Breaking Down

Chapter 19

19

Tyler

I had rented a small U-Haul truck for the move. My pride was too f*****g big and I didn’t ask for help when trying to load all the things we had in my shitty apartment into the truck, but a neighbor who always greeted me in the hallway saw me and offered some help. I wanted to say no, but I dropped a big chair and broke its leg. Then, I relented and let him help me.

I had already put everything in boxes or bags, so it took only a little over an hour to load the truck—I didn’t have much, and all I had was junk. My neighbor offered to help me at my new place, but I told him I was fine. However, I had no idea how I would carry the sofa up the stairs alone.

To my surprise, Gabi was already at the apartment. The living room hardwood shone and a heavy citrus smell hung in the air; she had been cleaning.

“Oi,” she said from the kitchen. She had a small, white rag in her hands, which didn’t match her plaid shirt and jean shorts and cowboy boots. She reached over the fridge, standing on her tiptoes and giving me a full view of her long, lean legs. Damn, she was fine. “I’m just finishing here, and then I can help you bring your stuff up.”

I averted my gaze. “No, it’s fine. I can do it myself,” I said, not sure why I lied to her.

“Don’t be silly. I’m almost done cleaning, and all my stuff is already in my room. My new bedroom furniture won’t arrive until later, so I have plenty of time to help you.”

Groaning, I dropped the bags I had brought and turned around to retrieve more. I had taken three loads of boxes and bags up when Gabi joined me at the truck. Without hesitation, she reached for a large bag.

“That’s heavy,” I warned her.

She lifted it in her hands, testing it. “It’s fine. I work out, you know.”

She whirled on her heels and hauled the heavy bag up the stairs, while I caught another glance at her legs. Yes, I did know she worked out.

Sighing, I picked up an end table and took it upstairs. Though most of my furniture was the cheapest stuff from Ikea or thrift stores, some pieces were large and heavy for a single person. Like the TV stand and the couch.

I stared at it from outside the truck, wondering how I would do this.

“Let’s give it a try.” Gabi climbed up on the bed of the truck.

“I confess I’m impressed with some of the boxes and bags you took inside, but I don’t think we can carry these.”

She stared at me, her hands on her waist. “What do you want to do, then? Just stare at it and will it upstairs? I’m the only thing you got right now, so just pipe down and let me help.”

Damn, girl.

I hated how she was right. She was the only thing I had right now, for better or for worse, and she didn’t even know it.

I shook my head but reached for the couch.

It took us a few minutes and two quick rest stops on the stairs, but we did it. We hauled the couch upstairs to our apartment, and then the TV stand and the armchairs. I had to admit, her help was essential.

Soon, my stuff was inside the apartment. Now came the boring part of opening the boxes and bags and organizing everything.

My stomach growled.

Beside me, Gabi chuckled. “Someone is hungry.”

I glanced at the time on my phone. “It’s almost four in the afternoon and I haven’t eaten since seven in the morning.”

She gaped at me. “You woke up at seven today? But you didn’t even have to go to work this morning.”

“I woke up at six thirty, because I had to finish packing all this stuff—” I gestured to the boxes and bags littering the living room. “—out of my apartment by noon.” That was the time I had agreed with the landlord.

In the end, he had pitied me and let me pay only half of what I owed him. A little guilt snaked its way into me as I accepted his offer. Now, I had money, because of my deal with Gabi, but it wouldn’t last long. And I hadn’t even paid all my bills yet. I had to save all I could.

My stomach growled again.

“Why don’t you get started here, and I’ll get us a pizza?”

I frowned. “That’s okay. I’ll go out later and grab something.” I reached for a box and opened it up.

Gabi came to stand on the other side of the box. “Tyler, stop being stubborn. I’m gonna buy a pizza. What do you like?”

Shit. When she looked at me with those blue marbles, all serious and unrelenting, it was hard saying no. “Plain pepperoni.”

She smiled. “Great. I’ll be right back.”

I couldn’t help but watch her, her smile, her silky hair bouncing side to side, and her body and long legs as she sashayed out of the apartment.

I braced the box with my forearms and lowered my forehead. s**t. It had been one week. Only one week of this arrangement and the few times I had been close to her had already started driving me crazy. Mad. Enraged. Jealous. Lusty.

Living with her for two years would be hell. I had to find a way to put more distance between us somehow.