Caleb (Unexpected #10)

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

In the beginning, there was darkness. A heavy shroud that spread over everything, sinking into each narrow, carefully guarded crevice, clinging on with sharp, stubborn teeth.

It was hopeless, dark, suffocating despair.

Nothing more.

But then, one day, a spark, a glow, a glimmer in the void.

And suddenly, there was light…

It was supposed to be just me living here—those were my parents’ rules when I moved into this one-bedroom, one-bath apartment—but what they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?

But I’m starting to rethink my plan as I blink wildly at the applicant in front of me. Who the fuck is this? Why the hell can’t I stop staring at him?

I close my eyes and then open them again, taking in the man who is here to interview to be my roommate. He’s big and very muscular, with blue eyes and blond hair peeking out of a backward baseball cap.

I wet my lips and force myself to stop batting my eyelashes at him.

I clear my throat. “What’s your name?” I ask, and the guy folds his arms across his chest and then releases them.

I can see his muscles bulge, mainly because he’s wearing a tank top that leaves nothing to the imagination.

And there’s an oily stain near the bottom hem. Not sure how he lives like that.

I should give him the number of my dry cleaner. However, I’m pretty sure he’d never use it.

But worse than the stain, I can see his nipples through the worn fabric.

His right one has a very obvious ring piercing.

I scoff, wondering who the hell leaves the house like this. Not me, that’s for sure.

I roll my lips between my teeth and shift on my seat when he rumbles, “I’m Caleb van Beek.” He says it almost shyly. “Thanks for, um, meeting with me. This is a real nice place. Love it, really. It’s very fancy.”

My gaze flicks down to that nipple ring and then back up to him.

“Thank you. I like things orderly and neat.” I don’t know why I say that when he seems like the complete opposite. Dirty, wild, a little unkempt.

He pulls his cap off his head and runs a hand through those thick blond waves before putting it back on. I can see his armpit hair as he does it, and my skin heats.

I need to get the air conditioning checked in this place. It’s obviously malfunctioning.

“Yeah, I’m totally nice and neat. The neatest, man.”

I don’t believe that at all, but I hold that thought inside.

He laughs softly and then clears his throat and schools his face.

“Great to hear that. And you have the money to pay each month?” I ask, pulling out a contract I downloaded online and sliding it over to him.

He stares at it and wets those pink lips. “Wow, official. Aren’t you, like, my age? Who made you a lawyer?”

“I’m not a lawyer yet. But a contract protects us both. Now, do you have the money for monthly rent?”

He swallows and bobs his head. “Yeah, of course. I’m no thief. I may work at a junkyard, but I make enough there to make ends meet.”

“I didn’t say you were a thief,” I reply and then slide over a pen.

Those blue eyes meet mine, and my heart pitter-patters in my chest. I rub at it, hoping my reaction isn’t noticeable.

He cocks his head at me, confusion in his gaze. “Just like that? I mean, don’t you want to run, like, a background check?”

“How do you know I haven’t done that already?”

He lets out a small chuckle, but it fades as he stares at me once more. Fuck, this is probably a huge mistake. I should find someone different, someone more like me. More compatible. But for some reason, I can’t make myself turn him away.

I know I’m going to go through with this despite knowing it will come back to haunt me.

“Right. You’re funny. Or at least, I think you’re being funny.” He runs his hand along the back of his neck, and my fingers curl around the seat of the chair to the point of pain.

“Cool, yeah, I can sign this. Totally cool.”

“You should read it first,” I interject, but he’s already signing his name at the bottom. “Nah, I trust you, bro. You give me good vibes.”

I stare at him, his fingers twirling the pen around before it flies from his hand and lands on the floor. We both stare at it before he swears and reaches to grab it. He bends down, the band of his compression shorts visible beneath his athletic ones.

I peel my gaze away and bite down on my bottom lip as he appears in my line of sight once more.

“Cool. So, I can move in soon?”

“Yes, if you’d like. There’s only one bedroom, but the extra bed is available, and I’ve made some room in the cabinets in the kitchen for anything you’d like to bring or buy.”

He rubs his hands together, and I stare at those long, thick fingers for a beat too long.

“Awesome. I’ll be, like, the best roommate, you know? You won’t even know I’m around.”

He stands up, his crotch suddenly at eye level. I slide my gaze up to his face, and he grins down at me. Yeah, I highly doubt I won’t notice him around my place, sleeping in my room, using my utensils, and showering in my bathroom.

But then again, I did this to myself. There was a perfectly nice girl who interviewed right before him. She seemed sweet, and she was absolutely not someone I’d be interested in.

Yet, I still slid that contract over to Caleb instead.

And here we are. Roommates.

Probably the biggest mistake of my life.

Caleb moves in later that day, dragging in a few worn, half-broken boxes and making a general mess as he unpacks.

His stuff gradually appears in my closet, in my drawers, and in my kitchen cabinets.

I offer to help him organize it all, but he just shakes his head and says he’s happy to do it himself.

So, I settle into the large, comfortable chair I bought for myself and pretend to read my Kindle. I mean, I’d like to be reading the words on the screen, but my eyes keep getting diverted by his movements. He bends over more than any man I’ve ever known and grunts when he does it, too.

What the fuck is he doing? He’s acting like he’s bodybuilding or something. Which he could be, with those muscles of his.

I clear my throat, and the sound causes him to turn toward me.

“Sorry about the mess. I’ll make sure to clean it up. Promise. You won’t regret me.”

I think I’ll regret him very much, but thinking that doesn’t deter my eyes from adhering to his form. I incessantly peek over at him while he puts everything away and breaks down the boxes. When he’s finished, he grabs a bottle of water from the fridge and gulps it down.

He even gives a nice little burp at the end.

He squishes the bottle in his hand, producing an obnoxious sound. Before he can deposit it in the wrong place, I say, “Recycling, please.”

He peers over at me and then tosses it into the blue bin.

“Cool. Must be really into saving the Earth. I can respect that.” He gives me a peace sign.

I say nothing in return, just curl my fingers around my Kindle so tightly I worry the screen may crack.

Everyone should put an effort into doing what they can to save the fucking planet.

But I’m pretty sure he lacks concern for it.

When I peered out the window earlier, I saw that he drives a rusty old Jeep that I’m sure guzzles more gas than a semi-truck.

Caleb moves over to the couch and flops down on it. The movement sends a whiff of his deodorant my way, and my nostrils flare.

“Man, I’m pooped.”

I glance at the bits of cardboard and tape scattered around the carpet. Not to mention the boxes flattened out but stacked near the apartment door, waiting to be taken down. Apparently, this is clean enough for him.

I think he lied to me a little when he said he was the neatest man I’d ever meet. But part of me knew that, and I accepted this anyway.

My skin starts to itch, but I stop myself from getting up to vacuum. I can wait until he leaves.

I really can.

Caleb grunts and runs a hand up under his shirt, dragging it up his stomach.

My mouth waters as I stare at it.

How does one get so many abs? It can’t be normal. He must be on something to grow like that.

“God, I need a massage. Like, fuck, even my asshole hurts.”

I’m almost positive he’s not asking me for a massage—or for me to check on his asshole. But then again, I have no fucking idea when it comes to this guy. I met him for two minutes, showed him around my small apartment, and then slid him the contract to sign.

I usually never act this rashly. And yet, I went and got myself a roommate who looks like his body is chiseled from marble.

He puts a shoe up on the couch and reaches down to his ass, massaging those globes with no shame whatsoever.

I clear my throat, and his head turns slightly.

“Shoe off the couch, please,” I say, and he grunts, removing it and blushing a little.

“Sorry. I’ll be really good. Promise. Just learning the ropes, you know?”

I nod and turn my gaze back to the Kindle, the words I’m supposed to be reading morphing into rippling letters. They float around the screen, and I can’t make sense of any of them.

But I manage to keep my wits about me and don’t peer over at him. I just read the same sentence repeatedly until I hear soft snores coming from the couch he’s draped on.

It’s only then that I let my gaze swivel his way. His hand is down his pants, the other shoved up under his shirt, exposing most of his abdomen and part of his groin.

I stand up and move quietly to the bathroom to splash some cold water on my face.

I may even need a cold shower.

Thankfully, it doesn’t come to that because Caleb wakes a little while later and leaves the apartment to go to the gym.

Finally, I’m left to vacuum the carpet in peace.

When I’m done thoroughly cleaning up after Caleb, I carry the boxes out to the trash and then take a long shower with very hot water.

Not a cold drop to be found.

When I’m dressed in my pajamas, hair and teeth brushed, I wander around the apartment. The space feels so different from what it was just hours ago. It’s full now. Alive.

I can feel the essence of it burrow beneath my skin, and I shiver slightly.