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“Do you only buy bars?” she asked.

“No, I invest in anything with a service component that has the potential for high profitability,” I explained. “Bars, restaurants, fitness centers. Oh, and I’ve revitalized two boutique hotels.”

“Wow.” She looked impressed. “You’ve really made a success for yourself.”

“I do okay,” I said modestly.

Her expression turned sad. “I wish I could be more successful.”

“Why? What do you do?”

She shook her head and mustered a smile. “You know what, I’m being ridiculous. I’m no business mogul like you, but I have a very good job that I love, one that pays me well. I’m just having a bad day due to an unexpected financial set-back.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked, echoing my words from earlier.

She hesitated long enough that I thought she wasn’t going to share, then she spoke again.

“I got evicted from my apartment today, well I got a thirty day notice to move, anyway. It’s not my fault, they’re selling the building, but I just know it’s going to be another reason my parents think I’m a failure. They think because I’m not married and don’t own a home, I’m some kind of a slacker. When I got the eviction notice, I just let that noise get into my head,” she explained. “I mean, it’s a hassle to move again, and my savings will take another hit, but I’m fortunate enough to be able to afford a decent place in a decent neighborhood so I really should stop griping.”

“Wait, you’re looking for a new place to live?” I asked.

“Yeah, and fast too. I only have thirty days to move. Why? Do you know of any rentals coming up?” she asked.

The words were out of my mouth before my brain caught up. “You should move in with me. My place is much larger than I need, and I have a spare bedroom you can use.”

Olga’s mouth opened in surprise. My eyes flew to her lips, and I had a flash of something else she could do with those lips, but I shut that line of thought down right away. I was attracted to Olga, hell I’d fallen half in love with her the minute I set eyes on her again, but I wasn’t going to start creeping on her, especially if she was going to be my roommate.

If she decided she was going to be my roommate…

Olga

Ishook my head once, attempting to clear out my brain. Maybe those two dirty martinis had hit me harder than I thought, because I could have sworn that my grade school friend had just asked me to move in with him even though we hadn’t seen each other in twenty-five years.

“Mikey!”

He winced. “Please, Michael or Mike now. Mikey sounds like a snot nosed kid.”

“Well, you were a snot nosed kid when I knew you,” I reminded him with a laugh.

“Okay, Michael,” I said, emphasizing his full name. “Is the vodka making me hallucinate, or did you just invite me to move in with you after not seeing me since we were little kids?”

“I did.”

He acted like it was the most normal thing in the world to invite a virtual stranger to move in with him.

“I can’t move in with you,” I protested.

“Why not? I have an empty bedroom, two in fact. I live four blocks from here, and I’m gone a lot, so you’ll mostly have the place to yourself. And it’s a secure building with a doorman and a gym in the basement.”

“I have a cat,” I said.

“Bring it with you,” he responded with a careless shrug. “I don’t mind cats.”

“Him. Nutella can be a little cranky.”

That was a huge understatement. My cat was kind of a jerk.

“You named your cat Nutella?” he laughed. “That’s so funny.”