The Lotus

Chapter 7

Jasmine POV

Bauer stays with me most of the day cleaning the apartment. He does not even b***h much. Chanel obviously is not going to help.

“I got all of the garbage out. The bathroom is spotless. Do you need me to do anything else?” he asks.

“Yeah, stop by the desk and explain to your brother what was happening in here earlier,” I say.

Bauer looks puzzled. “Oh well, that should not bother him. I mean you two don’t wait a minute. Is there something going on here?” he asks.

“Not exactly,” I say.

“Listen to me Jasmine does not get involved with him. I am not saying that because of my little crush on you. I am serious. Be careful. Walker has a bad temper and some strange well some strange s****l preferences. You do not need that in your life,” he says.

I stand before him dumbfounded. Why in the hell would Bauer even get into the conversation with me and why in the hell would ever try to say anything bad about his brother. They are thick as thieves.

“Wait, first off you have a crush on me? What are we five? Second I do not want to know about my boss and his s****l needs,” I say.

Now I know I cannot get into this strange relationship with him. If even his brother knows he is into some freaky stuff. I would be lying to myself if I did not admit I needed it last night. A good f*****g was good for me last night. I have too much on my plate right now and I need to back out of this fast.

“Thanks for all of your help today Bauer. I did appreciate the help and the company,” I say.

“No problem, “ he says.

Funny how he can act so normal sometimes. I give Bauer a hug and a kiss on the cheek. He turns to leave as Walker walks in.

“Brother, I am just going,” he says.

Walker stares at Bauer as he leaves.

“Was that not the sweetest thing I have ever seen? How did you get Bauer to help you?” Walker asks.

“I just asked him nicely and he agreed,” I say.

“Have you thought any more about being mine?” he asks.

“Walker I am not sure that is something I can do. We work together. You are my boss and although last night was a lot of fun. It was. I have a lot on my plate,” I say.

“I totally get it. Are you still having dinner with me tonight?” he asks.

I hug him. “Of course I am,” I say.

Walker helps me move a few more things around. I think I have this place liveable now. He has no idea how much this means to me. I need him as my friend right now.

“I am going to get ready. Are you going back to your apartment?” he asks.

“I have a few clothes for a day or two. When the rain stops I will go get my things,” I say.

“Are you going to be here or in a room?” he asks.

“I will stay in the room tonight but tomorrow I will start staying here,” I say.

“You can stay in the room until you fix this up. It is fine with me,” he says.

“Okay thanks,” I say.

Walker leaves. I take a look around at the apartment. I think I can really make this cute. I make sure everything is off and lock the door as I leave. I go to the elevator and hit the button. I wait for the elevator. When it finally dings I jump on happy and content for the moment.

When I get back into my room I sit down on the side of the bed. I begin to cry. I need to release all of this. My marriage has ended and I f****d the s**t out of my boss last night. To top it off his brother is going to tell me he has some sort of crush on me. I do not think I can take much more. This entire situation is too much.

I pull myself together. I cannot have a breakdown right now. I need to get dressed and go down to get a bite to eat. Everything will be better tomorrow. I walk over to the window and lookout. The rain is still coming down incredibly hard. I hope this does not turn into a hurricane.

I think I will text Walker and tell him that I will skip dinner with him tonight. I grab my phone and send the text. I do not want to hear anything about it so I turn my phone off. I can't deal right now. I need food and sleep.

I quickly get into the shower. I let the water run over me. As I think of being in the shower with Walker my body begins to tingle. Maybe he is right. Maybe I did like it.

I get out of the shower and grab a towel. I dry myself off and brush out my hair. I take a long look in the mirror. My life has changed so much in the last 24 hours.

I grab some legging and a tee from my bag. I slip into my shoes. I grab my wallet and my phone. I decide to leave my phone. I put it on charge and leave to go to the deli downstairs.

I get on the elevator and hit the button for the ground floor. I am really hungry. I did not even realize it until just now. I get off the elevator and make my way to the deli.

When I get almost to the deli, I see Bauer out of the corner of my eye. He comes rushing up to me.

“Hey, I thought you had a hot date tonight with my brother,” he says.

“I decided to just get a bite out of the deli and go back to my room and sleep,” I say to him.

Bauer walks with me to the deli. “Did you tell him that?” he asks.

“I sent him a text and shut off my phone,” I say.

“Wow! That was brutal,” he says.

“Bauer I am tired. My entire life has been turned upside down in a matter of 24 hours,” I say.

“Yeah, I get that. I am sorry. I am being an a*s. Do you need my help tomorrow?” he asks.

“Yeah. I am going to get one of the girls to cover my shift. I will need help finishing up the apartment. If the rain stops I need to go get my stuff,” I say.

“You care if I grab a bite with you or are you going straight back up to your room?” he asks.

“It is fine. You can walk with me,” I say.

Bauer follows behind me to the deli. I place my order. “Hey I got this,” he says.

He orders his food and pays for both of our meals. He waits at the counter for our food. I sit down at a table and wait. When he gets our food he offers to carry it up for me.

He motions for me to come on while he is holding the bags. I follow him to the elevator. We get on together. I hit the button for the elevator. When we get to our floor he follows me to my room. He hands me my food after I open the door.

“Look you can come in and eat but then you got to go back to your room,” I say.

He smiles. “Yes ma’am,” he says.

Bauer follows me into my room. He sets down our food and begins to unpack it. I grab the remote to turn on the tv. I select a music station for background noise.

“How long are you planning to stay at the hotel?” I ask.

Bauer has his mouth full of a swiss on rye. “Until the storm is over. Then I am going back to my place,” he says.

As I sit down to finally eat there is a knock at the door. Knock Knock Knock and then a louder bang. Then I hear a master key open the door.