Chapter 7: Landlord Wars: Chapter 7

Sophia

I held the red blouse to my chest, then switched it for the blue and huffed out a breath. What was I thinking, agreeing to this? I had no time for dating. I should be packing. Instead, I was going out with a stranger.

My boss, Victor, whom I’d grown close to these last several months, had been so excited to set me up with his son’s friend that I couldn’t say no. I mean, I could have said no, but I’d been wanting to meet new people and start dating again. At least now I could say my shallow ex-boyfriend wasn’t the last guy I’d been out with.

After jamming my bare feet into fluffy slippers, I tucked my hair turban more securely on my head and shuffled down the hallway, holding up both blouses. “Which one?” I shook the offending tops in front of Jack, who was sitting on the couch.

He looked up from the soccer game and squinted. “What? Oh, um, the blue. No—red. Go with the red.”

“Are you sure?”

“Hell no, but you needed someone to make a decision.”

True fact. I’d turned to race back to my bedroom when a knock sounded at the front door, and I froze.

I looked over at Jack. “Crap!”

He set the remote on the coffee table and stood. “Your date picking you up?” he said, heading for the front door.

“No.” And thank goodness. I’d told my boss I would meet this guy at the restaurant. But his showing up here wasn’t what had me panicked. I was experiencing flashbacks of Landlord Devil showing up unannounced. I had that kind of timing when it came to him: my house in disarray, running into him punishing his ex, you get the picture. I’d avoided him over the last couple of days, and I wanted it to stay that way until I was gone.

I hid inside the hallway, and Jack opened the front door.

“Hi, I’m Elise,” I heard my sister say.

She entered the house, smiling cheerily. Her hair was swept forward over one shoulder like a dark curtain, and her chest rose and fell as though she’d run up the stairs to our apartment. She dumped her book bag by the entry.

Jack tracked her movements with a steely, non-brotherly stare, which I did not appreciate. “You’re the sister?”

“The one and only.” She winked. “I’m sure Sophia’s mentioned how awesome I am.”

That girl had zero arrogance. None.

Jack scratched his jaw, seemingly perplexed. “Not exactly.”

When the silence drew out, I called, “Back here.”

Jack looked over, and I widened my eyes, lips compressed, sending him what I hoped was an eyeball death threat, because he was a little too focused on my pretty baby sister.

He held up his hands, acknowledging my unspoken words, and headed for the couch.

I liked Jack. He was a good guy. But he was fresh out of a bad relationship and still licking his wounds. People in pain didn’t make the best partners.

Elise crossed to the hallway where I was huddled. “You look ready,” she said dryly.

I tore off the towel turban and raced into my bedroom. “I’m going to be late. Why are you here?”

“Because you texted me and told me you had a blind date.” She followed me into the bedroom and closed the door behind us. “You’re probably seconds away from calling and canceling.”

“Rude,” I said and tossed the blue blouse on my bed before slipping on the red. I wasn’t about to share how I’d thought about it multiple times. “I might have forgotten how to date. Or talk to men. This is going to be a disaster.”

Elise gave me a sharp look. “You can’t back out. And not because Victor set you up. He adores you and wouldn’t hold it against you. You can’t back out because I think you need a conversation with a man who isn’t a client or your boss.”

“I have a male roommate. We converse. He even helped me choose this top tonight.”

She nodded in appreciation. “Baby steps.”

I hopped on one leg and pulled on a pair of slim black pants. “I don’t know why I’m even bothering to date. It will end up exactly how things did with Paul.” I was being a Debbie Downer after I’d convinced myself this was the right thing to do, but when you know, you know.

Elise shook her head. “Very fatalistic of you. Paul was an ass. I could see his insecurities from a mile away.”

I reached for a pair of nude heels on the top shelf of my closet. “Well, I couldn’t. Which means I shouldn’t date until I can spot the bad apples.”

Elise picked up the relaxation candle I’d bought off Polk Street this week and sniffed. She scrunched her nose and set it down, elucidating my ass-poor taste in—well, everything, apparently. “You doubt yourself, and that’s why you can’t figure out men’s motives.”

I threw up my hands. “I shouldn’t need to figure out their motives. It should be apparent. And anyway, Paul didn’t have any hidden interests when we met. He liked me; he was just shallow and scared of his parents.”

Elise made a sound of disgust. “A man who can’t speak for himself is extremely unattractive. You’re better off without him.”

“That’s what people always say when you get dumped,” I pointed out.

I’d cared about Paul, but when I looked back, there had been red flags, especially when it came to his family. He’d taken me out and I’d met his friends, but never his parents. I should have seen the signs. Now it was hard for me to trust anyone, including myself.

Elise sat on the bed and patted the mattress. “I’ll do your makeup. You don’t play up your eyes enough.”

I sat obediently and blindly transferred essential items to a small black purse while my sister worked on my eyes. Deep down, I desired a relationship. And going on a blind date through a trusted source was better than giving my number to a stranger at a bar or connecting through a dating app.

She squeezed my cheeks, holding my head in place. “Quit moving. Unless you want winged eyeliner?” She quirked her brow suggestively.

“I’ll stick with the natural look, thank you.” I waited patiently while she beautified me.

“Almost done?” I asked after a few minutes. But when I opened my eyes, she was staring, a light smile on her face.

“I’m proud of you,” she said and tucked the eyeliner pencil back into the makeup bag. “I know you’re scared to date, but it can’t hurt to have more friends in your life, right?” She considered me thoughtfully for a beat. “At the very least, this guy could become a friend.”

I’d had casual friends over the years, but no one who was a constant. My sister was my best friend. “Sure.”

“Now, where’s your pepper spray?” Elise said, swiveling her head dramatically and looking around my room.

I dropped my jaw. “You just told me tonight would be fine!”

Elise laughed. “I’m teasing. Victor is more protective than I am. He wouldn’t send you into the arms of a psycho.”

“As if you can tell by just looking whether or not someone is a psycho.” I glanced in the mirror across from my bed and frowned. “I said natural. This is more makeup than I normally wear.”

“You normally wear almost no makeup, so yes, this would be more. Your eyes are beautiful, and you don’t accentuate them up enough. You should wear makeup like this every day.”

I stood and grabbed my purse. “That would require an extra five minutes of getting ready time in the morning, and you know I need my sleep.” I checked my phone. “I better go, or this guy will be waiting.”

Elise shot me a look of frustration as we made our way down the hallway. “It’s okay to be late, Soph. Part of your problem with Paul was that you took on the burden of everything, including making sure he was never put out. It’s okay for a man to be put out. The ones who stick around despite it are the ones you keep.”

Sometimes Elise was wiser than her years. “I’m working on it, okay?”

Elise and I looked up at the same time the faint sound of voices came from the living room.

A sinking feeling came over me as my heels clacked on the hardwood floor, with Elise walking quietly beside me in sneakers. The sound of the voices grew louder. More distinct, male, and familiar.

Jack stood abruptly from his place on the couch the moment Elise and I entered the room, his gaze on her before moving sharply away.

I caught that look of interest, but it wasn’t enough to distract me from the other person taking up the space.

Jack muted the TV and made his way to the kitchen. “Max, this is Elise, Sophia’s sister.”

Elise smiled and greeted Max while the tension in my belly grew. Why did my roommate have to be best friends with this man? If Max were only the landlord, I might be able to avoid him. There’d be no reason to move.

Somehow, I knew Max Burrows would show up tonight—the first time I’d been out on a date in a year. As though he sensed my vulnerability and sought to capitalize on the moment.

Max nodded a greeting at Elise, then slowly swept his gaze over me and my outfit. “Going somewhere?”

“She has a date,” Elise said brightly, and nudged me with her elbow.

My face heated. Why the hell was I embarrassed? I was twenty-seven years old, almost twenty-eight. I should be going on dates every weekend. It was only because I was a workaholic wounded animal after my last relationship that I’d failed to master that twenty-something rule. “I should get going.” I glanced at Elise.

“Oh, yeah, me too,” she said.

“You sure?” Jack said, carrying beers from the fridge. “You’re welcome to join us. We’re about to stream a movie.”

Elise gave a noncommittal shrug. “I don’t have any plans, but I don’t want to interfere in your man time.”

In answer, Jack handed her a massive bowl of popcorn and the beer he’d brought over for himself, and then walked into the kitchen and grabbed another.

Elise sank onto the light-beige feather and down sofa, the kind you can’t get up from. Not only because it was super soft, but also, why leave a cloud?

She started munching popcorn. “What are we streaming?”

What was going on? My sister was hanging out with my roommate and Landlord Devil, the man I was trying to escape? And why was it only me Max hated?

“Your date picking you up?” Max’s low voice skated over my skin like a sensual touch.

Damn this man and his beauty. Even though he loathed me, his words sounded like a caress, causing butterflies to riot in my belly against my will.

I pulled my purse higher on my shoulder. “No, I’m meeting him. I’ll see you all later,” I said to the room.

“Have fun!” Elise called, beer and popcorn in hand, sitting in what would have been the space between Max and Jack on the couch. If Max were seated.

Instead, Max just stood there, watching me with a steady gaze, his expression the tiniest bit nervous.

I scurried out the front door and paused to catch my breath. Nerves and something I couldn’t identify thrummed through my veins. This night was weird. Why wasn’t Max making rude comments? Because his friend was there to hear? Because he couldn’t come up with anything cutting?

I pinched my brow. And why was I thinking about Max Burrows when I had a date to meet?