Ain’t had…
His mama.
“Don’t eat your roommate’s food without asking—or replace it once you do.” He glances up at me briefly but makes no comment. “Always ask to borrow things.” Duke pauses. “So you’re sayin’ yor gonna ask if you want to borrow my clothes, roomie?” He laughs as if it’s hilarious.
“Haven’t you ever had roommates before?”
He nods his dumb head. “Sure, when I was eighteen, and it was guys, so…” He goes back to skimming the list. “Are you serious with this? I’m not one of your students.”
“This has nothing to do with me treating you like a student.” My kids have manners. He does not.
“Keep music and voice to a respectable volume, especially at bedtime.” Duke’s snort makes me blush. “Lady, this makes you sound like a house mother.”
“There’s no need to make fun of me, Mr. Colter. I’m just trying to make our lives easier for the next two weeks. My last roommate was Molly, and she was a saint, so I just want it to go well for both of us.”
“Molly Summervale is no saint.” He snorts again. “She’s got a tongue sharper than a two-edged sword.”
Yeah. ’Cause she’s a badass who doesn’t put up with men’s shit, that’s why.
I raise my chin a notch. “If you don’t want rules, that’s fine. We can wing it.”
“How about this: I won’t be getting into your way if you won’t be getting into mine, and we’ll get along just fine.”
Except for the part where he has no boundaries, gives zero fucks, climbs in through windows, and bursts into my office unannounced and uninvited. Who knows what else I’m in store for over the next few weeks.
“’Cause I bet the next words outta your pretty little mouth is we’re not allowed to have houseguests of the opposite sex without discussing it first.”
Er. That may or may not be on the list I’d just handed him, on page two.
Wait. Did he call me pretty?
I blush again, dipping my head before pulling out my chair and standing. “I should probably show you to your room.”
He stands too but shakes his head. “Found it already.”
“Found it? How did you find it? You have no idea which room is yours.”
“Next to the bathroom. Already settled in.”
Of course he did because he has brass balls!
Honestly, the NERVE!
Seething, I can’t wait to text Molly and tell her about this. She’s going to be outraged on my behalf, althoughshe did warn me he was an asshole…
I try to lead him out of the room, but he decides he’s going to plow through first. Both of us get stuck in the doorway because we’re there at the same time. The man doesn’t have enough etiquette to allow me to go first, the brute forging ahead toward the stairs, lumbering down to the first floor before I’ve even made it to the top step.
Jesus, was he raised in a barn?
As I make my way into the kitchen, he’s already outside, popping the screen back into place and testing it to make sure it’s secure. I watch his large hands push the frame, then come back inside and secure the little knobs.
“There. Done.”
I roll my eyes, moving aside when he goes to the sink and begins opening cabinets, hunting for a glass.
He fills it with water from the tap and chugs.
Spine stiff, I try not to feel as if my space has been invaded, reminding myself that he’s paying to be here—several thousand dollars to be here, in fact.