Zoe said, stifling a groan as she remembered the occasions on which Paul had insisted on giving her “self-defense” lessons. She’d done her best to learn the simple strikes he’d shown her, but she hadn’t demonstrated much proficiency for hand-to-hand combat. In the end, Paul had bought her a pepper spray keychain and urged her to keep it in her purse. “I watch my brother fight sometimes; that’s all.”
“And you’ll be watching him compete in the Elite East Championship Tournament soon?”
“Yeah. He’s planning to sign up for the opening rounds this week, as soon as registration begins.” His excitement had practically been palpable over the past 48 hours, ever since he’d found out about the tournament.
“Cool. So do you—”
Zoe’s phone went off, loud enough to be heard from the depths of her purse.
“Sorry,” she said, unzipping her handbag and taking a peek at the screen. “That’s my brother right now. He doesn’t usually call me for no reason. I’m going to see what he wants, if that’s all right with you.”
“Go ahead.”
Zoe swiped her finger across the screen. “Hey, Paul. What is it?” He’d better not be calling just to check up on her during her date. Not that he normally did that, but if he felt the need to “escort” her out to the street, who knew what he was thinking?
“Zoe. Hey, I was wondering if you could do me a favor.”
“Like what?”
“On your way home tonight, could you swing by a home improvement store or something and pick up a bucket? A big one. At least five gallons.”
“Okay… Why?” Had Paul finally gotten tired of waiting for their landlord to fix the various problems around their place and decided to go on some sort of handyman spree?
“Well,” Paul said, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it’s raining.”
Zoe glanced toward the nearest window. Paul was right, though she’d been too absorbed in her date with Noah to notice, up until then. “Looks like it’s coming down pretty hard.”
“Yeah. Well, the roof isn’t exactly taking it very well. There’s a leak in your bedroom. And by a leak, I mean a small waterfall, basically.”
Zoe’s stomach lurched. “Where, exactly?”
“You know that brown spot on the ceiling above your bed?”
“Yes.” Zoe barely resisted the urge to groan.
“It’s not a spot anymore so much as a hole. Your sheets are covered in soggy plaster and water. The door was halfway shut and I didn’t notice the leak ‘till I was walking by on my way outta the shower… I’ve been catching the rain with the biggest mixing bowl I could find, but I keep having to empty it out into the bathroom sink. I need something bigger. I’d ask Britney, but she’s teaching late tonight and I can’t get ahold of her while she’s in the middle of a class anyway.”
The wine sitting in Zoe’s stomach went from warm and comforting to acidic as she imagined Paul trudging back and forth from her bedroom to the bathroom as the crappy roof released a deluge of dirty water above her bed. “I’ll pick up a bucket,” she promised. “Meanwhile, do you think you could move my bed?”
“I’ll do my best, but there’s not much room in here. I don’t know if I’ll be able to get it completely out from under the leak.”
Zoe sighed. “Okay. Thanks… I’ll be home soon.”
By the time Zoe ended the call, Noah was staring across the table with an unmistakable look of concern. “Something wrong?”
“According to Paul, our roof isn’t taking the rain very well. There’s a big leak at our place, in my bedroom. He needs me to pick up a bucket to catch the water.”
Noah frowned. “That sucks. Do we need to leave now?” He shifted in his seat, like he was about to stand up.
Heat rushed into Zoe’s cheeks and she knew that the wine she’d had would only make her blush worse. She held his gaze anyway, trying not to think of his nice suits or his thoroughly middle class car. He was no millionaire
“And you’ll be watching him compete in the Elite East Championship Tournament soon?”
“Yeah. He’s planning to sign up for the opening rounds this week, as soon as registration begins.” His excitement had practically been palpable over the past 48 hours, ever since he’d found out about the tournament.
“Cool. So do you—”
Zoe’s phone went off, loud enough to be heard from the depths of her purse.
“Sorry,” she said, unzipping her handbag and taking a peek at the screen. “That’s my brother right now. He doesn’t usually call me for no reason. I’m going to see what he wants, if that’s all right with you.”
“Go ahead.”
Zoe swiped her finger across the screen. “Hey, Paul. What is it?” He’d better not be calling just to check up on her during her date. Not that he normally did that, but if he felt the need to “escort” her out to the street, who knew what he was thinking?
“Zoe. Hey, I was wondering if you could do me a favor.”
“Like what?”
“On your way home tonight, could you swing by a home improvement store or something and pick up a bucket? A big one. At least five gallons.”
“Okay… Why?” Had Paul finally gotten tired of waiting for their landlord to fix the various problems around their place and decided to go on some sort of handyman spree?
“Well,” Paul said, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it’s raining.”
Zoe glanced toward the nearest window. Paul was right, though she’d been too absorbed in her date with Noah to notice, up until then. “Looks like it’s coming down pretty hard.”
“Yeah. Well, the roof isn’t exactly taking it very well. There’s a leak in your bedroom. And by a leak, I mean a small waterfall, basically.”
Zoe’s stomach lurched. “Where, exactly?”
“You know that brown spot on the ceiling above your bed?”
“Yes.” Zoe barely resisted the urge to groan.
“It’s not a spot anymore so much as a hole. Your sheets are covered in soggy plaster and water. The door was halfway shut and I didn’t notice the leak ‘till I was walking by on my way outta the shower… I’ve been catching the rain with the biggest mixing bowl I could find, but I keep having to empty it out into the bathroom sink. I need something bigger. I’d ask Britney, but she’s teaching late tonight and I can’t get ahold of her while she’s in the middle of a class anyway.”
The wine sitting in Zoe’s stomach went from warm and comforting to acidic as she imagined Paul trudging back and forth from her bedroom to the bathroom as the crappy roof released a deluge of dirty water above her bed. “I’ll pick up a bucket,” she promised. “Meanwhile, do you think you could move my bed?”
“I’ll do my best, but there’s not much room in here. I don’t know if I’ll be able to get it completely out from under the leak.”
Zoe sighed. “Okay. Thanks… I’ll be home soon.”
By the time Zoe ended the call, Noah was staring across the table with an unmistakable look of concern. “Something wrong?”
“According to Paul, our roof isn’t taking the rain very well. There’s a big leak at our place, in my bedroom. He needs me to pick up a bucket to catch the water.”
Noah frowned. “That sucks. Do we need to leave now?” He shifted in his seat, like he was about to stand up.
Heat rushed into Zoe’s cheeks and she knew that the wine she’d had would only make her blush worse. She held his gaze anyway, trying not to think of his nice suits or his thoroughly middle class car. He was no millionaire
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