The American Roommate Experiment (Spanish Love Deception #2)(35)

Rosie’s answer was quick. “I completely understand that. I’m not here by choice, either. I’m not the one that caused—”

“Oh, I think you don’t understand,” he cut her off for the second time, and my body moved closer to Rosie’s. Our shoulders brushed. Psycho Landlord continued, his smile turning knowing. “You really don’t if you think this will be fixed in”—a pause—“no time. In fact, I think it will be the opposite of that.”

I sensed Rosie’s body freeze in place at Mr. Allen’s last words. So I looked over at her, finding her staring back at him with a hard jaw and a serious frown. At first glance, one would have thought she was unbothered, handling the news like a pro, but then a shaky breath escaped her mouth, and her eyes blinked a couple of times. This was her brave face, I realized. She was putting up a fa?ade, for whose benefit, I didn’t know. But I happened not to care, because my hand left my side and reached out in her direction, landing softly in the middle of her back. Right between her shoulder blades.

She didn’t move or give me any indication that my touch was doing anything to her as she laser-stared into space, but I kept my palm where it was. Drawing slow circles and letting her know I was here if she needed me, that I had her back.

“Nothing concerning in the rest of the rooms,” Aiden announced, returning to the living room. “Except for a couple spots I noticed in the bathroom’s drywall that I’d like to check with one of my guys.” He looked over at Rosie, his expression turning cautious. “I’ll need to check the upstairs floor to be sure of the extent of the damages, though.” He pointed upward with his pen.

Rosie’s voice was rocky when she answered, “Thank you, Mr. Castillo.”

Aiden slipped the pen in the side pocket of his pants and turned toward Psycho Landlord. “After that, I’ll get my crew in.”

Mr. Allen clicked his tongue. “What about the quote? You won’t get any crew in without me getting a quote first, Aiden.”

“A quote,” Aiden said very slowly. “You haven’t asked me for one in ye—”

“I want it for this,” Psycho Landlord interjected. Something crystallized in his gaze, something I didn’t like one single bit. “Take as long as you need but no crew will get in without one.”

“Mr. Allen,” Rosie interjected with a squeaky voice. “I have a request of sorts, I—”

“Let me guess, you’d like me to prioritize your apartment over Mr. Brown’s? Or to get this expedited, Miss Graham?” he spat out with such disdain that I felt myself drifting forward until positioning myself partly in front of Rosie. Not that Psycho Landlord was deterred, because his tone rose and he added, “If you’re not happy with how I handle repairs in my property, feel free to break the lease. I’ll have a new tenant in…” He trailed off. “How did you phrase it? In no time. As you might already know, apartments like this one go on and off the market in a flash.”

Rosie sucked in a breath, but she recovered quickly enough to say, “There’s no reason to be unreasonable and—”

“?‘Unreasonable’?” he bristled, his face morphing, as if he was getting a kick out of this. As if this man was enjoying playing power games with Rosie. I felt my blood rise to my head, the temper that so rarely manifested in me, boiling to the surface. “Miss Graham,” he said in a tone that had me straightening, “don’t be a—”

“Don’t,” I cut him off, getting in his face so he had no choice but to look at me. “I suggest you don’t finish that sentence.”

The man held my gaze, but there was no mistaking how his throat bobbed.

“In fact,” I pressed, noticing my voice dropped down, “I suggest you stop talking altogether.”

The man limited himself to gawking back at me, not responding. Slowly, ever so slowly, even daring to smile. Just like the Psycho Landlord he was, he fucking smiled.

I felt my body move forward, eating away the last inches of space between us, to do what exactly, I’d never know, because something stopped me before I could find out.

Delicate fingers wrapped around my forearm, pulling at me. When I didn’t back down, they pulled again, and that second time it was hard to ignore what they meant. Stop. You’re crossing a line. Back down. But I didn’t want to. I’ve never liked bullies.

But Rosie pulled at me again, so softly I barely felt it, and I had no choice but to return to her side.

“How uncivilized. Some friends you have, Miss Graham,” the openly relieved man in front of us muttered.

I expected Rosie to side with him, as I probably would have after what I’d just done, but instead, her fingers shifted, gripping my wrist. The pad of her thumb slipped inside my sleeve, falling against my skin and grazing it softly. As if she was trying to tell me that it was okay and that she wasn’t mad.

And because I clearly had no respect for boundaries, I turned my hand and clasped hers in mine.

“There’s nothing uncivilized about him,” I thought I heard Rosie murmur.

A part of me wanted to take notice of that, to look at her, but Psycho Landlord said, “Aiden, let’s go. Mr. Brown is waiting.”

And with that, he turned around and headed for the door.

Only after he disappeared, Aiden said, “He’s an asshole.” He sighed. “I’ll try to get that quote as soon as possible.” And with a nod of his head, he disappeared after Psycho Landlord.