A moment later, I heard a door slam and music kick on somewhere above me. Scarlett’s abbreviated tour hadn’t actually included the upstairs. But I’d get to that. For now, it was imperative to establish a territory.
I was in a hostile living situation. And I was not about to let the enemy corral me into a bedroom. With him pouting or manscaping or learning to play death metal on the ukulele—whatever attractive, athletic types did in their spare time—I was free to assert myself downstairs.
It would be too easy in this situation to retreat. To ensconce myself in a bedroom and stay out of Jonah’s way. He’d been here first. But I was sticking. I was staying in Bootleg Springs until this dang dissertation was finished. And I was going to be comfortable while doing it, gosh darn it!
Glancing around, I tapped my fingers to my lips. The kitchen was a galley setup with the back door at the far end. Not enough room for me to spread out in there. Heck, there was barely enough room to open the refrigerator door. And forget about opening the refrigerator and the oven door at the same time.
The dining room was on the other side of the kitchen wall. It had a funky wallpaper mural of birch trees and a battered and charming table that overlooked the scrap of backyard. But the high-backed chairs would be too uncomfortable for me to spend long hours in them.
The living room would do, I decided, testing the overstuffed beige couch. It was comfortable and angled toward the fireplace and the TV mounted above the mantel. There was a big window looking out onto the porch, and a shabby chic occasional table and two chairs tucked into the corner. I could confiscate that area and use it as my office.
Back out on the porch, I grabbed my most important belongings. My laptop bag and my box of research. Nothing was going to derail me this time. Nothing was going to stand between me and my degree. I plopped everything down on the table and lowered myself back onto the couch.
Decision made, space claimed, I closed my eyes for a minute. The backache was sharper today, and I regretted carting all of my belongings onto the porch. Now, they’d need to be hauled upstairs, and I lacked the energy for it. I was toeing the line already. Much more, and I’d shove myself right over the edge.
I’d focus on the essentials. Everything else would be safe on the porch. It was covered.
I wondered if there were bears in Bootleg Springs. I wasn’t exactly the outdoorsy archetype. I was the stay inside and read a book type. Living in Pittsburgh for the past few years had limited my wildlife experiences.
I dozed off, imagining a fat bear pawing through my box of academic journals.
I woke up to a fierce frown and green, green eyes.
My first thought was bear! Flailing, I rolled right off the couch cushion.
But I didn’t hit the floor. Somewhere in my nap-addled brain, it registered that my new safety net was a pair of hands.
“What is wrong with you?” Jonah grumbled, rolling me back on the couch. I flopped gracelessly like a walrus.
“A lot of things. You don’t really want to know. Are there bears here?” I shouldn’t have flailed. Research recommended playing dead in a bear attack.
“Bears?”
“I thought you were a bear when I woke up. Did you know that there are Timber Rattlesnakes and Northern Copperheads in this part of the state? That probably means there’s bears too.”
He was making me nervous. Looking at me all grumpy and confused. And so close. I could reach right out and touch him. Not that I would. I was an academic, not an idiot.
“You were moaning in your sleep,” he said, ignoring my bear question.
“That happens sometimes.” I sat up, managing to keep my old lady noises to myself.
“Your stuff is still outside,” he pointed out. I felt like he was running through a list of my most immediate flaws. Sleep moans and disorganized porch hoarding.
My back sang the first few bars of “O Fortuna.” “Yeah, thanks. I’ll get it.” I stepped stiffly around him and headed for the door.
“One month,” he said.
I paused. “What?”
“Scarlett said in a month she could move one of us to another rental.”
That wasn’t so bad. I could spend a month staring at Jonah’s sweaty back muscles. “We can handle a month, can’t we?”