“Yes,” I laugh, awkwardly, admiring Sebastian’s tousled thick, brown hair which sits just above his hazel eyes. “So, Gosling, related to Ryan?”
“If I had a penny,” he answers with a flirtatious grin, accentuating his dimples.
Keep your shit together, Zoey. Your husband is a creature of habit. A jealous one at that.
“Right.” My turn to clear my throat, a welcome distraction from the stifling heat that seems to have suddenly engulfed our confined living area. “Tell us a little bit about yourself?”
“I’m a fireman, three years now. I don’t spend too much time at home. I’m single, but my family is quite big. I’m the only son with five sisters, so we get together quite often. It’s the Italian blood.” He flashes that cute smile again, and to distract myself I motion for Drew to ask something.
“You said on this application that you’re looking for a roommate?”
“Yeah, like I said, I spend a lot of time at work and do a lot of volunteering. Having someone to share would ease the financial burden. Preferably someone who’s a homebody. They would see this place more than me.”
Drew asks another round of questions which end up in a conversation about politics. I hate talking anything political and become increasingly bored until they wrap things up.
“Look, I’m happy with your application. We need to see one more applicant but expect a call back from us today once we check your references.”
We all shake hands. Drew lets him out and returns with his arms crossed firmly against his chest. His glasses, which he wears today, sit above the bridge of his nose and behind them, his steely gaze is boring into me.
“Nice guy,” I say, ignoring Drew’s body language.
“Shall I call him back in so you guys can go at it in the room?”
“Please…” I drag. “He’s too into politics.”
“Oh yeah, because that’s the reason you can’t screw him…”
My laughter escapes. Drew’s jealousy is cute. We don’t even have time to get into it when the door knocks again. This time, I answer it.
Georgia—or Georgie—as she introduces herself, takes a seat on the sofa, nervously fidgeting with the hem of her t-shirt. It has a logo of Transformers on it… ugh, how lame.
“So Georgie, you’re studying to become a biochemist. I’ve always taken an interest in science,” Drew mentions in a relaxed tone.
She pushes her tortoise-shell framed glasses so they’re sitting correctly on her face. The more I examine her, the more I realize she has potential. Okay, so the Transformers’ attire is geeky. If she wore contacts, it would contour her face better, and her eyebrows could do with a shaping. She isn’t exactly fit looking but isn’t overweight either. If she didn’t wear the baggy shirt and loose cargo pants, she’d probably have a good figure beneath.
“You must study a lot?” It’s the only thing that comes to mind. I’m known to ramble, a defense mechanism to avoid awkward situations.
“I do.” She nods her head but offers a nervous smile. “I don’t go out, really. I’m not sure if you’re open to it, but I was thinking of finding myself a roommate. It’ll be out of my comfort zone, maybe someone who’s not in my face all the time.”
A smile plays on my lips, and instinctively, I glance to see Drew staring right back at me, his chocolate brown eyes amused and mouth twitching upward on the left, dimpling his cheek.
“Huh,” I say out loud, hiding my grin. “How do you feel about firemen, Georgie?
Georgie stares back at me, oddly.
I don’t need to say another word. Drew and I both agree without even talking out loud.
In life, things happen for a reason.
Drew was never meant to be the man I fell head over heels for the moment I saw him. We built a friendship, a bond that has carried us through some dark times. And here we are, years later, married with twins, moving to Australia to embark on a new journey, a new stage of our lives.
Once again—the stars are aligning.
And this time, it’s Roomie Wars—the new generation.
The End