know?”
Abby nodded. “I get it. No big deal.”
“Anyway. I tried not to use all the hot water. Better get to it before the guys do.”
Keeping her shower considerably short was a difficult task for Abby; the hot water and soap felt divine on her body. She scrubbed her head viciously, loving every second of it while reminding herself that there were other people in the house who needed the plumbing. She was loathe to turn the water off, but forced herself to do so after only a few minutes.
“My god, it’s amazing what a shower can do for your psyche, isn’t it?” she asked as she left the bathroom.
Erica was sitting on the bed, looking over some sort of paperwork. Curled up by her bare feet was a gray and white cat purring so loudly Abby could feel it in the pit of her stomach.
“Who’s that?” she asked.
“I have no idea,” Erica said with a shrug, not looking up. “He just hopped up onto the bed and scared the shit out of me.”
“He obviously likes you.”
Erica shrugged again. “I like him.”
Abby came closer. She reached out to scratch the cat’s head, but he darted away. “Hey! Come back, kitty.” She pouted like a child and plopped down on the bed. “I like kitties, too.”
Erica kept her eyes on the paper in her hand, but Abby saw the corner of her mouth lift in the slightest bit of amusement.
“It’s going on three,” she said, glancing at her Mickey Mouse watch. “I’m going to run up and see if I can help Corinne with dinner.”
“Tell her I’ll be up in a minute,” Erica replied with a nod. “I just need to finish this up.”
“’Kay.”
Only when Abby turned and headed upstairs did Erica pull her eyes from her paperwork and look at her “roomie.” She tried to avoid admitting to the fact that Abby was very attractive. After all, it didn’t matter. Abby didn’t really like her; she didn’t really care for Abby. They had nothing in common and if they had to live together for longer than a few days, they might very well kill each other.
That didn’t mean she wasn’t fun to look at.
Abby’s Walmart purchases had been much less extravagant than Erica’s—if there was such a thing as Walmart extravagance. She had extra clothes in her backpack, so she wasn’t as desperate as Erica. A pair of red gym shorts, a white T-shirt with a red maple leaf on the front, and clean socks and underwear. That’s all she’d purchased. Her legs were undeniably sexy, lean and toned, probably from all the hiking she talked about doing. Their builds were quite different; Abby was slightly taller, her frame trimmer. Erica bet she stayed long and lean when she worked out, whereas Erica packed on muscle easily, definition appearing almost immediately after she settled into any kind of regimen. Abby was longer, slighter. Her hair was still damp and hung barely past her shoulders, thick and dark. As she reached the top step, she quickly glanced back and winked one crystal blue eye at Erica, whose face heated into a bright red in a matter of a nanosecond at having been caught looking. Abby grinned and went on her way.
“Damn it,” Erica muttered.
The ability to focus on her paperwork fled and she ended up staring without seeing it. So much had happened over the past three days that she was surprised she was still functioning. The disaster in New York City had come along and taken her mind off the disaster in her job. But now, she realized she’d rather focus on the disaster in her job than try to fathom what had happened in the Big Apple. It was too much to comprehend, so she chose to simply tune it out. At that moment, her intention was to never watch another news report about it. She’d just have to learn to focus on something else.
The cat came out of hiding and hopped silently up onto the bed, studied her with bright green eyes.
“How come you seem to like me?” she asked it. “I’m not terribly likable.”
It stared some more.
“You got a name?”
It blinked
Abby nodded. “I get it. No big deal.”
“Anyway. I tried not to use all the hot water. Better get to it before the guys do.”
Keeping her shower considerably short was a difficult task for Abby; the hot water and soap felt divine on her body. She scrubbed her head viciously, loving every second of it while reminding herself that there were other people in the house who needed the plumbing. She was loathe to turn the water off, but forced herself to do so after only a few minutes.
“My god, it’s amazing what a shower can do for your psyche, isn’t it?” she asked as she left the bathroom.
Erica was sitting on the bed, looking over some sort of paperwork. Curled up by her bare feet was a gray and white cat purring so loudly Abby could feel it in the pit of her stomach.
“Who’s that?” she asked.
“I have no idea,” Erica said with a shrug, not looking up. “He just hopped up onto the bed and scared the shit out of me.”
“He obviously likes you.”
Erica shrugged again. “I like him.”
Abby came closer. She reached out to scratch the cat’s head, but he darted away. “Hey! Come back, kitty.” She pouted like a child and plopped down on the bed. “I like kitties, too.”
Erica kept her eyes on the paper in her hand, but Abby saw the corner of her mouth lift in the slightest bit of amusement.
“It’s going on three,” she said, glancing at her Mickey Mouse watch. “I’m going to run up and see if I can help Corinne with dinner.”
“Tell her I’ll be up in a minute,” Erica replied with a nod. “I just need to finish this up.”
“’Kay.”
Only when Abby turned and headed upstairs did Erica pull her eyes from her paperwork and look at her “roomie.” She tried to avoid admitting to the fact that Abby was very attractive. After all, it didn’t matter. Abby didn’t really like her; she didn’t really care for Abby. They had nothing in common and if they had to live together for longer than a few days, they might very well kill each other.
That didn’t mean she wasn’t fun to look at.
Abby’s Walmart purchases had been much less extravagant than Erica’s—if there was such a thing as Walmart extravagance. She had extra clothes in her backpack, so she wasn’t as desperate as Erica. A pair of red gym shorts, a white T-shirt with a red maple leaf on the front, and clean socks and underwear. That’s all she’d purchased. Her legs were undeniably sexy, lean and toned, probably from all the hiking she talked about doing. Their builds were quite different; Abby was slightly taller, her frame trimmer. Erica bet she stayed long and lean when she worked out, whereas Erica packed on muscle easily, definition appearing almost immediately after she settled into any kind of regimen. Abby was longer, slighter. Her hair was still damp and hung barely past her shoulders, thick and dark. As she reached the top step, she quickly glanced back and winked one crystal blue eye at Erica, whose face heated into a bright red in a matter of a nanosecond at having been caught looking. Abby grinned and went on her way.
“Damn it,” Erica muttered.
The ability to focus on her paperwork fled and she ended up staring without seeing it. So much had happened over the past three days that she was surprised she was still functioning. The disaster in New York City had come along and taken her mind off the disaster in her job. But now, she realized she’d rather focus on the disaster in her job than try to fathom what had happened in the Big Apple. It was too much to comprehend, so she chose to simply tune it out. At that moment, her intention was to never watch another news report about it. She’d just have to learn to focus on something else.
The cat came out of hiding and hopped silently up onto the bed, studied her with bright green eyes.
“How come you seem to like me?” she asked it. “I’m not terribly likable.”
It stared some more.
“You got a name?”
It blinked
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