me that again, asshole! I've had enough of you talking to me like one of your whore girlfriends!”
Craig gaped. “My girlfriends?”
“Oh, you know who I mean. I go off to work everyday and leave his butt alone in here. Says he's doing his job on the computer, but I know better.” She crossed her arms. “Elle, tell me the truth. You've seen other women coming in here while I'm gone. Haven't you?”
No, I hadn't.
Wait. Now that I thought about it, there had been a girl knocking on the door shortly after Diana left one morning. I'd only noticed it because I was up here to get rid of the dead mouse in Ms. Fielder's apartment.
I thought nothing of it. She could have been delivering mail, for all I knew.
“Well? Speak up if you know something.”
“Be quiet, damn you. This isn't her business.”
“Maybe not, but I deserve to know if my lazy spouse is screwing some bimbo on the side!”
I backed away, hoping to slip out unnoticed – and bumped into something behind me.
A hand rested on my shoulder. I knew at once who it was.
“What's going on in here?”
Jayce's booming voice silenced the arguing couple. They both stared at him with frightened eyes, like children who'd been caught doing something naughty.
I turned to face him and laughed weakly. “Oh, it's nothing. We just had a little noise complaint, and I was letting the Hartleys know.”
His glare was so withering that they refused to look him in the eye. I couldn't, either. When he got mad, Jayce could be downright scary.
His temper worried me almost as much as his desire to bed every girl in Waco. Just another reason why I was a fool for letting myself want him, I guess.
“Your neighbors can hear you all the way down the hall.”
Craig swallowed hard. “We're very sorry, really. It won't happen again.”
“Like hell it won't,” Diana spat. “Jayce, tell him to straighten up. If he keeps gambling away our money, we'll be lucky to pay next month's rent.”
He didn't budge. “Then you'll have to find someplace else to live, I suppose.”
Idiot! What was he doing – trying to piss our tenants off?
“Your marital problems are your own. Nobody else who lives here wants to hear them. And one more thing – don't you ever drag Elle into your nonsense again.”
Diana flushed with shame. Craig stammered one lame excuse after the next.
I was annoyed at Jayce for being rude, but he did take charge of the situation with such ease. When he spoke, people listened. I suddenly respected him just a little bit more for it.
Wait a minute. Me, respect him?
“If we get one more complaint, I'll be forced to call the police. Especially if violence is involved.”
“We're not –”
He stared at the smashed cup on the floor. Craig quickly shut his mouth.
Jayce took me gently by the arm and led me toward the door. I followed in silence, too baffled to resist.
“Hold on a minute,” Diana cried. “What about those girls? I know there's somebody else, Craig. I found a pair of slutty pink panties in the laundry. I would never wear something so degrading.”
Jayce whipped around, teeth bared like a dog about to attack. She shrank back and said nothing more.
“If you don't love each other, then maybe you should split up. At least the rest of us would finally get some peace and quiet.”
Oh, hell no.
So much for that respect. Knew it was too good to last.
Jayce yanked me out into the hall and slammed the door behind him. Soon as it shut, the screaming began again.
I glared at him. “What were you thinking? You had things under control, and then you literally told them to get divorced? ”
He shrugged. “But you don't agree with me? Better that than them killing each other.”
“It's not our business what they fight about so long as they stop bothering the other residents.”
“They'd just do it again. We get complaints about their noise all the damn time. Now, they know we're serious.”
“But couldn't you have been just a bit more...
Craig gaped. “My girlfriends?”
“Oh, you know who I mean. I go off to work everyday and leave his butt alone in here. Says he's doing his job on the computer, but I know better.” She crossed her arms. “Elle, tell me the truth. You've seen other women coming in here while I'm gone. Haven't you?”
No, I hadn't.
Wait. Now that I thought about it, there had been a girl knocking on the door shortly after Diana left one morning. I'd only noticed it because I was up here to get rid of the dead mouse in Ms. Fielder's apartment.
I thought nothing of it. She could have been delivering mail, for all I knew.
“Well? Speak up if you know something.”
“Be quiet, damn you. This isn't her business.”
“Maybe not, but I deserve to know if my lazy spouse is screwing some bimbo on the side!”
I backed away, hoping to slip out unnoticed – and bumped into something behind me.
A hand rested on my shoulder. I knew at once who it was.
“What's going on in here?”
Jayce's booming voice silenced the arguing couple. They both stared at him with frightened eyes, like children who'd been caught doing something naughty.
I turned to face him and laughed weakly. “Oh, it's nothing. We just had a little noise complaint, and I was letting the Hartleys know.”
His glare was so withering that they refused to look him in the eye. I couldn't, either. When he got mad, Jayce could be downright scary.
His temper worried me almost as much as his desire to bed every girl in Waco. Just another reason why I was a fool for letting myself want him, I guess.
“Your neighbors can hear you all the way down the hall.”
Craig swallowed hard. “We're very sorry, really. It won't happen again.”
“Like hell it won't,” Diana spat. “Jayce, tell him to straighten up. If he keeps gambling away our money, we'll be lucky to pay next month's rent.”
He didn't budge. “Then you'll have to find someplace else to live, I suppose.”
Idiot! What was he doing – trying to piss our tenants off?
“Your marital problems are your own. Nobody else who lives here wants to hear them. And one more thing – don't you ever drag Elle into your nonsense again.”
Diana flushed with shame. Craig stammered one lame excuse after the next.
I was annoyed at Jayce for being rude, but he did take charge of the situation with such ease. When he spoke, people listened. I suddenly respected him just a little bit more for it.
Wait a minute. Me, respect him?
“If we get one more complaint, I'll be forced to call the police. Especially if violence is involved.”
“We're not –”
He stared at the smashed cup on the floor. Craig quickly shut his mouth.
Jayce took me gently by the arm and led me toward the door. I followed in silence, too baffled to resist.
“Hold on a minute,” Diana cried. “What about those girls? I know there's somebody else, Craig. I found a pair of slutty pink panties in the laundry. I would never wear something so degrading.”
Jayce whipped around, teeth bared like a dog about to attack. She shrank back and said nothing more.
“If you don't love each other, then maybe you should split up. At least the rest of us would finally get some peace and quiet.”
Oh, hell no.
So much for that respect. Knew it was too good to last.
Jayce yanked me out into the hall and slammed the door behind him. Soon as it shut, the screaming began again.
I glared at him. “What were you thinking? You had things under control, and then you literally told them to get divorced? ”
He shrugged. “But you don't agree with me? Better that than them killing each other.”
“It's not our business what they fight about so long as they stop bothering the other residents.”
“They'd just do it again. We get complaints about their noise all the damn time. Now, they know we're serious.”
“But couldn't you have been just a bit more...
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