“So you’re looking for a female mate?”
Mica shrugged. “It’s my preference. I know that we don’t really get a choice when it comes to mates.”
I couldn’t imagine being straight and then suddenly finding yourself fated to the same sex. That could be incredibly awkward.
“Well, I can’t say that I know of any single girls looking for their mates, but if you’re really ready for yours, maybe try the Mate Match app. It worked for me and Clay. And Silver and Charlie.”
Mica sighed. “Yeah, but I’m happy for now. I’ll wait for a bit, and when the time is right, hopefully, I’ll know.” Mica pointed to a door on the left. It was closed, but he reached past me and opened it. “This is Clay’s office.” He walked in and placed the cooler on the floor over beside the love seat that was there. I was surprised that there was one in there, and I was already thinking about how I could be comfortable on it for a midmorning nap.
“The bathroom is right there,” Mica said. He pointed across the hallway, the next door down. “And the break room is the room right after that. Silver’s office is two doors down on this side of the hall, and mine is between them.”
“Wow. Okay. That shouldn’t be too difficult to keep straight.” I thought about it for a moment. “Where are Flint and Slate?”
“They’re around the hall. Go to the end and turn right. They’re the first doors on either side after that. The one straight ahead is a supply room. That’s where the extra everything is. There is another bathroom down there on the left. Those are the only four doors in that area.”
I nodded. Sounded easy enough. Clay came back, and Mica started toward the door.
“You don’t have to run off just because I’m back.”
“I’m not,” Mica said. “But I really need to go order a camera for the refrigerator. Duncan gave me a great idea, and I alsowant to place a grocery order early so I don’t lose my chances of getting a cheesecake ordered.” Mica stopped in the doorway and waved at me. “See you soon, Duncan.”
He was gone after that. I smiled over at Clay, who looked confused. “Why is he putting a camera in the refrigerator?”
“Because when he said the same thing that you did about my drinks probably going missing, it triggered a memory that I had of coming across a reel of people putting phones in the fridge and wanting to steal someone’s cheesecake. They see the ‘camera’ and then close the fridge. Then they come back with like a pet or a baby and have them grab the cheesecake. It’s all staged, obviously. But that seemed to give him the idea of putting something in the fridge. I guess you have someone that’s taking things still.”
Clay sighed. “I had hoped they would either stop or would have been removed from the payroll.”
“I can’t relate. The fridge at the restaurant never had that problem. If you put your name on it, then everyone left it alone.” I smiled while thinking about the people at Under the Sea restaurant. It had been a steady job for several years, but now that I was away from that and the horror that was Sticky Floors, I saw things from a different perspective. I was in survival mode, and the chances of me getting out of it were always going to be slim. Until Clay.
“Are you all right?”
I smiled at my mate. “I am. I was thinking about…well, life, I guess. Six months ago, I was in survival mode. I’d been there for years. Since I turned eighteen. I’d gotten so used to having to struggle for every single thing, and for not having any help or support, that having that from you and your family is so new.”
Clay pulled me into his arms and hugged me close. I loved being held by him. In his arms was my safe space and wouldalways be. He kissed my hair and then rubbed my back. “Sweetie, can we chat?”
I moved back enough to look up at my mate. “That doesn’t sound like anything good. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing too serious. But I did want to give you an update about your former roommates.”
Immediately, I relaxed. “Oh. Okay. What’s happening with them? Mark was supposed to be moving in with his sister.”
Clay nodded. “Yes. I had Flint look into them, and Silver gave me the report this morning. Your other two and their friend were arrested a couple weeks ago.”
“Arrested? What for?”
“They were having another party. The cops were called, and there were drugs in the apartment. One of them assaulted one of the officers while resisting arrest. It’s really not good.”
I winced. “Wow.” I shook my head. “I swear, I never hung around when they had their parties. Most of the time, I was at work.”
Clay kissed my forehead. “I know. I wasn’t accusing you of anything. I simply wanted you to know what happened. You and Mark got out of there just in time, it seems. Neither of you were on the lease any longer, so it doesn’t look like you will be questioned. It’s possible, but doubtful.”
I would love to say that I was surprised, but I wasn’t. I hated the hassle of moving, and things hadn’t been too terrible until about a year ago. Something changed then, and they’d gone from okay roommates to roommates from hell.
“Thanks for letting me know. I wasn’t exactly besties with them, so I’m not exactly upset.”
Clay snorted. “I’m not surprised.”
“So what’s on the agenda for today?” I asked.
