Chapter Thirteen
Grayson
Damn if I didn’t love a morning curated by Marco. Not only did I leave their place hydrated, fed, stretched, scrubbed, and moisturized—I somehow managed to flirt Demir into driving me home on the back of his motorcycle, too.
Squeezing my face against his leather jacket while the morning air whooshed by, I wasn’t even feeling self-conscious about the big brother, little brother vibe.
It didn’t feel like I was alone with him. It felt likeweweretogether.
Demir dropped me off in front of my apartment building, and I hurried inside. I was actually relieved to come back from the date rested and recharged, considering the day I had ahead myself.
“Are you ready to organize!” Alyssa cheered when she came through the front door ten minutes later, announcing it like she was hyping a professional wrestling match. She had a small filing cabinet in her arms and a big grin on her face.
“Ugh,” I groaned. “I guess.”
Alyssa laughed as I helped her set the filing cabinet down. Quickly, I rushed into the kitchen and flipped on the coffee. Luckily, I’d thought ahead to buy groceries a couple of days earlier, hopeful that the date would turn into a sleepover. Grabbing eggs and greens from the fridge, I started to throw together the breakfast I had promised.
“Zach is on his way,” Alyssa said. Dressed in an old pair of jeans and a worn T-shirt, she was clearly going to make me clean every corner of the place by the end of the day.
“I’m still not sure I feel comfortable having him help with this,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck. “It’s a lot to ask of a new friend. Plus, he’s going to get a very close look at my life…”
“You didn’t ask, he offered. And it’s not like he’s just here to help alphabetize files. Zach literally organizes people’s small businesses as his side job.” I squeezed past her to grab the cutting board, then went ahead with preparing food. “He’s being nice and offering you his skills,” she added.
“Right,” I said, although that just made me feel a different kind of awkward about taking him up on it. “Well, anyway, thank you again.”
“We’ll get a working system in place here,” Alyssa said confidently. “You’ll be shocked. Everything will just stay in its place after that.”
“If you say so. You should see the guy who lives here, though. Leaves his coffee mugs all over the place.”
Alyssa crossed to the stove and pushed around some greens in a pan. “You want to have your hot new dream boyfriends over without feeling awkward about the mess. That sounds like a good motivation to me.”
“They’re not my boyfriends,” I muttered as I poured myself a coffee.
A few minutes later, Zach showed up, a box of office supplies under one arm. He wore aReal Men Respect WomenT-shirt, stretched over his chest, and a casual pair of jeans that had been cut off above the knees. I immediately fell all over myself thanking him.
“I’ve never organized someone with a craft inventory,” he said brightly. “Sounds fun.”
That’s one word for it.
We chatted over breakfast, then slowly made our way into the work. I had done my version of organizing, putting things in different piles and tidying up as best I could.
“The thing is,” I said, “I do know where all the different supplies are.” I paused, then glanced at one of the piles. “Kind of.”
Zach explained that it was easiest one step at a time, and we started moving through what I had. Alyssa took notes while we moved stuff around, and it was like my brain was a jackrabbit, jumping between old clients and projects and hoping to remember the right details.
Strangely emotional, I thought, organizing some old taxes based on which state I had lived in at the time.
Soon enough, lunchtime was rolling around, and I ordered us a large delivery from a Lebanese restaurant down the road. We spread out plates and little dishes for sauces and passed the takeout containers around the small dining table, which had been immediately cleared at the start of the day.
“How are things going with your new boyfriend?” I asked Zach, remembering our conversation from brunch.
He held his fist in the air, stuck out his thumb, then turned it upside down. “The first time I had a bad day and needed support, he was suddenly very busy.”
“Good riddance,” Alyssa said, rolling her eyes.
“How about you and your boyfriends?” Zach asked. I noticed he didn’t seem too upset by the breakup and figured he must have a fair amount of dating experience.
“Good,” I answered. “They’re not my boyfriends, but we are dating happily.”
