all the shelves and slots, and my cheek twitched absently.
I really liked this house.
“Mateo, there’s a spa tub in here. How cool is that?”
“There’s just a shower in the upstairs bathroom. So, would you like to keep looking around, or . . . ”I just hate this realtor. She hasn’t even shown us half the house, yet.I had to resist sucking my teeth at how irritated I was, and I turned to this lady as she watched me with expectant annoyance. “I do have other buyers for this house that are interested, and—”
“You didn’t show us the upstairs, the basement, or the garage, and we haven’t talked price, but you’re trying to shoo us out?” I had decided last night that even if this house wasn’t perfect, whichit was, frankly, I would consider it my top option. Crossing my arms when the realtor frowned at me, I rocked back on my heels to arch a brow in question. “Why are you trying to rush us out and lose yourself a sale?”
“Because I have other buyers that are ready to bid on the house.” Barking a harsh laugh, I reached to swipe my jaw roughly, and she looked down her nose at me across the bedroom. “No offense, but—”
“No offense, but? Please.” I fished my phone out of my pocket to call my last outgoing, which happened to be her office. Lucy wandered out of the bathroom, and I clenched and released my jaw as I strode out of the bedroom with her. The line rang once, twice, before being answered, and the hairs on my neck bristled at her withering glare as I turned to face her. “Yes, hello. I’m with one of your agents right now, and I was wondering, if I paid full in cash, can I deal with someone else?”
26
Lucy
“She looked so panicked when you said, ‘full in cash’. Oh, man.” I chuckled a little as we entered the hotel Mateo was staying at, but he was still obviously upset about the whole ordeal. His gloominess tugged at me, and I squeezed his hand as we headed for the elevator. “It’s okay. You’re going to buy the house, and she won’t get commission. Win-win, right?”
“I honestly don’t understand what she was thinking?” His confusion was adorable, and I punched the button as he reached into his back pocket to pull out his wallet with his free hand. “I’m pretty damn sure people don’t go house browsing and then get lied to about the availability of the house. What the fuck?”
“She probably thought we weren’t serious, or we’d have a hard time with the down payment, which she wouldn’t get much commission off of.” That only prompted another question—who the heck looks at houses for fun?Mateo grumbled to himself. “That senior agent was really nice, though.”
“Yeah, at least that went well. I really like that house.” Mateo cast me a tender glance, and I smiled as heat slithered up my neck. “I hope we don’t break up over curtain rods.”
“I think we can handle it.” We stepped into the elevator, and he thumbed his floor button before pulling his key card out of his wallet. Today was a good day despite all the drama that happened the night before; it felt like a long, long time ago, and that was a good thing, I thought. “My granddad bought my house when my mom got divorced. I guess he just knew I’d be his only grandkid. He worked on it until I turned sixteen- we worked on it together, sorta. I was living there when I was fifteen because my mom was starting to get insufferable. The day I turned sixteen, I started at the grocery store, and I worked there until I quit right after I got back. When I went to get my final check, they threw me a little party. It was really nice.”
“You have an associate business degree, don’t you?” Nodding firmly as the elevator jostled upwards, I stuck my hands in my pockets and rocked back on my heels. “I went to school for music. I have two bachelors. I worked on them simultaneously. My dad was really supportive, and Oran and Carlyle were already out of college and working for him.”
“Have you done anything musically since . . . ” Trailing off uncertainly, I couldn’t help but frown when Mateo shook his head. “Why not?”
“It’s kinda trivial, but even though I’ve always had genuine talent for it, and I love it, I was a spoiled rich kid that didn’t appreciate anything or anyone. Everyone was beneath me, except Carlyle, and he thought I wasn’t anything more than a cockroach that needed to be squished. It wasn’t until that week that I realized there’s more people’s opinions than just his that matter. I’ve gone into shops and stuff, but I never bought anything.” He frowned under brows furrowed by troubling thoughts, and I almost winced at the thick shame that lilted his tone. “I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like I never invested in my music because I was so miserable about problems, I created for myself. Does that make sense?”
“Yes.” The elevator jolted to a stop, and Mateo gestured me out first before leading me down the ritzy hallway. “Every economic class has their own set of problems. I can’t imagine how hard it was for you to try with Carlyle, Mateo.”
“I mean, it’s not entirely his fault. I was a piece of shit of a human being, but there’s definitely things that we both could’ve done even if it was just ignoring each other. Carlyle kept trying to get me out of the way, but that also meant him forcing me to go places and do shit that I didn’t want to participate in. Maybe, if he accepted that trying to force it would only make it worse, and I accepted that he couldn’t do anything without forcing it. Honestly, who knows. I sure don’t.” Sliding the card in a door, Mateo popped open the barrier, and I followed him in as he continued. His hotel room was sparse, just his bag and his dogs, and he only paused talking to grab it before glancing at me. “If I didn’t decide to leave the hotel rather than jump off the roof, Carlyle wouldn’t bat an eyelash. Andthatis not someone I think deserves my consideration.”
I badly hid my grimace, and Mateo whistled to his dogs before we left the room just as quickly. My chest tightened, my throat closing at the idea that we could’ve never met. If he’d killed himself, I would’ve never known what it was like to love someone so passionately. Seth and I probably would be married right now, and I’d be miserable.
Because let’s face it, I was totally, unequivocally, desperately head over heels for Mateo, even if neither of us wanted to admit it out loud in as many words.
“I’ve never thought about killing myself. Running away, yeah. A few times, I considered selling my house and hiding.” The strangest sense of guilt washed over me, and I crossed my arms under my best on the way back to the elevator. Mateo lived a horrific life, but because he had money, no one would pity him.How terrible. “Once I moved into my house, my mom would come over three or four times a week and come in and rearrange all my stuff and take down my cringy band posters and all that kind of stuff. I changed the locks and never gave her a key again.”
“You had to deal with Meredith all the time?” Scrunching up my nose in distaste, I ducked my head in a nod, and Mateo shouldered his backpack as I pressed the elevator button. “How’d you do that for so long? Was she always so overbearing?”
“No. She didn’t get bad until after she found out about breaking up when we were in college. I don’t get why. Shouldn’t she be doing the opposite and telling him he could get better or whatever?” Shrugging lightly, I huffed at my own question, and Mateo nodded quietly as he reached to scratch Ketchup’s head. “I mean, there was nothing special about me, and Seth and I didn’t want to be together anymore, so . . . ”
