by Anthology
It felt odd having to leave her first apartment fresh out of college. She liked living alone. It only got lonely occasionally—and when it did, she just went to bed early. Even in college she didn’t have a roommate because her anxiety always got the better of her. Thanks to her doctor’s referral, she was able to live alone.
Jenna always felt that moving in with someone was a natural progression for two people that had dated for some time. So, why then, was she considering the move to Zayn’s? They weren’t dating.
“Because I have nowhere else to go, thanks to him.”
Apartments in the city were hard to find and not cheap unless they were on their way to run down. The farther outside the limits she went, the more commute time there would be, not to mention the added cost. If Zayn decided he was going to move everyone right away, there wouldn’t be time to search and apply for a new place, so she would have to put her big girl panties on and accept his offer.
Thanks to her air conditioner being repaired, at least it was bearable to be in the apartment and hopefully sleep would come easily. Jenna worked into the wee hours and got most of her belongings packed.
When she woke with her mind clear and her decision made, she grabbed a duffle bag full of clothes and headed out the door. Since it was Saturday, she was taking a chance that he would be home. It felt weird to call ahead, so she thought a surprise in-person conversation would be less awkward. She didn’t know him that well yet but anticipation drove her crazy.
The bus ride to his apartment building was very similar to the one she took to work every day, just an extra turn or two so her commute from his place to her office would technically be a little quicker. Maybe even within walking distance which would save her money.
When she stood out front after the bus pulled away, she hadn’t noticed before just how much taller the building was than anything she was used to. Good thing the elevator was fast, and she wasn’t afraid of heights. The attendant held the door open for her to walk into the building and when she stopped at the desk, no one was there to greet her, same as the last time. Was she supposed to wait, or would they notice her helping herself to the elevator again? The fact that no one manned the front desk made her wonder just how safe the building was—but anything was better than her own place.
When she reached Zayn’s door, she knocked hesitantly . There was quite a bit of commotion going on inside the apartment and she didn’t want to interrupt if he had company, so she turned away from the door just as it opened. When she looked back, it wasn't Zayn, but instead a beautiful woman peeked out.
“Can I help you?”
“Um, no, sorry. I have the wrong apartment.”
She waved a hand and walked back to the elevator quickly. She was at a loss. He invited her to move into his home, so not once had it crossed her mind that he would have another woman there. Maybe she was right after all, and the billionaire stereotype fit him better than she realized. She was disappointed in herself for trusting him. Jenna pushed the down button multiple times, but it didn’t make the elevator doors open any faster. How could she have been so stupid to actually believe him?
“Damn it, what is taking so long?”
She didn’t want to be in that building any longer than necessary. Right off hand, she knew there was a newspaper on her dining room table and she planned on throwing herself into the classifieds section until she found a new place to live, even if it took all night. She had money hidden away in an account she could use for a deposit, even though she’d been saving that for a higher purpose. At the moment, however, Jenna didn’t really have any other choice.
The elevator dinged and the entrance slowly opened. When she pushed the lobby button and leaned against the back wall, she watched the reflective doors move back together effortlessly. Right when the two became one, she could have sworn she heard her name echo from the hallway.
It was him, but it didn’t matter. The damage was done and she wouldn’t be played a fool twice. When the elevator stopped its descent, she stepped out and made her way to the front doors, regardless of the fact the front desk attendant desperately called out to her. More than likely the poor man was under orders from Mr. Holden to stop her. Reminiscent of the Gods smiling down on her, the bus home arrived right on queue and she hopped on like it was her own personal chariot. As she chose a seat, it drove away. She didn’t look back. Mostly, she didn’t trust herself not to change her mind because she felt bad.
Sympathy might just be the death of her.
“Damn it!”
“Is everything okay, Mr. Holden?”
Zayn stood outside on the sidewalk in front of his building, watching the city bus pull away.
“Thank you, Henry, but everything is far from okay.”
“If it’s any consolation, sir, she was very upset as well.” The front attendant nodded his head and held the door open while his employer moved back inside the building.
It didn’t help at all. In fact, the very thought made him feel even more horrible. She was hurt, and it was his fault—not intentionally but hurt just the same. He never imagined that Jenna would show up at his house out of the blue. He had one of his childhood friends there helping him add some life to the spare room to make Jenna more comfortable. She was an interior decorator and he was horrible at that stuff.
What she must have thought when Ann answered the door. Flowers weren’t going to fix this situation. He had to go find her and make things right. Luckily, he knew where she lived.
When he got back to the penthouse, Ann was waiting in the living room and she looked almost as upset as he knew Jenna was.
“Did you catch her?”
“No, the bus pulled away right as I got to the sidewalk out front.”
“Zayn, I am so sorry. This is all my fault. I never should have answered your door.”
“It’s not your fault, I had no idea she would even come here—but then maybe I should have expected it. She is one of those women that has a mind of her own.”
“You really like this woman, don’t you?”
“No, I don’t.”
Do I? Yeah, I guess I do.
“I think you’re lying to yourself. I could see the look on your face when you talked about her. I’m not saying you’re in love just yet but I can tell you have feelings for her. You’ve never acted this way about a woman before.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter now. I just screwed that all up.”
“You didn’t, I did. Are you going to go find her?”
“Should I?”
“Yes, absolutely. She has no idea what she walked into when she knocked on your door. She expected you to answer, not another woman. Trust me, it’ll keep replaying in her head until she hates you. Go. Fix. It. Now. I have a meeting so I’ll stop by in a day or two, but I’ll call you first.”
“Okay, fine. I’ll go. But you can just go ahead with the ideas you had for the room and tell Jack I’ll call him next week to reschedule?”
When Zayn was left alone in his apartment he walked to the window. The town was busy and there were people everywhere. She was out there, somewhere, too. He hoped she went back to her apartment because that’s where he was going to start. Well, it wasn’t really even a start because there was no where else he knew to go to look for her. Her office was closed for the day, unless she was a workaholic like him.
He changed into something more comfortable and called the Chinese place he always ordered from. When he found Jenna—and he would find her, even if he had to look all night—he didn’t want to be empty-handed. Everyone ate and if she was really angry, maybe she wasn’t thinking about her own wellbeing.
The thought that her anger was directly his fault made him feel like a horrible person and it consumed him during his drive across town. Maybe if he had just been more open with her about more of himself he wouldn’t be in this situation now. Flowers wouldn’t smooth this over, not that he was that type of guy anyway. He sent flowers in hopes to brighten her day or make her fe
el special. This was not either of those situations.
Zayn was parked in front of Jenna’s building with hot Chinese and drinks packaged on the front seat. Her lights were on which probably meant she was there but he was frozen in place. He was afraid to face her, mainly for fear of rejection. Which meant he really did like her. His hope was that after he explained why there was a woman answering his door, she would forgive him but his bigger fear was that she wouldn’t even hear him out.
He forced himself to get out of the car and go to her. There wasn’t a lock on the front door of the building so he walked in and climbed the stairs to her door. He knocked once to no response so he knocked a second time. When he tried a third time he heard movement behind the door.
“Jenna, I know you’re in there. I saw the lights from outside and I just heard you move. Please, just open the door. All I want to do is explain. I brought…”
The door opened with a rush of air and Jenna stood in front of him. She didn’t look mad, however—but very hurt and that definitely made him feel worse.
“What do you want, Zayn?”
CHAPTER EIGHT
The last thing she needed right now was to see him. She didn’t want to hear his voice or smell the cologne that emanated from his body. She was starved but no way was she agreeing to eat the food he’d brought.
“I need to explain why there was a woman in my apartment.”
“You don’t owe me any explanation. It’s your place, you can do whatever you want.”
She started to shut the door and he placed his hand against it.
“Please?” he pleaded.
She stared coldly, as if she were looking right through him.
“Fine, but make it quick. I’m busy.”
When he walked inside there were boxes all over the living room floor. Clearly, she was packing her things. He really hoped that meant she was going to agree to move in with him. At least until she saw Ann at his door.
“Hey, I brought Chinese. I wasn’t sure if you’d had time to eat.”
“Listen Zayn, I’m not really in the mood for visitors tonight so if you could just get it over with, I need to get back to my classified ads.”
“Why are you using the classifieds? Please don’t tell me you’re looking for apartments. I promise it’s still okay for you to use my second bedroom.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Haven’t you ever heard that three’s a crowd?”
“Listen Jenna, it’s not like that. I promise.”
“Then what is it like Zayn, because I don’t think it would be too comfortable for me to be living with my landlord and his girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend, she’s married.”
“And that makes it better? I think it’s time for you to leave. I’ll let you know when I’ve found something.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Fine, I’ll call the cops. You may own the building but I pay rent so it’s still my apartment.”
“Jenna, please just listen. The woman that answered my door is a long-time friend of mine. She is married, but happily to one of my best friends. We are not together in any capacity. I hired her to help me make over the spare bedroom so it would be more appealing to you if you chose to move in.”
“No way is she a decorator. She’s too perfect.”
“Not perfect, by any stretch, just used to living well. She knows how to spend her husband’s money, even though she makes plenty of her own.”
Ugh.
“Okay, so maybe I can see why she was there, then. But why was she answering your door?”
“Because I was in my bedroom on the phone. I had no idea you were coming over. I swear the front desk is slacking at their job. Ann was only helping out and she feels horrible.”
Jenna left the door open for him to come in while she put her cell phone on the counter. If he was really telling the truth, she wouldn’t need to call the police. But should she trust him? Looking back now, she should have stayed and demanded to see Zayn and caught him in the middle of something. From what he says though, she would only have caught him decorating, which would have made her look like the idiot she was.
When she turned back toward the door he was still standing in the hallway.
“Does this mean you believe me?”
“I’m trying to figure out whether I should. You might as well come in.”
Zayn was thrilled that she was letting him come in her house. He had convinced himself that she would slam the door in his face and he would go home broken-hearted and worse yet, having broken the heart of the woman he was really beginning to care about.That was a pretty big step for him, he cared about her. It felt great. He was more determined than ever to not leave her apartment until she’d forgiven him and he could make things right again.
“Are you hungry?”
Zayn put the bags on the table and started to unpack everything. He’d asked for plastic silver wear at the restaurant so things would be easier just in case he got the green light from her.
“I suppose I could eat.” But she didn’t budge. Arms remained crossed over her chest.
“Listen, Jenna. I’m not even real sure where to start. I feel horrible about today, I really do. I never once thought about you showing up at my place. I should have though and that’s my fault.”
“I just figured showing up would cut out any of the anticipation of calling first. I worry about a lot of things and procrastinate even more. Basically, I couldn’t bring myself to call. Took me from the night before to actually decide I was going to show up in the first place. I was afraid if I called, then I’d talk myself out of going.”
“I can understand that.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t trust you enough to stick around and find out who the woman was answering your door.”
Zayn left the Chinese and moved closer to Jenna.
“You do not have to apologize for anything. I was in the wrong for not telling you more about what I was thinking. That would have cleared up a lot.”
“Well, I think this is a learning experience for both of us. You’ve never had anybody live with you obviously and I’ve never lived with anyone other than my parents.”
She walked away, moving toward the window where he could see the fire escape.
“I need to be honest though. You’re not what I expected or accused you of being. I’ve never known a millionaire before but I already had a preconceived vision of who you were and I was wrong so I am sorry for that.”
Wow. He searched her out to apologize for being a putz, not knowing how things were really supposed to work between two people and she apologized?
“And I’m sorry about Ann answering the door at my apartment. She promised she will not do that ever again. She is going to be back in a few days to work on the bedroom but promised she will call first.”
“Listen, we’re both acting like we’re in a relationship here, but neither of us has a clue. It wasn’t my place to act out at all toward either of you about any of it.”
“So, is that what this is, a relationship?”
She turned her back toward the window, where he’d gotten much closer. Her shoulders shrugged. His gaze couldn’t seem to look away from the luscious lips she was nervously licking.
“Would that be bad, if it was?”
His head shook as he moved his fingers to graze over the softness of her face. He wanted to kiss her again. He wasn’t going to ask permission and wouldn’t apologize. He wanted herWhen his lips finally took possession of hers, there was a sense of completion flowing through him. Like he was complete with her. And he kissed her like there was no tomorrow. Even though he would not let her go without a fight. He wrapped her in a tight embrace, moving them toward her couch.
He already knew kissing her this time just wouldn’t be enough. He wanted more and hoped to God she did too.
When he felt the cushions hit the back of his legs, she took a step away from him, breaking the moment. Had he misread
the situation? She’d been eagerly returning his obvious advances. But the answer came when she swiftly removed her t-shirt, throwing it on the floor and then looked at him with an evil grin that lit his insides on fire.
“You are beautiful and right now I want to touch every single inch of you. Is that a problem?”
“Well, since that’s what I’d really like to do to you, I don’t think it’s a problem.”
She smiled and felt her way to the bottom edge of his shirt. He was way ahead of her, however, and threw it on the floor next to hers. He fingered the lace on the front of her bra while she worked on the button fly of his jeans. The movement of her fingers against the rock-hard erection he’d had since he started kissing her was bringing him that much closer to the edge. If he didn’t stop her, there would be no point in taking his pants off.
“You’re driving me crazy, you know that?”
“I was hoping.” Her grin did almost as much to him as her fingers. He took over removing his jeans while she got rid of her shorts.
When they both stood naked, he didn’t wait for an invitation. He grabbed her waist, pulling her snug against his need for her and took possession of her lips, then moved down her neck to her chest where he pulled a nipple in between his teeth. His fingers found her free nipple and twisted gently until she moaned. With an arm wrapped around her, he sat on the couch, pulling her to straddle him.
She moved on him until they were connected, her wet core slowly encompassing every inch of him until she was firmly seated. Like it was meant to be, they moved together in a rhythm that took them both over the edge.
CHAPTER NINE
Jenna woke in a messy pile of blankets on the middle of her living room floor, alone, wondering where Zayn had disappeared to. Was he ashamed? Had she been too forward in assuming he wanted to sleep with her?
“Jesus woman, get out of your own head for two seconds.” If he hadn’t wanted any of that, he could have left at any time.
