Hard to Resist - By Kara Lennox Page 0,11
You’d think it wouldn’t be that hard, but every place I’ve looked at is either too expensive, won’t take pets or it’s just…yuck.” She bit her full lower lip and buried her face in the kitten’s fur.
He could tell she was struggling with her emotions. Ethan’s mind raced. He had a vacant apartment. It was small and it still needed some work, but it was livable. “I have an idea.”
Five minutes later, Kat was walking around the one-bedroom apartment above his garage, checking out the single closet.
“Not that I have much to put in the closet,” she said with a laugh.
“I know it’s probably smaller than you want,” Ethan said. “And the kitchen is awful. But I’m putting in new cabinets and appliances.”
“It’s really not so bad,” she said. “So how much rent would you charge?”
He shrugged. “It was just sitting here empty. You don’t have to pay me rent.”
“What? Of course I do.” She looked at him like he was a little bit crazy. And maybe he was. Any normal person would charge rent. But he couldn’t see himself taking money out of Kat’s pocket, not when she’d just lost everything in a fire.
“Tell you what,” Ethan said. “I’ll charge you rent. But you don’t have to pay me now. You’re going to need money for a lot of stuff. We can defer it until you’re back on your feet.”
“That’s very generous of you. But I make it a policy never to go into debt. It’s something I counsel my girls on, over and over.”
“Your girls?” She had more than one?
“The StrongGirls. It’s a program I’m running for teenage girls. I try to teach them to become independent and take responsibility for their lives. We do group and individual counseling, life-skills coaching, relationship coaching, help them with job applications, encourage teamwork and networking and goal-setting—a little bit of everything.”
Ethan was impressed. He figured she did something for a living, but he hadn’t imagined that. “You’re running the whole program?”
“Well, that sounds more impressive than it is. I came up with the concept and curriculum, and I got the grant that allowed me to start it up. But it’s a fledgling program. I only have four groups of girls, two employees and a tiny storefront office. But it’s going really well, so far. Zero pregnancies, zero dropouts—” She stopped herself. “I am so sorry. I’ve been living and breathing this program for more than a year and I drone on and on about it at the slightest encouragement.”
“Hey, don’t apologize. It sounds like you’re doing something great.” Great, but she probably wasn’t making a lot of money. “Really, you don’t have to pay me rent.”
She shook her head. “I couldn’t look my girls in the eye if I accepted charity from you, when I’m perfectly able to handle this. That’s what being a StrongGirl is all about.” She pulled her checkbook from her purse. “So how much is the rent?”
“You’re taking the apartment?”
“Yes. I love this neighborhood. I’ve wanted to live here since I first moved to Oak Cliff.”
Ethan reluctantly named a figure. It was less than he could probably get on the open market, but not so low that Kat would think he was giving her charity. He hadn’t realized she would be so touchy about someone trying to help her out.
She wrote out the check for the first month’s rent and handed it to him. “You should also be charging me a security deposit and a pet deposit, you know.”
“I trust you.”
She looked at him, perplexed. “You don’t even know me.”
“I’m a good judge of character. Anyway, we’ll soon know each other better.” Maybe a lot better.
Her eyes widened slightly, as if she’d read his thoughts. Their gazes held for a long moment. He could almost see the sparks flying between them.
Unable to bear the tension a moment longer without touching her, he broke the silence. “So, when do you want to move in? I work tomorrow—twenty-four on, forty-eight off. But any ‘off’ day I can help you.”
She waved away his offer. “I only have a few things. I can manage.”
Right. She had lost all of her belongings. “What about furniture?”
“I’ll get it worked out,” she said breezily. “One step at a time.”
“Bashira can stay with me until you get settled in the apartment. No sense moving him twice.”
“Are you sure?”
“Sure, I’m sure.”
She stood on her toes and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “Thank you, again. You’re a lifesaver in more ways than one.”
From his