JENNIE

The air conditioner in the apartment had decided to die on me on the hottest day of the year so far. Worse, I was struggling to pull off the tape I'd used to roll up my gray shag rug.

I'd moved in my things a few days ago, but between writing my column and several long meetings with my editor, I'd barely even been in the apartment, never mind unpacking everything. Now, after an afternoon of rearranging furniture and unpacking boxes in the heat, I was sweating like I'd just run a marathon.

I'd stayed motivated by telling myself I could have a cocktail once I got everything done, because I was definitely going to need one. I didn't do well in heat—the only place I liked to get this hot and sweaty was in the bedroom.

Despite the setback with the air conditioner, I was excited about the way the apartment was coming together. I hated to admit it, but I was starting to appreciate suburban life. It was so quiet out here, and I was getting the best sleep of my life. Maybe I was just getting old and boring, but watching the little ducks splash around in the backyard pond was my new favorite hobby.

It was a great apartment, and if I could just get it all unpacked, I'd finally be settled.

There was only one way to deal with this situation if I didn't want to melt into a puddle. I stripped off my soaking-wet T-shirt and shorts, opting to unpack in my bra and panties, and splashed some cold water on my face. I dug my portable speaker out from the bottom of a box and put on my "happy" playlist. I'd never lived in my own place before, but I had a feeling I was going to like it. Especially if it meant I could hang out in my underwear listening to Bruno Mars anytime I wanted.

I looked out the window between the shades and noticed Lisa's car in the driveway. I hadn't seen her since our last awkward encounter, when Lily had first realized that the random woman she'd caught straddling her dada had moved in. We'd ended the night normally enough, but I still felt uncomfortable about the whole thing. She and I had almost had a run-in the other day as I was getting in my car to meet my editor, but I'd pretended not to see her. I told myself I wasn't avoiding her; I'd just been busy and hadn't had time to make small talk.

As if on cue, Lisa stepped out her front door carrying a trash bag, and I jumped away from my window, my heart racing.

Okay, so maybe I was avoiding her. But it seemed like I couldn't be around this guy without making a fool of myself, so I wasn't exactly in a rush to see her.

"Uptown Funk" came on and I grinned. This was the perfect song to make me forget all the drama with Lisa. Yes, I knew it was overplayed, but I still loved it and couldn't sit still when it came on. I might be a thirty-year-old woman, but I still knew how to get down.

I was just getting into the chorus, doing my best reenactment of the music video and holding up a wooden spoon as a microphone, when I heard a voice behind me. I spun around, mid hip-thrust, and saw Lisa standing in the doorway. We stared at each other for a moment as she took in the scene.

And that scene wasn't a flattering one. I was in a basic white cotton bra and a pair of neon-green boy-shorts with penguins all over them.

"Oh my God," I shouted as Lisa stood gaping. I dove for my T-shirt.

"Shit. I'm sorry," she said, turning to look at the wall as I pulled my shirt on. "I didn't realize . . . The door was open." She trailed off, standing uncomfortably as I snatched up my shorts.

Seriously? This was the second time I'd had to rush to put my clothes on in front of Lisa in the past week.

"It was hot, so I opened the door. I guess I forgot about it," I said, mortified and trying to ignore my flaming cheeks. I couldn't have embarrassed myself more in front of her if I'd tried.

"Sorry," she said again, once the music was off. "I was coming by to check on the A/C unit. It tends to blow its fuse on really hot days like this."

"Yeah, I noticed." I fanned my sweaty face. I was still recovering from the shock, but I managed to put on a smile. "But thanks for coming to check on it. My last landlord would have let me die of heat exhaustion before fixing anything."

"No worries." Lisa smiled. "I know it can get pretty hot up here. Do you mind if I take a look at it?"

"Of course." I gestured toward the fuse box on the wall.

She unplugged the air conditioner, flipped a few switches, then bent down to plug the air conditioner in. It immediately hummed back to life.

I grinned as cold air breezed past me. "That was amazing."

I made eye contact with Lisa, and my stomach did a somersault.

"I usually wear clothes," I added quickly, hoping my face wasn't as red as it felt. "But it was hot, so, you know. And then that song came on."

Jesus, Jennie, stop talking.

She laughed. "Don't worry about it. It's my fault for just walking in. I should have called first."

"So," I said, desperate for a subject change. "How's Lily?"

"She's good." She smiled, and Her eyes lit up like they did every time she talked about her daughter. Even though I wasn't a kid person, I had to admit it was pretty adorable. "She's watching a movie in my bed."

I raised an eyebrow. "So she kicked you out?"

She laughed. "Pretty much. She's very persuasive."

"In that case, do you want to stay and have a beer?"

She glanced out the window.

"It's okay if you can't leave Lily alone," I said, but she stopped me.

"No, she'll be fine for a few minutes. A beer would be great, actually."

I motioned for her to take a seat on the couch while I went to grab two beers from the fridge. If we were really going to be on good terms, I'd need to spend some time getting to know Lisa the person, not the panty-dropper I'd met at a bar. Although, with how good she looked in her casual jeans and T-shirt, that was going to be easier said than done.

I handed her a beer, and she took a long swig.

"Long day at work?" I asked.

She swallowed. "Is it obvious?"

"You look a little tense, that's all."

"So, she's beautiful and perceptive," she said, and my heart skipped a beat.

I looked down at my beer bottle, suddenly at a loss for words. Still, I could think of a few things I'd like to do with Lisa, and most of them didn't require clothing.

"So," I said, eager to get my mind onto a safe topic. "What's new in transportation?"

"Nothing exciting." She smiled and took another swig. "We've just been trying to meet this deadline, and it's not going well. But seriously, you don't want to hear about it. Even I'm bored by it."

"Okay, so, what's new in life? Any girl drama?" I paused, realizing what I was saying, then added sheepishly, "Well, other than me."

After a beat of silence, we both laughed, and relief washed over me. It seemed like we were finally moving past the awkwardness of that situation.

"Not much else. You pretty much took the cake on that one."

Still laughing, I said, "It wasn't my finest moment."

"At least you'll never forget what you did on your thirtieth birthday." She grinned.

"Thank God I'll always have that memory to cherish."

Still grinning, she ran a hand through her dark hair. I watched her, trying not to get distracted by those expressive eyes and how perfect her full lips and straight white teeth looked when she smiled.

I'd never gotten turned on by a guy's lips before, but something about Lisa's made it impossible not to think about kissing her. I was too aware of how close we were, close enough that I could easily swing my leg over to straddle her. I struggled to keep my breathing even as I imagined her hands grabbing my hips, pulling me closer as I rocked against her. It didn't help that I knew exactly how good she felt, could still feel her hands on my skin, her mouth possessing me.

Fuck.

Luckily, Lisa interrupted my thoughts before things got too dirty.

"What about you?" she asked. "What's the latest celebrity gossip?"

"That's privileged information." I smiled coyly. It wasn't, really, but I didn't think she'd be interested in hearing about who Jennifer Aniston was dating.

"Okay, let me guess. Taylor Swift has a new boyfriend, and Justin Bieber embarrassed himself at a club."

I snorted.

"Am I close?" Grinning, she took another sip of her beer.

"I didn't peg you for the kind of guy who's up-to-date on celebrity gossip." I laughed.

"I have a daughter. She's only four, but somehow she knows everything."

I grinned. "That's impressive. Maybe I should hire her to be my assistant."

"She'd be in here telling you how to write your column on the first day."

I laughed and took another sip of beer, feeling like the heat had turned up again in the room. I couldn't deny it, though. The butterflies were definitely still there, despite my best efforts to keep things platonic.

I'd never felt like this before around a guy, especially after the way our hookup had gone. In fact, even when things went well with a guy, I usually got bored with them after a week or two. Then again, neither of us got to finish that night, so maybe I was just recovering from the lady version of blue balls. In a few weeks, the tension would ease, and hopefully I wouldn't be imagining jumping into bed with her every five minutes.

"I should probably get back and make sure Lily hasn't set the house on fire." She stood up and stretched, and her shirt lifted just enough for me to sneak a look at her hard-as-rock abs.

I bit my lip. No, Jennie. I mentally slapped myself. This was exactly the kind of thing I needed to stop thinking about. Too bad I could still remember how those abs felt under my hands as I rode her.

"See you around." I smiled, trying to pretend I wasn't remembering what her cock felt like inside me, and walked her to the door.

"Thanks for the beer," she said, then added with a sly grin, "And let me know if you need anything up here. Judging by what I saw earlier, you seem to be having a pretty good time so far."

I slapped her shoulder and snorted a laugh. "You're not allowed to tell anyone about that."

"Okay, my lips are sealed." She smirked before heading down the stairs.

Once she'd left, I collapsed on the couch, trying to recover from the roller-coaster ride that was my attraction to Lisa. But it was nice to know we could have fun together without getting horizontal.

I resolved to work even harder to keep our relationship strictly landlord and tenant. After all, I was a classic commitment-phobe; I couldn't even commit to a cat or a signature lipstick color. What did I think I was doing fantasizing about getting involved with a guy who had a kid? I wasn't committed to being a stable role model for her daughter, and it wouldn't be fair to her or her daughter to blur the lines in our relationship, especially when things inevitably went south.

As much as I wanted to tear my clothes off and finish what we'd started the week before, I'd have to keep it PG, no matter how cute and helpful Lisa was.