“What are you doing?”
I jerked and nearly hit the lamp next to me. With my knees on the sofa, shoulders slouched, I was peeking through the blinds.
“Checking out the new hottie moving in next door.” I bit my bottom lip, embarrassed at being caught.
My roommate, Kayla, hauled her ass next to me and poked her finger between the blinds. “I don’t see anyone. I only see a bunch of boxes.”
“Hold on. He’s coming.”
I rolled my eyes at our behavior, but at the same time, I couldn’t help myself. I didn’t like our previous neighbor. He played loud music into the night and had too many parties. Naturally I was elated when he moved out.
“Ohhhh… I see why you were gawking.” Kayla nudged me, her tone like an immature schoolgirl’s.
“No, it’s not him. It’s the guy behind the guy holding a microwave. The guy holding the appliance must be his friend.”
Kayla flashed a dorky grin at me and craned her neck back to the view. “Nikki, you’ve been staring out the window too long. Or I should say, at him too long. But I have to admit, he’s good looking and so is his friend. Maybe they’re more than friends. Maybe they’re both taken. What if they turn out to be as obnoxious as our last neighbor? Ugh! I need to stop thinking.”
I plopped down, and Kayla did the same after she stopped the barrage of inner thoughts.
I released a deep sigh. “What’s your plan today?”
Kayla rested her head on my shoulder. “Nothing much. Greg is going out with some work friends, so I’m free for dinner. I was thinking of going to the gym. Do you want to come with me? It’s Saturday so you have no excuse. Actually, you have no excuse every day. You work from home. Your skinny arms need some muscles.”
I cuddled closer to her and snorted lightly. “Sure. Maybe it will get me out of this slump. I stayed up late last night trying to finish this endless chapter.”
“You should have just gone to bed.”
“I know but sometimes I get so anal. It’s been months since I finished a chapter, and I need to publish a book soon. My agent is waiting.”
Kayla’s lips curled as her eyes gleamed. “You’re a New York Times best seller. You tell your agent you’ll have one when you’re ready. Maybe you need to stop writing that fantasy stuff and write something steamy. Or at least add some sex chapters into your YA books.”
I pulled back and dropped my jaw. “What? I can’t put that in my book.”
She arched her eyebrows. “Why not? I’ve read some YA books, and they’re not so clean. Maybe writing a little steam will get your blood boiling and stimulate your mind.”
I gnawed the inside of my mouth, contemplating. “I’ll think about it.”
Kayla pushed off her feet to stand and then grabbed my hands to pull me up. “Come on, lazy butt who hasn’t had sex in years.”
I didn’t retort. Kayla was so right. After I broke up with Brad about two years ago, there hadn’t been anyone else. It wasn’t a bad break up. There just hadn’t been any spark left in the relationship.
Brad blamed our failed relationship on the death of my older brother, Sam. He couldn’t deal with my depression and sadness.
Kayla, my best friend from college at NYU, suggested I stay with her as long as I needed in New York. As an author, I could work from anywhere, so I packed up and left Los Angeles. It had been a couple of months, but the change of city was helping me adjust to starting over again.
I wrapped my arm around Kayla’s shoulder. “You driving?”
“Yup. So hurry up and change. I want to beat the rush hour.”
“Okie dokie. Let me put on some sunscreen first.”