CHAPTER ONE
In the beginning, there was darkness. A heavy shroud that spread over everything, sinking into each narrow, carefully guarded crevice, clinging on with sharp, stubborn teeth.
It was hopeless, dark, suffocating despair.
Nothing more.
But then, one day, a spark, a glow, a glimmer in the void.
And suddenly, there was light…
It was supposed to be just me living here—those were my parents’ rules when I moved into this one-bedroom, one-bath apartment—but what they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?
But I’m starting to rethink my plan as I blink wildly at the applicant in front of me. Who the fuck is this? Why the hell can’t I stop staring at him?
I close my eyes and then open them again, taking in the man who is here to interview to be my roommate. He’s big and very muscular, with blue eyes and blond hair peeking out of a backward baseball cap.
I wet my lips and force myself to stop batting my eyelashes at him.
I clear my throat. “What’s your name?” I ask, and the guy folds his arms across his chest and then releases them. I can see his muscles bulge, mainly because he’s wearing a tank top that leaves nothing to the imagination. And there’s an oily stain near the bottom hem. Not sure how he lives like that.
I should give him the number of my dry cleaner. However, I’m pretty sure he’d never use it.
But worse than the stain, I can see his nipples through the worn fabric.
His right one has a very obvious ring piercing.
I scoff, wondering who the hell leaves the house like this. Not me, that’s for sure.
I roll my lips between my teeth and shift on my seat when he rumbles, “I’m Caleb van Beek.” He says it almost shyly. “Thanks for, um, meeting with me. This is a real nice place. Love it, really. It’s very fancy.”
My gaze flicks down to that nipple ring and then back up to him.
“Thank you. I like things orderly and neat.” I don’t know why I say that when he seems like the complete opposite. Dirty, wild, a little unkempt.
He pulls his cap off his head and runs a hand through those thick blond waves before putting it back on. I can see his armpit hair as he does it, and my skin heats.
I need to get the air conditioning checked in this place. It’s obviously malfunctioning.
“Yeah, I’m totally nice and neat. The neatest, man.”
I don’t believe that at all, but I hold that thought inside.
He laughs softly and then clears his throat and schools his face.
“Great to hear that. And you have the money to pay each month?” I ask, pulling out a contract I downloaded online and sliding it over to him.
He stares at it and wets those pink lips. “Wow, official. Aren’t you, like, my age? Who made you a lawyer?”
“I’m not a lawyeryet. But a contract protects us both. Now, do you have the money for monthly rent?”
He swallows and bobs his head. “Yeah, of course. I’m no thief. I may work at a junkyard, but I make enough there to make ends meet.”
“I didn’t say you were a thief,” I reply and then slide over a pen.
Those blue eyes meet mine, and my heart pitter-patters in my chest. I rub at it, hoping my reaction isn’t noticeable.
He cocks his head at me, confusion in his gaze. “Just like that? I mean, don’t you want to run, like, a background check?”
