Stay with Me (With Me in Seattle 9)

What the hell is going on over there?

“Did you fall asleep?” Jace asks.

“Sorry, what did you say?”

“Levi and I are going to the Celtic Swell for dinner. Do you want to go?”

The ocean-front bar isn’t far from my house. “Sure. What time?”

“Six,” he says. “You sound like you could use a beer.”

“Or five,” I say with a sigh. “Sorry, this client has been a pain in my ass. She wants me to completely rearrange the kitchen, but where she wants the cabinets, there is no wall.”

“Hard to put cabinets against thin air.”

“Exactly.” I watch in fascination as the delivery truck leaves, and my smiling neighbor carries a huge box inside the house.

“So, what’s new?” Jace asks, clearly not in a hurry to hang up.

“I have a new neighbor.”

“That’s boring as fuck,” he replies, and I can almost hear him rolling his eyes. “Have you gotten laid lately?”

“When do I have time for that?”

“That’s my point.”

“You have a point?” I scowl at my phone. “You’re not making any sense.”

“My patient just arrived. I’ll talk to you at six.”

He hangs up, and I stand in the window, watching the happenings across the street. What in the world is going on over there?

And why am I so intrigued by it?

Okay, that’s a dumb question. Neighbor Girl is sexy as fuck, and as Jace pointed out, I haven’t gotten laid in more than a minute. She said all of six words to me, and I thought she was adorable.

What I could see of her.

I shake my head and turn back to my drafting desk, doing my best to forget about her and focus on this task.

How the fuck do I put cabinets where, clearly, there is no place to put cabinets? Without rearranging the whole blueprint, that is.

I bite my lower lip and stare at the paper until it’s all blurry, and then decide, screw it.

I’ll go for a run.

I change clothes, put on running shoes, and walk out the front door to see another delivery truck parked across the street, and my neighbor struggling with one of the boxes.

I jog over and smile at her, finally getting a good look at her, and holy fuck, she’s beautiful. Long, light blond hair frames a face that might have been created by the gods. She’s petite, with the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen in my damn life.

“Hey, can I help?”

“Oh, no, I’ve got it.” But she fumbles, and the box ends up on the ground just as the delivery guy pulls away from the driveway. “Or, I don’t.”

I pick it up and blink in surprise. “It’s heavy. Do you have a body in here?”

“You’ll never know,” she says with a smirk. But as I start to walk in the house, she blocks me.

“Wait, I don’t know you.”

“Yes, you do, I’m your neighbor. Wyatt. Remember?”

“No, I mean I don’t know you. You could be a serial killer for all I know.”

I raise a brow. “You’re the one with the heavy box that might well have a body inside, and I’m the killer?”

Her lips twitch, and finally, I get to hear her laugh. It’s wonderful. Warm and husky, and she shrugs good-naturedly.

“I swear, I’m not a serial killer,” I assure her.

“Thief?” she asks and bites her lip, her eyes twinkling with humor.

“Not unless you count when I was six and lifted a candy bar from the drug store.”

“So you live a life of crime, then.” She sighs dramatically, and I immediately love her sarcasm. “Fine, you can come in.”

She leads me inside. Her ass is tight in her little denim shorts, and her blond hair is long, falling down her back almost to that perfect backside.

My cock just came to life.

“You can just put it on the dining room table.” She gestures to the table already covered with other boxes and mail.

“Where?”

“Hmm.” She taps her full lips with her finger, then shifts a few boxes, making room for me. “There.”

I set it down and step back to take in the space. Aside from the table, it’s tidy.

“Good, because this sucker is heavy. I’m guessing an ex-boyfriend?”

“That’s right,” she says and hooks a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling widely, and then her gaze falls to my arm. I can’t help but give it a little flex, just to watch her eyes dilate.

So, the attraction is mutual.

Good to know.

“Do you need anything else moved?” I ask her and watch her shake herself out of a daydream.

“No. Thanks. Sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?”

She laughs and pushes her fingers through her hair, shaking her head. “I don’t know. I appreciate your help. That was a heavy one.”

“What is all of this stuff?”

Her eyes suddenly go cold, and I know I’ve lost her. “Thanks for the help,” she says again, dismissing me.

“My pleasure. Before I leave, what’s your name?”

“Lia,” she replies, not saying any more, and I consider that a win. I nod and leave her house, jogging down to the waterfront.

One of the reasons I love this neighborhood is because it’s safe enough to run any time of day, and I jog to clear my head.

There are miles and miles of sidewalk that wind along the coastline, and I can watch the boats sail on the choppy, blue water. People are walking dogs, pushing strollers, sitting on blankets.

There are always people.

I reach over my head and pull off my t-shirt, ball it up in my hand, and focus on the steady pounding of my feet on the pavement.

And before long, my mind empties, and I can just enjoy the sun and the salty air.

“Why the fuck do you have a porn ’stache?” I ask Levi, my oldest brother.

“Because he’s going to do porn,” Jace says and earns the death glare from Levi, making him laugh.

“The cop thing not working out?” I ask him with a straight face and take a sip of my beer.

“Fuck both of you,” Levi replies. “I like it.”

“It’s awful,” Jace says. “But, if the porn ’stache thing draws in the ladies, who am I to judge?”

“It’s just a regular mustache,” he insists. I sit back and study him. He’s in his late thirties, with a little grey making its way through his dark hair. I figure it’s the job that’s done that to him.

Being a detective in a city the size of Seattle isn’t for the faint of heart.

“Stop harassing him,” I say to Jace. “Did you open anyone up today?”

“Two,” he says with a nod. Jace is one of the top cardiovascular surgeons in Seattle, and at thirty-six, that’s impressive. “And I saw seven others in my office. It’s going to be a busy week. What’s up with you, Wyatt?”

“I have a new neighbor,” I reply because that’s the newest thing happening right now. “Yes, I know. You’re saving lives, Levi’s catching bad guys while seeking a career in porn—”

“I’m not doing fucking porn.”

“—and I have a new neighbor. Fascinating. Except, it kind of is. She’s mysterious.”

“How so?” Jace asks.

“Well, she gets deliveries all day long. And other people come and go, some couples and some singles.”