by Anna Albo
I stifled a giggle. "I shouldn't laugh. My life is going to the shithouse. If I didn't have you, I'd be out on the street. Thanks for giving me a temporary place to stay.” Suddenly nothing seemed remotely amusing anymore. “Oh, God. I don’t know what I'm going to do. I guess, I mean if I can’t find something, I might have to drop out—"
"Hey, don't worry about that right now. You can crash with me for as long as you need. I have a spare room that my sister never uses. So don't even talk about dropping out."
"You'd do that for me?"
"I'd do that for any friend."
"I'll pay rent. I can pay you what I paid Jake."
"Em, my parents own the place, so you don't have to give me, or them, a dime."
"I can't do that. I'll pay utilities and buy food."
"How about you cook? I'll agree to that."
"And I'll buy food."
"Okay, fine, if that will make you happy."
Despite everything that had happened, I finally felt a moment of security. The constant anxiousness, like a snake coiling itself around me, finally loosened a little, but when we reached my apartment block, the suffocation returned. What if Jake was inside? I couldn't deal with a confrontation. Zach switched off the truck and I grabbed his arm. "What if he's up there?" I asked.
"I'm sure he's not. He told me he wouldn't come back tonight."
My heart raced and I felt hot and sweaty. "You're one hundred percent sure?"
"I'm positive."
The muscles in every limb tightened as I climbed out of the truck. We headed to the entrance. I was aching for sleep but functioning on necessity. I used my key and then it hit me. What would I do with my keys? I turned to Zach and before I opened my mouth, he spoke.
"Leave them with me. I'll give them to Jake."
I nodded and we proceeded to the third floor in silence. It was three thirty in the morning, so what did I expect? We reached apartment 310 and I slipped my key into the lock. We entered the darkness of the apartment and I switched on a light. No one was there.
"Do you just want to pick up what you most need? We can come back later for the rest."
"That's probably a good idea."
I looked around the room. The home I'd known for the last two-and-a-half months immediately felt foreign, like I didn't belong anymore. It was so instantaneous. I wanted to collapse on the sofa and not leave. This was my second home, the place I shared with Jake, and I didn't want to go. Perhaps it was the earliness of the morning and the lack of sleep, or that the events of the night were finally sinking in. I'd hit bottom. I had no one...except a guy I barely knew who for some reason was willing to give me a place to stay. My head was a jumble.
"Do you want me to help or should I wait?" Zach asked.
"I'M JUST GOING TO PACK the essentials. It won't take long."
In less than an hour I'd packed all I needed into my luggage and a duffel bag. Zach took them from me and tossed them in his truck. It was nearing five now and I could barely keep my eyes open for the ten-minute drive. Zach's building was much nicer than mine, but then, he was a senator's son. I followed him down the manicured cobblestone path to the glass double doors. He lived on the top floor and like my building, it was still. It was early Saturday morning. Who needed to be up?
"You can take Genie's room. I don't think she's used it since September," Zach said.
Genie? A girl? "Who's Genie?"
"My sister."
"Where is she staying?"
"Her boyfriend's place mostly. Other times she stays at my parents'."
"Why aren't you there?"
"I wanted to be on my own. If they are going to ship me off to their Ivy League school of choice, I told them I wanted a few years on my own without being under their thumb."
His place put ours to shame. The apartment was modern and spacious, easily twice the size of Jake's place. I would have taken more in, but I was falling asleep on my feet by this point.
"Genie's room is on the left. I'm sure you want to crash."
"I do."
"We'll talk in the morning."
I SLEPT UNTIL NOON and when I awoke to my unfamiliar surroundings, it took a minute for reality to set back in. I wasn't in my own room, but in some foreign bedroom with a double-sized bed, a warm and comfy down duvet, a flat-screen TV on the wall, and a cherry wood dresser complete with a huge mirror and matching nightstand. Zach's sister may have rarely used the room, but she sure had it decked out.
I showered and tried to wash away the night before. I padded into the kitchen to find it empty. I peeked down the hall to see that Zach's bedroom door was still closed. I silently went through the cupboards making mental notes of where he kept everything. The kitchen was bare bones and missing all sorts of small appliances. I'd be retrieving those from Jake's the first chance I got. What Zach did have was all top of the line and expensive, brand names I could only wish to own one day and now had full access to. His stove had more features than a Cadillac, and when I pulled the oven door open, it looked pristine. Either Zach didn't cook or he was the tidiest man I'd ever met.
I found the coffeemaker and some coffee. While it was brewing, I searched through his fridge. There wasn't much to work with. I sprang into action and used what little I had. By the time Zach joined me in the kitchen, I had a hybrid lunch ready to eat. I also had the table set in the dining room.
"Wow! I could really get used to this," he said, stretching and letting out a huge yawn. "What are we eating?"
He hadn't changed from his plaid pajama pants or the wrinkled white T-shirt that hugged his chest just enough to show off the ripped muscles beneath. I had to force myself to stop gawking.
"It's really nothing fancy. I made some open-face sandwiches with sunny-side up eggs, cheddar, and tomatoes, and I lightly sautéed the sliced ham you had. And there's coffee," I added as an afterthought.
"Thanks, Em. You didn't have to."
I was starting to like the way he called me that.
"You grocery shop like my dad, so I'm used to working with limited resources."
Oh, no—Dad. I'd have to call him at some point but I didn't know what I'd tell him. The truth? I couldn't. I put those thoughts aside. I'd deal with it later.
"It all looks delicious."
"It's the least I could do after all you've done for me. I thought I'd pick up some groceries today. Is there something nearby that I can walk or take the bus to?"
He nodded as he tore into breakfast. "There's something close by. I can drive you there or you can take my truck."
"Really? You'd let me? Jake had a huge issue with me taking his car."
"I don't have any particular attachment to my truck, so feel free to use it anytime."
Zach was nonchalant about it, which was such a refreshing change from Jake's constant uptight attitude. "Thanks. I'll use it only when necessary."
"Sure, whatever."
I watched him devour every morsel on his plate. His face now had full-on stubble and it looked good. I could see why every girl at Western wanted to be with him. Simply put, he oozed coolness. The sultry brown eyes, wavy, unkempt dark brown hair, and killer physique didn't hurt either. I didn’t know what was wrong with me. He was the total package, and yet my heart broke for a guy who'd thrown me out of our apartment and sided with a she-devil.
"How come you never mentioned your sister?"
"She didn't come up."
"How could she not love living here?"
"Because she loves living with her stupid boyfriend instead. If she needs to sleep here for some reason, we'll figure it out."
I sipped my coffee and watched him grab seconds. My stomach felt full even though it had been so long since I'd eaten. Mostly I was worried that Bianca would still come after me, that I'd be charged with assault. What if she saddled me with her medical bills? Or sued?
"Your face just got ten shades whiter. You feeling all right?"
"What if she sues me?"
He cocked his head. "Sues you
? Bianca?"
"She could. I don't have money to defend myself."
He fought hard not to smile. "She's not going to sue you. That's cute."
"What makes you think she won't?"
"I'm clairvoyant."
"This isn't funny," I said, my body going through two emotions at once. Not only were my hands clammy from a possible heart attack, but my cheeks were flushed from feeling silly at the prospect of Bianca's imaginary lawsuit.
"Let's bet on it. I bet she won't sue you. If I lose, I'll pay all your court costs. If I win, you make éclairs one day a week for the next ten years."
I rested my head on the back of the chair and grinned. "So you have something really horrible on her, don't you?"
He pointed to his lips. "These are sealed."
I could see him eyeing my plate so I passed it over.
"You sure?" he asked.
"I've been nibbling," I lied. I traced a finger around the rim of my coffee cup. "How long have you known Bianca?"
"Too long."
"She's a rich kid too."
"You bet. Her family is old money."
"How do you know her?"
"Us rich kids find each other," he said and winked. "A bunch of us hung out in high school. My private boys’ school and her private girls’ school. We have tons of mutual friends and when we started college, we all still hung out."
"And why don't you like her?"
He chuckled. "She's a vulture. She picks away at your dead flesh and when there's nothing more, she moves on." Zach paused. "Look, Jake is crazy about her, and when she dumps him, and she will, he's going to come slinking back to you, but not for the reasons you want."
I rolled coffee around in my mug. I'd never once told him how I felt about Jake...I'd never told anyone. Was it really that obvious? "I'm not sure what you mean."
"I think you're a funny, smart, and gorgeous girl who can get any guy she wants, but you don't put yourself out there. The problem is that the one guy you do want doesn't want you back. You've got to stop pining for him. Truth be told, he's a loser."
My back went up. "He's not a loser."
"He totally is and he'd be lucky to have a girl like you."
"Are you BSing me to make me feel better?"
"I've dated a lot of Biancas. I really need to be dating more Emmas."
"I think we Emmas would prefer you date only one of us at a time."
Zach rose and grabbed both our plates. "See what I mean? You have a sense of humor. Jake likes drama and high maintenance. I also think he likes a trophy, hence him being a loser."
"He's not a loser," I mumbled.
"Yes, he is," Zach called from the kitchen.
"You should put that superhuman hearing of yours to better use."
Zach ignored me. He came back from the kitchen and grabbed his phone from the coffee table. It buzzed for a second as he fired it back on. He scrolled through his messages and rolled his eyes a few times. "I guess I'm going to be monkey in the middle for a while. Jake wants to know when you're picking up the rest of your stuff. What should I tell the asswipe?"
My heart deflated. Jake was taking this seriously. Not once had he made an attempt to contact me. I'd only checked my phone a million times. "I could go over there later, if you don't mind helping me."
He expertly tapped on his phone and sent a text within seconds.
"I'm going to hit the gym and we can go after that. I'm sure he'll make himself scarce."
"Yeah. I don't think he wants to see me anytime soon."
"I'll check if there's room in storage if you need a place to put your things."
"Honestly, I don't have much other than some appliances. I figure we can use them here."
His phone buzzed and he scanned the text. "He says if we tell him a time, we can go get what's left."
"You pick the time. It's not like I have anywhere to be."
Zach furiously tapped again then tossed his phone back where he found it. "When I get back, we'll go. Remember, I want you to make yourself at home." His gaze was intense and I knew he meant it. Right now, Zach Walker was my only friend in the world.
CHAPTER TWELVE
EMMA
I sent Jake a few texts that went unanswered. I envied the control Bianca had on him. I envied Bianca because Jake loved her so much. I would have killed for him to look at me the way he looked at her. I would have given a limb for him to be with me, hold me, kiss me, and love me.
Those thoughts rambled through my head as I unpacked the occasional thing in between checking my phone. I was actually hoping that in the next few hours Jake would calm down and call, telling me what a horrible misunderstanding it had all been, but the only peep my phone made was a text from Dad. I texted him back, not wanting to call him yet. There was still a chance Jake would see the proverbial light.
Zach returned from his workout and shed his jacket. He hung it in the closet and I noticed again what a clean apartment he kept. Everything was neatly arranged and organized. The furniture was dusted and the hardwood floors polished. He was a rich kid and if I knew anything about kids of privilege, they didn't clean.
"I'm going to grab a quick protein shake and we can head out," he said.
"Sure, no problem. When does the cleaning lady come?" I asked.
"Every other Wednesday morning," he called back.
I smiled. Mystery solved. I followed him into the kitchen. Despite a cleaning lady, he was still neat and tidy. He'd done all the dishes, if you counted loading them haphazardly into a dishwasher.
"It shouldn't take me long. Like I said, I didn't leave much behind."
"It's not like I have anything better planned."
On the short drive reality slowly sank in. Jake wasn't changing his mind. Once again the apartment was empty, but this time, as an added insult, Jake had left some of my items next to the door, including some books I'd loaned him and a personalized pocket knife I'd gotten him for his birthday. I stared at the items, my heart crushing. For Jake to have done this, he was serious. And in the split second it took to get sad, a switch went off making me angry. After all the insults Bianca had hurled my way, and despite his complacency in it all, he still had the nerve to punish me. My cheeks burned and the adrenaline flowed. I wanted out of the there as soon as possible.
I grabbed Zach's arm and pulled him to my bedroom.
"Hey, I'm usually game, but now isn't a good time," he joked.
I wasn't interested in humor. "I want us to be out of here within an hour. Start putting everything in garbage bags. I'm going to pack up my appliances." And that would include the coffeemaker I’d paid for, and the grinder too. Jake could get his own.
Four trips later we had Zach’s truck packed up.
"Let me buy dinner," I said. "You pick the place."
"Let's go to Ben's."
"Ben's Burger Barn? Really? I owe you more than that."
"I'm craving burgers."
I smiled. Zach had that effect on me. I felt completely at ease with him, even more so than I did with Jake. Or...used to with Jake. Maybe because I wasn't in a constant state of worrying how he saw me. I didn't need to impress Zach.
Ben's Burgers was quiet for a Sunday evening. We took a booth and I perused the menu. I was starving, having not had a good meal in almost twenty-four hours. I decided to go full force with a cheeseburger and fries, including the gravy. I set down my menu and stole a glance at Zach. He was still a bit of an enigma. Why was he so nice to someone like me? Sure, he'd been friendly from the moment I met him, but based on Becca, I knew the kind of girls he liked and they weren't anything like me. They were knockout beauty queens, not girls who barely wore makeup, didn't fuss over clothes, and actually ate food.
The server came around and took our orders. Zach settled into his seat and fixed his gaze on me. Was this the look he used on all the girls? If so, I could see how it worked. He had me thinking I was the center of his world, and it was flattering. My skin tingled a little and although I wanted to
look away, I kept my eyes on his. The difference, though, was that I was immune to his charms.
"So," he said.
"So," I replied.
"I realized today that I don't know a whole lot about you. If I'm going to live with you, I should have more details."
"Like what?"
"You never talk to your mom."
I groaned. "Not her again. You're so obsessed with her."
"I'm trying to wrap my head around this. She never calls?"
"You know how often Halley's Comet comes around? That's how often I hear from Meredith. When I was twelve, she got married and me and Dad were invited. She asked Dad not to tell guests who I was, so they made up a lie that I was her cousin. I felt like she didn't want me around, which was probably true. Her husband knows about me but I don't think anyone else does."
"What about your other grandparents?"
"The last time I saw them was that day. I don't remember them saying hello. Pretty much all I remember is sitting near the back of the church with Dad and wondering why I wasn't part of the wedding. After that I wrote her off. She sends birthday and Christmas presents, but I don't care. You know, she didn't come to a single of my tennis tournaments. She was too busy with her new family. I have two little brothers I've never met."
Zach leaned over the table, engrossed in my not-so-entertaining story. "I still can't believe she walked out."
"She was fifteen when she had me. She didn't want to be tied down. To be honest, neither did my dad. He didn't always get the parent thing because he was so young himself. My first day of kindergarten he had to tell my teacher more than once that he was actually my dad and not my older brother. He'd barely turned twenty and he had a five-year-old. Think of yourself right now. Can you imagine towing around a five-year-old?"
"Sometimes I can barely take care of myself. So what was it like not having a mom around?"
"My grandma was a pretty good substitute. She died two-and-a-half years ago."
"Sorry to hear that."
"She wasn't sick for long, or at least she didn't let on. I miss her a lot."
