Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80986 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80986 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
This room had a bed, a desk, a dresser, and a bookcase. My stuff, which I’d carried over in two loads, fit easily. The room hadn’t been filthy, but it had taken me a couple of hours to dust, clean the windows, and vacuum. I’d managed to find all the necessary cleaning supplies in a small closet at the end of the hallway. Hopefully there was one like that on each floor—I didn’t relish the idea of lugging cleaning supplies and vacuum cleaners up and down the stairs.
The windows had taken the longest for the simple reason that I kept pausing to admire the views. Being on the second floor was an advantage in a town surrounded by mountains. My hometown, Janson Falls, was only thirty miles away, but it was closer to the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, not nestled in the middle of it like here.
The only thing the room didn’t have was a bathroom. There were two on this level, so I didn’t have to go far, but I didn’t relish sharing a bathroom with strange men. Then again, there weren’t supposed to be many of them living here this summer. The only guy I’d seen so far today was Ian.
I pulled a water bottle out of my bag and drank deeply as I leaned against the desk, looking around. I had my back to the spectacular view, but a clean room with a door I could close was more exciting to me right now. Sure, the nameplate on the door said Edward, but that was okay. It was mine for the summer, and I thought it looked pretty damn good.
The only thing that didn’t look better after my cleaning spree was the bed. It was a double bed, and my sheets and comforter were for a twin bed. I’d made them look as nice as I could, but part of the mattress was bare. It didn’t look so great, but it had to be more comfortable than the sofa at Tori’s place.
A knock on the door startled me.
Pushing away from the desk, I ran a hand through my hair and then remembered that I’d put it in a ponytail while I cleaned. I pulled out the elastic, smoothed dust off of my t-shirt, and opened the door.
It was Bennett, the fraternity president. I had to take a step back and crane my neck to see him. He had to be well over six feet.
He peered over my head—which wasn’t hard for him to do—and looked around. “I guess you can actually clean.”
I nodded, a bit nervously. He was a big guy, a stranger, and my boss, more or less. Those were all good reasons to be wary.
And then he stepped into the room, making it instantly feel crowded. His eyes fell to the bed, and he shook his head, obviously disapproving. But he didn’t say anything about it.
“If you’re done making your own space look better, maybe you can start on the rest of the house.”
It clearly wasn’t a request.
“Of course.” Now that I had a place to stay, I was more determined than ever not to screw this up.
“Is that what you’re wearing?” he asked pointedly.
I looked down at my shirt. It was fine, no stains on it from cleaning. My jean shorts weren’t long, but they weren’t short, either. Was he objecting to them? It was summer, after all. “Is there something wrong with this?”
Bennett arched an eyebrow, and my face flushed as an image of that French maid costume yesterday flooded my mind. But when his mouth opened, I jumped in hastily. “These are old clothes,” I said. “It won’t matter if they get dirty while I’m cleaning.”
He stared me down for a few moments longer, and I knew my cheeks were pink, if not outright red. We both knew he didn’t give a crap about my clothes being ruined. Bennett was dressed casually—alight green button-down shirt with a collar and white shorts—but the clothes looked to be of good quality. His clothing probably cost more than my textbooks last year, and those had been astronomically high.
Finally, he gave me a curt nod. “Let’s go.”
Bennett strode out of the room, and I followed, feeling like I’d dodged a bullet. But what could I have done if he’d made me change into something he deemed more appropriate? I needed this job, and I needed a space to stay. Both of those things likely depended on staying on Bennett’s good side—if he even had one.
With his long legs, he was already halfway to the stairwell by the time I got the door closed behind me. It felt strange not to lock up after myself, but this wasn’t a hotel or an apartment. Hopefully the fraternity brothers knew how to respect people’s privacy.
Yeah, that was what frat boys were known for—respectful attitudes. I shook my head as I jogged to keep up with him. He flew down the stairs, and I was almost dizzy when we arrived at the first floor.