Chapter 13 Maddy
Maddy
“Moving day! It’s moving day!” Riley sings, as she dances around my apartment, which is all boxed up and ready to go.
I groan as I stack the final box on top of the others. I am the world’s worst packer. And it’s been even harder this time than usual because I can’t stop thinking about the fact that I’ve let two of my three bosses touch me in all the unprofessional ways.
“What’s your deal, girl?” Riley tilts her head at me, her dark brows furrowed. “You’ve been over your cold for like, what? A week now? You feel okay?”
“Well, yeah, but…” My voice trails off as I eye the bathroom where Caleb got me off with his fingers.
Ugh. “It’s just the stress of moving,” I lie, not ready to come clean. I already know exactly what she’s going to say about the situation.
And I am not ready for that.
“Well, starting new is good for you. New job, new place. It’ll be absolutely perfect. And the movers,” she drops her eyes to her watch, “will be here in less than ten minutes.”
“I’m glad we’re going with movers,” I mumble, my eyes drifting across my apartment. Most of the furniture is going to Goodwill, thankfully, but the rest of my shit?
Yeah, I can’t imagine having to do it myself.
“Just think,” Riley plops down on my coffee table. “Tomorrow at this time, we’ll be lounging at the pool, staring at all the hot, rich men who also live in our complex.”
“That seems like a stretch,” I say, making a face at her. “For all we know, there’s not a single hot guy there.”
“I have a good feeling,” Riley wiggles her brows at me. “Don’t you worry.”
Before I can counter that with something way more realistic, there’s a knock at the door, and my apartment is suddenly a flood of movers and boxes, going in all directions.
I stand back and watch the blur, and when everything is out, I follow Riley downstairs to grab a cab to the new building.
“I just don’t know why you’re not more excited.” Riley eyes me as she opens the door for me. “Is it something at work? Is Beck getting under your skin again? I know it’s hard that he doesn’t remember the night you had, but fuck it, Maddy. Maybe he’s just weird that way.”
I shake my head as I settle into the back of the car. “It’s not so much that. It’s actually one of the others.”
“Oh right, the asshole,” Riley hums, slamming the door as she takes a seat beside me, grabbing for her seatbelt. “Adrian.”
I purse my lips together. “He’s definitely an asshole, but it’s the other one.”
She nods, looking confused. “Right. The one who brought you soup.”
“Yeah,” I let out a sigh, and then sweep my hair up into a ponytail to distract myself from my best friend’s razor-sharp stare. “It’s just that when he came over…”
“Oh my god,” Riley’s eyes go wide. “You slept with him, too.”
“Why do you always assume I’m doing the sluttiest thing possible?” I snap at her and then cringe. “But kind of. We made it to second base. And then he just jetted out of there.”
“And has acted like nothing ever happened,” Riley finishes, giving me a sympathetic look. “Maybe that’s what they do with all their assistants, and that’s why no one stays.”
The thought makes my stomach hurt. “There’s no way. Everyone in the office would know if that were the case.”
“Unless there’s NDAs,” Riley points out, giving me a motherly look. “That could totally be a thing.”
“Ugh,” I blow out a frustrated breath and lean back against the seat. I don’t even want to consider that this might be the norm.
“It’s going to be okay,” Riley pats my knee. “It could totally be worse. You could’ve slept with all three of them.”
I glare at her, but don’t retort with a comeback before we reach the new apartment building. As we climb out of the car, the difference between this place and my last is striking.
I’m pretty sure the sidewalk outside this place is clean enough to eat off it. There are important-looking people with leather bags walking in and out, and a doorman. I’ve always wanted to live somewhere with a doorman.
We march to the front desk, where a woman with an updo and a blazer the color of wet cement greets us. “Welcome to The Apex,” she chirps. “I think your movers just arrived?”
Riley beams. “That’s us!”
The woman flashes us a super-white smile. “The moving elevator is prepped for you. Here’s your key fob, your pool pass, your—” she rifles through an envelope, hands us a stack of glossy pamphlets—“amenities information and complimentary drink tickets for the rooftop lounge.”
I take the fob, blinking with surprise. “There’s a lounge?” I guess I missed that.
“Of course,” she says. “You can see the entire city from the thirtieth floor.”
Riley does a little spin, jabbing me in the shoulder. “Hell. Yes.”
I let out a giggle and then follow her to the elevator.
The thing is so quiet as it ascends toward our floor, that I have to double-check to make sure it’s moving.
There’s a full-length mirror inside, which is unfortunate because I look like a woman who lost a wrestling match with a Salvation Army donation bin.
But Riley is grinning like a madwoman at our reflection.
“I swear, this is going to be amazing.” She nudges me. “Just smile.”
“I feel like we’re too poor to be here,” I mumble, watching the elevator numbers tick upward.
“Oh, stop.” She hooks an arm around my shoulder. “They’re lucky to have us. We’re going to be the best tenants ever. No loud noise, no parties, no annoying pets.”
The elevator opens on our floor. Our door is at the end of the hallway, black and heavy, with a keyless lock and a brushed silver knocker.
Riley unlocks it with the flourish of a game show host, and I swallow the hint of excitement building in my chest. I should be over-the-top like my best friend right now.
But I’m still so in my head about Caleb. And Beck. And even Adrian.
Stupid men. Stupid bosses. Stupid work.
Riley takes off, propping the door open as the movers start to carry our things in. I walk into my room. It’s empty, but huge. The closet is a whole extra room. The window looks out over the park. There’s even a little balcony, just big enough for a chair and maybe a small table.
I sit down on the carpet in the middle of the floor, and just… breathe.
Everything is totally going to be just fine. Caleb came onto me first. Beck clearly forgot we ever met before. And Adrian? He’s just a normal asshole boss with… weird moments.
Riley breaks my concentration and yanks me up. “Don’t get weird, Mad. You can meditate later. We have to go see the pool!” She’s vibrating, so happy it feels like she’s going to explode.
“It’s going to be so amazing to wind down in a hot tub every day after work,” she chatters away, as she drags me behind her.
She tugs me out of the apartment and back to the elevator, this time taking it up to the roof. The air is warm, even though it’s still technically spring, and I breathe it in, as I take in the space around me.
“Holy hell,” the words slip from my mouth as I step outside.
The rooftop pool is gorgeous, and I feel a surge of excitement as I scan the cabanas with white curtains and chaise lounges with fluffy towels.
There’s a hot tub steaming at the edge, a communal grill, and a row of potted plants that look too healthy to be real.
The skyline is so close it feels like you could lean over the glass railing and touch the windows of the next building.
“This is seriously heaven,” Riley whispers. “Oh my god.”
A couple is sprawled in one of the cabanas, sharing a bottle of wine.
Another guy is doing laps in the heated pool.
There’s a speaker system playing chill house music, and a small group gathered around the outdoor kitchen, laughing with the ease that I watch on commercials and never see in real life.
This is just freaking wild.
Riley is already barefoot, pants rolled up, toes in the water. “Maddy! Come on!” She splashes, sending a spray in my direction. I shake my head but burst into laughter.
I sit next to her, dipping my feet in. The water is warm and instantly reminds me of the bath that Caleb drew me exactly eight days ago. Ugh.
“We live here now,” Riley giggles, shaking her head. “Can you believe this? I bet Wes would shit himself if he knew you’d levelled up like this.”
“Ha!” I tip my head back at the thought of him. “I completely forgot he existed.” And that’s totally true. I did.
“Good!” Riley pumps her fist in the air. “Fuck him, anyway. He was always so beneath you.”
“He came from money though. His family was way above me.”
Riley rolls her eyes. “He was a spoiled brat who got whatever he wanted, and it totally ruined him. Also, guess what I saw?”
I brighten. “He got arrested for public intoxication?”
She bumps my shoulder. “No, but he’s dating that girl from the wedding.”
My heart does this weird jump in my chest, my brain instantly flashing with the memory of seeing Wes balls deep in Ellie. “Gross.”
“Meh,” Riley huffs. “He’ll just cheat on her, too.”
“Well, for the record,” I breathe out. “I hope she cheats on him. Fucks his whole world up.”
“Oh, I think you already did that.”
“Maybe,” I hum, suddenly aware that I don’t care all that much about it. It had felt like the end of the world then…
But I don’t feel anything when I think about it now.
Maybe that means I’m over him.
That thought leaves me feeling satisfied in the moment, and I watch the sun hit the glass of the building across the street, turning it gold. I watch the way the water ripples, reflecting a sky that looks so much cleaner from thirty stories up.
Finally, my eyes jump back to the pool bar, and my heart instantly skips a beat.
Holy shit. What is he doing here?