10. Sawyer
SAWYER
I feel the sun streaming in on my face, and I open my eyes slowly. I realize I’m not on the couch, and I sit up. My hangover headache sets in, and I rub my temples, thinking back to last night. I vaguely remember him waking me up at some point, telling me to go up to bed. Then I remember him carrying me up his stairs and bringing me to the guest room I stayed in last week.
I could get used to sleeping in this massive bed.
No, I couldn’t.
I shake my head as I get out of bed, walking toward the bathroom. And then I freeze in
my tracks when I remember what else I did last night. I smack my forehead with my hand as I cringe, thinking of how I mounted him and tried to seduce him in my drunken splendor.
“Oh, my god,” I whisper to myself as I let my hands slide down my face.
I never do stuff like that.
Trevor Bell was my first and only boyfriend, and it took over a year for us to go out on our first date because I was too nervous to say yes. I have had a couple of random hookups over the last three and a half years, but they’ve all left me wondering what the fuck everyone freaks out about sex for.
But there is something about Julian that makes my entire body ache in the best way. It feels like parts of me are awake now that have been dormant my entire life. And I really like it.
But I can’t like it enough to make a complete fool of myself when he was kind enough to take me in…again.
I splash water on my face, comb my fingers through my hair, then take the walk of shame—the not-so-fun kind—down the massive staircase to the living room. When I round the corner into the kitchen, though, I’m surprised to see a platter full of food and Russ at the kitchen island, sipping coffee and watching the morning news.
“Morning,” he says when he sees me.
“Morning,” I say, looking around.
“He left,” Russ says. “Said to tell you he was sorry he had to run. He has a meeting-packed day today, but I’ll give you a ride.”
I nod, trying to cover my disappointment.
Oh, God. I definitely gave him the ick last night. He’s having his people handle me.
Fuck.
“Bonnie made you a few different things,” he goes on. “Eat something before we leave.” I nod again, walking slowly toward the platter of hot foods she made and stabbing at a pancake and a few pieces of bacon before I take a seat next to him at the island. I grab the syrup, and Russ and I watch the weather report in silence for the next fifteen minutes. I finish up and bring my plate to the sink.
“Just leave it,” he says.
“I don’t mind washing it,” I tell him. He smirks.
“Honey, the people that work in this kitchen get paid a lot more than I do. Leave it,” he says, standing up. Russ is a tall Black man with both bulging biceps and a bit of a gut, but he still looks like a dude I wouldn’t want to fuck with. Or maybe like a dude I’d want with me if someone else was trying to fuck with me.
“You ready?” he asks as I throw away my napkin. I nod. My bag is packed and on the floor where I left it last night, and Russ bends down to grab it.
“I already have the other things we brought back in the car downstairs,” he says.
“Thank you,” I say, trying not to take it personally that it feels like he’s trying to get me out of here fairly quickly. I wonder what his instructions were.
“Feed her, then get her out of my apartment.” Maybe something to that effect.
We take the elevator down, and he helps me into the back of the Escalade, then he puts my bag inside the other door. He pulls out, and I take a mental picture of everything as we leave, knowing I’ll likely never set foot in a billionaire’s apartment ever again. I sigh as I stare out the window, visibly pouting.
Not only will I miss the amenities and the incredibly sexy billionaire who owns them, but this means I have to go back to campus. For the first time since my entire world got upended, I have to face it. Alone.
But as we get off on the exit toward campus, I notice he doesn’t take our usual route. And then he keeps veering off, about two miles east, closer to the water.
“Where are we going, Russ?” I ask. But he doesn’t answer. Instead, he pulls the car onto a side street, right on the beach. He parks in front of a set of row homes, and then he gets out. He opens the back door and grabs my bags then walks around to let me out. He leads me up one of the stoops, enters a code, then pulls the door open when it unlatches.
Then I follow him up a set of stairs and then one more. We pass several doors, and I realize the row homes have been converted to apartments. And when we get to the next floor, he walks me to a door then hands me a single silver key.
I take it, looking up at him, confused as hell.
He nods toward the door, and I unlock it.
When it opens, my jaw drops.
It’s the cutest, most perfect little apartment. There’s a kitchen when we first walk in, a living room with a small couch and TV in front of us, and a single door to the right. I turn back to him.
“Where are we?”
He sets my bags down on the floor then nods toward the door. I walk to it and open it, and inside is the coziest little bedroom I’ve ever seen. A queen bed sits in one corner, a small desk in the other. And at the back of the room is a large round window with a perfect view of the ocean.
“Oh, my god,” I whisper, taking it all in. Russ clears his throat, and I look at him. He nods his head toward a piece of paper that’s sitting on the bed.
I walk toward it and pick it up.
I hope this place gives your mind a little break for the rest of the school year. Look out at the water and breathe.
~J
P.S. Lease is signed for six months. No takebacks.
My jaw drops again, and I turn back to Russ who is standing with a big smile on his face. As we’re standing there, his phone rings.
“Hey, boss,” he says. “Yep, we’re here now. Hold on one sec.” He hands me the phone then walks out of the room.
“Julian,” I start to say, but he cuts me off.
“Sorry I couldn’t be there this morning,” he says. “I am running like a mad man today. I had one of my interior designers do some decorating, but there was only so much she could do with twelve hours’ notice. We can get some more things if you want. Also, the couch has a pull-out mattress for when your mom comes to visit.”
“Julian,” I say, a lump forming in my throat, “you can’t…I can’t do this. I can’t let you give me an apartment.”
He chuckles on the other end, and the sound of it makes my insides tingle.
“Sawyer,” he says, and I relish the way my name sounds rolling off his tongue, “breathe. I have to hop into my next meeting. Go study in your new room.”
Then the line goes dead. I walk out of the room and hand the phone back to Russ.
“Thank you,” I tell him. He nods.
“The rest of your things have been moved out of your dorm. J got campus police to let us in last night. A few of his assistants unpacked last night, but apologies if things aren’t where you want them. I just texted your phone a moment ago, so you have my number if you need it. Call us with any problems. J says he’ll be checking in,” Russ says, walking to the door.
“Thank you again, Russ,” I say as he waves goodbye. I close and lock the door behind him, and then I turn back to my new home.
Breathe, he told me.
And that’s exactly what I do as I walk toward my new couch, pull up my new throw blanket, and stare out at my new view.