Power Play - Brittney Mulliner Page 0,50

followed her while Mom tried to rush us along as if the apartment would suddenly vanish if we didn’t hurry. I wasn’t sure if this was a sales tactic, but I didn’t like the added pressure.

We got off on the ninth floor, and she led us to one of the four doors. “Are there only four units on each floor?”

“Yes.” She nodded and unlocked the door before stepping back so we could enter. That was a plus. Not too many neighbors.

“Wow,” Dad gushed as he stepped inside. If he was impressed, that must be a good sign. I followed him in and smiled.

The walls were a light gray with dark hardwood floors. The kitchen was bright with white cabinets and overlooked the city with wide windows that ran into the living room as well. The view was just as nice as the last one, without feeling like your entire life was on display.

The living space was nearly twice what I had right now. Room to entertain and have more than three or four people over at a time. That would be nice.

“This unit is three bedrooms.” The manager walked us through, pointing out upgraded features. It was bigger than I needed, but more space wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Joey would have a room when he came rather than the couch. I could even let new guys from the team crash here if they didn’t have time to find a place. That wasn’t uncommon with trades or guys from the farm team. I would have appreciated a chance to breathe and figure things out before having to find a place when I first got here.

“I really like it.” I went back to the kitchen and waited for Mom’s approval. It really wasn’t up to her, but I wanted her to feel like she had a say. It seemed important to her.

“I do too. This is the right one.” She squeezed my arm.

Dad winked, and I shook my head.

The manager looked between all of us before meeting my eyes. “Would you like to fill out an application?”

I nodded. “Yeah, thank you.”

We went back down to the first floor, and she pointed out the ground-level entrance to the private parking garage. Her office was in the back corner, and as I walked by, I glanced into the next room where long brown hair caught my eye.

Taylor?

I paused and stared at the back of her. What was she doing here?

“Hi, Jason.” Sydney walked toward me.

“Hey.” I narrowed my eyes. “What are you guys doing here?”

She tilted her chin toward Taylor. “Now that she has a job, she decided to find her own place.”

“She’s moving in here?” I asked, feeling unstable.

“Yeah.” She frowned. “I told her Brandon and I were happy to have her stay for as long as she wanted, but she was adamant.”

“So she just happened to find this place?” What were the odds?

“Oh no.” She waved him off. “Chloe sent her a list of a few options, and we toured them. This was her favorite.”

Of course. Of course, she liked the same place as me. Of course, she was moving in. If Chloe hadn’t sent me over two dozen options, I would have thought she was pulling the strings, but there was no way she could have known I’d narrow it down to this building. Could she?

“Do you know what unit it is?” Please don’t be on the same floor.

“Nine-oh-two.” She smiled. “Are you moving in here too?”

Joey and Mom walked out of the office. “Honey, she needs your information,” Mom said before stopping. “Hi. Sydney, right?”

“Hi Mrs. Dumoulin. Nice to see you again.” Sydney beamed at her, then at Joey. “Hey.”

He grinned at her, and I could practically see the hearts in his eyes. I stepped in front of him and faced her. “Yeah, I need to fill out the application right now.”

“Nice. They approved her right away so I’m sure you won’t have any problems.” She smiled at all of us. “See you guys.”

Mom watched Sydney walk away and gasped when she saw who was next to her. “Is that Taylor?”

I nodded.

“She’s moving in here too?”

“Looks like it,” I replied.

“What are the odds?” She sounded a little too pleased.

19

Taylor

I heard his voice. I knew he was outside the office, but I didn’t move. Sydney told him I was moving in, and now so was he. Of all the places in the city? Here? I nearly growled while I read over the contract. Should I back out? There were other