by Stella James
“Thanks, it’s nice to meet you too. Are you just staying for the summer or are you here for good?” Hanna asks.
“Well hopefully for good, but I’m having a hard time finding anything to rent,” I say. “I’ve been staying at the Rocky Rapids motel but to be honest, I’m getting just a bit sick of it.”
“Hey Brent, wasn’t Eric looking for a renter for that basement suite a while ago?” Molly asks.
“Yeah he never did find anyone, I think he was being too picky because of Jamie,” he says. “I’d be happy to leave his number and you could give him a call if you want.”
“Sure, that would be great! Um, who is Jamie?”
“Oh, that’s my niece, she’s six,” he says smiling. “But if you’re worried about kids she’s well behaved and I think you even have a separate entrance so you probably wouldn’t even notice her.”
“Oh I’m not worried,” I laugh. “I love kids.”
He jots down his brother’s number and slides it across the table. I’m going to call this Eric as soon as my shift is done and hopefully my luck is about to change.
*
I fold up my apron and set it on the shelf in the staffroom just as Megan and Ellis, two of the high school girls who work evenings grab theirs and head out front. They’re nice girls but it’s clear they are in deep conversation about some party this weekend so I give a quick hello and leave them to it. I usually stay and tidy up a bit after my shift but it’s been quiet all afternoon so there isn’t much left to do.
I leave through the back door and once I’m in my car with the AC cranked, I unfold the paper that Brent gave me this morning with his brother’s info. I tap in the number and sing along with Kacey Musgraves while I wait for him to pick up. A moment later the ringing stops but I can’t hear anything besides some loud banging in the background and the muffled voice of who I assume is the man I’m looking for. After a few exasperated attempts at introducing myself, I hang up and decide to try my luck with a text message instead.
Me: Hi there! I got your number from Brent, he said you might have a basement suite available to rent and I was wondering if you would be able to meet tomorrow? Perhaps sometime after 3? I promise this is a serious inquiry.
I continue to sit in my car and enjoy the cool air blowing through my vents while I wait for his reply. If he flat out says no, I’d like to know now so that I can make a couple more calls before heading back to my room. Several minutes pass and I think maybe I should just make those calls just in case but then my phone vibrates and I see it’s from him.
Unknown: I can’t guarantee anything, but I can meet you in town tomorrow at 330.
Me: Great thank you! Would Rosie’s be okay?
Unknown: See you then.
Thank God. I toss my phone on the passenger seat and pull out of the parking lot. It isn’t until I’ve gotten out of the shower that I realize I forgot to tell this guy my name. I feel like a moron texting after so much time has gone by. But I’m sure the girls at work will know who this Eric is anyways, they can point him out to me.
*
Today has been busy as hell, my feet ache as I stand in the small staff bathroom and fix my hair, trying my best to look presentable. I dab some concealer on the bags under my eyes and curse the guy who checked into the room beside me for snoring so damn loud that I was kept up half the night. I need to get out of that motel room, the sooner the better and I am mentally crossing every appendage on my body that Brent’s brother works out. When I look at least half ass put together, I put on a clean shirt and head back out front, taking a seat in one of the booths along the window.
Megan brings me a cup of coffee and I check the time on my phone to see that I have ten minutes to kill. I check out Pinterest and look at cheap ways to decorate a small space, saving a few ideas that might be useful when I look up as the door opens and see none other than him…again. I should really find out what this guy’s name is so that I know what to call him in my head besides Mr. It’s a shame he’s so fine because he’s clearly a judgemental ass who needs to lighten up.
Blue Falls is small and I’m bound to keep running into him. He glances over at me briefly and offers me a tight smile which naturally means that I have to respond with an enthusiastic wave and toothy grin. He looks away and shakes his head slightly, taking a seat at one of the stools at the counter. I check my phone and sip my coffee as the minutes tick by. It’s nearly four when I’m about to give up and call to see if I’m being stood up just as Molly walks out from the office with her purse slung over her shoulder. She heads for the door and glances over at me and then back at the guy sitting on the stool.
“Ya know, this whole tenant/landlord interview might work better if ya’ll sat together and actually talked, right?” She says with a laugh, as she opens the door and it clangs shut behind her.
I look over at him just as he looks over at me.
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Chapter 4
Eric
Fuck. When the door to the diner shuts behind Molly I look over to where Grey is sitting and the look on her face tells me that she is just as surprised as I am. We didn’t exactly get off to a great start and it’s obvious this isn’t going to work. I don’t know what kind of lifestyle she leads and I don’t have much interest in finding out, even if she is a beautiful woman. Not that I’m looking. She stands from her table and walks towards me. She’s got on the same faded denim shorts she was wearing the first time I saw her and a snug fitting orange T-shirt. Her blonde hair is pulled back in a lazy braid and as she approaches I can see she has the same natural look she had last time too.
“Nice to meet you Eric,” she says with a humorless laugh as she takes the stool beside me. I pretend not to notice the light sent of her perfume as she sits down.
“Yeah, about that, I can’t give you the rental, I’m sorry,” I say, taking a five out of my pocket and laying it on the counter for Megan. “I wish you the best of-“
“Okay, I get it,” she says, gripping my arm. “We are clearly very different people, and I know you have a daughter and you need to be careful but I swear I’m not crazy. I’m neat and tidy, I make a decent wage here including tips and I can’t sleep in that motel anymore or I swear I am going to lose my mind. Mercy? Please?”
She looks up at me, her brown eyes pleading and obviously tired judging by the faint dark smudges beneath them. I tamp down the nagging voice in my head that says I should give this woman a break while also ignoring the way her fingertips feel as they dig into my skin.
“Please, just at least ask me some questions like you would any other potential tenant. At least make an informed decision?” She says with a hopeful smile. I sigh with defeat and slump back down onto the worn out stool.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-six.”
“Where are you from?”
“Big loud city, far away and not worth mentioning.”
“Why are you in Blue Falls?”
“I needed a fresh start and I used to come here with my parents every summer when I was a kid,” she says, her clipped tone softening just a bit.
“How long are you staying?”
“Indefinitely,” she says with a smile.
“And what if this doesn’t work out, then what will you do?”
“Go back to the motel I guess or maybe find a room at a B&B,” she says shrugging her shoulders.
She fidgets with the loose strings on the cuff of her shorts and I can’t even pretend to understand what’s gotten into me but I suddenly find myself telling her she can come by and look at the suite.
“Really? That would be great!” She smiles widely and I find myself momentarily stunned at the way it reaches her eyes and makes them appear brighter. “Right now?” She asks.
I check the time and since my mom picked Jamie up from summer camp and took her to my parents place I figure I might as well get this over with now.
“Yeah, you can follow me out there. You have
a car?”
“Yes I do, I’m parked out back,” she says as she grabs her bag off the counter and stands. “What do you drive?”
“A white Dodge Ram, I’ll stop at the corner and wait for you.”
“Sounds great!” She says, still smiling.
Shit. Something tells me this decision is going to bite me in the ass.
*
Sweat drips down my forehead as I methodically hit the punching bag over and over, the repetition of each fist coming into contact with the heavy vinyl distracts me enough to ignore the dull throb in my shoulder blades. Two days ago I went against my better judgement and offered the rental suite to Grey. She followed me out to the house, her small VW Jetta bumping along on the rough country roads. I parked my truck and waited for her to pull up beside me and when she got out of her car she stared up at our home like it was a castle.
I’m proud of what I built for Jamie and I but the house itself is modest in size, more like a cottage instead of the larger log cabins that are popular in the area. I showed her the suite, which takes up the majority of the basement with the exception of the laundry room and the corner space where I have the gym set up. I watched in begrudged fascination as she ran her fingertips along the kitchen counter tops, smiling the entire time. The suite is furnished with the basics which she was equally pleased about and before I knew it, we were talking price which she somehow managed to haggle down by two hundred dollars.
Today is Saturday and she’ll be moving in later this morning since she has weekends off from the diner. I’m still not sure I made the right call but the extra money will be nice and Molly and Jack both vouch for her.
I grab the towel off the weight bench and wipe my face before snagging my T-shirt and pulling it over my head. I climb the stairs and see Jamie right where I left her, sitting on the couch watching cartoons. I ruffle her hair as I walk by and head upstairs to take a shower. Saturdays are usually spent running errands and getting groceries for the week. I’ll stick around until Grey gets here so I can give her the key and then Jamie and I will go about our business. I told her last night that a woman will be staying in the basement so she won’t be allowed to play down there anymore and she must have asked me fifty questions about Grey before her curiosity was satisfied. Of course that evolved into a conversation about why I don’t spend time with women. I swear I forget she’s only six sometimes but she’s got a point.
I strip off my clothes and start the shower, the hot water easing the burn in my shoulders as I step under the spray. I tilt my head back and let the water wash over my sweat damp hair and drag my hands roughly down my face. Whenever the memory of feeling a woman underneath me creeps in, it isn’t Brandi that I think of or the woman I slept with in that motel room.
She’s a faceless, nameless body with generous curves and soft skin. Long hair that can be gripped tight and long legs that wrap around my waist. Warm and wanting. The image sends blood to my cock and like I have countless times over the last three years, I stroke myself hard and fast until I’m panting. I take myself to the edge and grunt with satisfaction as the first drop of cum leaks from my dick and I begin to feel instant relief. After I’ve made a mess all over myself like a damn teenager, I soap up and rinse off. Fuck, this shit is getting old.
Just as I come down the stairs, there’s a knock at the door and Jamie instantly perks up.
“Is that the lady, Daddy?”
“I think it might be,” I say reaching for the door and pulling it open. Grey stands on the other side, holding a box from Olive’s Café in one hand and a tray with two coffees in the other. She’s wearing tight black pants and loose fitting blue T-shirt that hangs over her one tattooed shoulder, exposing a black bra strap. Her long blonde hair is held back loosely and for a fraction of a second I wonder if she ever wears her hair down.
“Good morning,” she says. “I brought treats, to say thank you,” she grins, stepping inside. “I wasn’t sure how you like your coffee so I just got it black like mine.”
“Thanks, you didn’t have to,” I say.
“It’s just coffee Eric. Seemed like the neighbourly thing to do,” she says.
Jamie peeks up from behind the couch and I can see her eyes go instantly wide when she spots the pink baker’s box. Grey glances over at her and before I can suggest we head outside so I can help her haul her things downstairs, she pushes the tray into my hands and walks over to the sofa.
“You must be Jamie,” she says as she sits down. “I’ve heard a lot about you and actually, you look familiar. I think I’ve seen you before, haven’t I?”
Jamie giggles and nods her head and I’m thinking yet again, that I’ve missed something. Grey opens the box of pastries and inhales loudly.
“Mmm, these smell delicious don’t they? I think we should share one, if that’s okay with your dad,” she says glancing back at me. I nod my approval since I doubt I have much of a choice anyways and take the tray holding the coffees into the kitchen. I can hear the soft murmur of them talking and snickering while I add milk and sugar to one of the Styrofoam cups.
When I come back into the living room, Jamie is explaining to a captivated Grey just who Sofia the First is and why she loves her so much. I clear my throat to catch her attention and she surprises me by holding a finger up to halt me.
“And are Sofia and her new step sister friends now?” She asks Jamie.
“Yes, they’re friends now since Cinderella came and told Sofia about her own step sisters and how she wished they were friends.”
“I see,” Grey says. “Well I don’t have any sisters or brothers so I can’t really relate, but I’m glad they worked it out.”
Jamie nods along and turns her attention back to the T.V. as Grey looks over at me and spots the coffee in my hand. She stands from the couch and leaves the box on the coffee table before coming over to me and taking the cup from my extended hand.
“Sorry,” she says. “She was so excited to tell me and I didn’t want her to think that I wasn’t interested.” She sips her coffee and moans quietly. “Damn that is good coffee,” she says.
“I’ll help you bring your stuff in, Jamie and I have errands to run,” I say coolly. I’m not sure what irritates me so much about her sharing a moment with my daughter but having her in our space is rubbing me the wrong way. She’s a means to an income, nothing more and I think it best that I remind her of that before she oversteps her boundaries. It’s obvious judging by her personality that she has no problem making herself comfortable and I don’t want Jamie getting the wrong idea.
“Lead the way,” she says, seemingly oblivious to my irritation.
We head back out the front door and down the steps. She opens the back door of her car and all that’s there is two suitcases and a duffle bag.
“This is it?” I ask. There’s a flicker of sadness in her expression but she’s quick to cover it up with a smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. The fact that I notice irritates me even more.
“I travel light,” she says. “If you can just grab that one, I’ve got these.”
I ignore her instructions and set my coffee on the roof of her car, pulling both suitcases from the seat and carrying them down the small concrete stairway that leads to the basement entry. I set them just beside the door and when I turn around I nearly smack right into her.
“Sorry,” she says. “I thought you could hear me.” She’s so close I can feel the heat from her body and the scent of fruit mixed with vanilla teases my nose. I shake my head and remind myself what I wanted to spell out for her.
“Look,” I say, taking a step back. “I get what you were doing upstairs and I appreciate it, but we need to get a few things straight. We are not friends, you are not a female figure for my daughter and we need to keep this deal straight or it’s not gonna work out.” I take the key from my pocket and hand it to her. “You are my tenant and nothing more. We don’t spend time together, hell we don’t even need to see each other unless you’re giving me
a cheque.”
She looks like she wants to argue with me before she thinks better of it and simply smiles tightly, taking the key from my hand.
“I’m sorry,” she says. “I didn’t mean to overstep.” She pulls a folded paper from her pocket and slides it into my still open palm. “Here’s the first month and damage deposit. I’ll stay out of your hair,” she says, stepping around me and gently closing the door behind her.
I stand there for several minutes, still feeling the heat from where her hand touched mine. Fuck. I really need to go on a date.
*
It’s Monday morning and after I drop Jamie off at camp my day instantly turns to shit. A mix up in orders has put my crew behind schedule and an electrical problem over at the other jobsite has put Cole and his crew back at least a week. We’re meant to start on the elementary school in two weeks but there is no way in hell we’ll be caught up enough to pull that off. Which means that starting tomorrow it’s going to be earlier mornings and longer days until we can get these matching cluster fucks back on track.
I spend most of my day on the phone sorting shit out and by the time I’ve finished and put in some actual labour, the day has flown by and it’s nearly time to pick Jamie up. I don’t know what the hell I’m going to do about childcare for the next two weeks. My parents usually help out but they left this morning in their motor home for a three week holiday. I’d ask my brother’s wife Hanna, but with their baby Max being so new I don’t want her to feel obligated to amuse Jamie when she could be resting. I could check and see if there is a free spot at the daycare but Jamie would hate that.
As I pull up to the community center, I briefly think that maybe I could work something out with Grey. Molly and Jack both raved about her when she was interested in the suite and knowing that she’s building a friendship with Lily and putting down some roots in town eases my parental paranoia some. I’ll feel like a fucking asshole asking her, especially after the way I blatantly told her that she is nothing more to us than a tenant. She kept to herself the remainder of the weekend, quietly unpacking I assume. She respected my wishes, or demands I should say, and the thought of yet again eating my own words in front of her is already bruising to my ego. But my options are slim and it would only be for a couple hours each day and Jamie is old enough to tell me if she’s uncomfortable with the idea. I weigh my non-existent options and hope that Grey is still feeling neighbourly.
