Later that day after Leo and I got some much needed rest and showers, we headed out to the middle of nowhere to look at what would soon become a small metropolitan city. The only thing standing in the vast empty field was a single barn, coated with red paint from decades ago, fading as time passed. In the helicopter we were in I could really take in the beauty of the area. There was a small river that flowed in through the mountains and was flanked on both sides by an army of trees. There were areas where nothing but weeds were growing and dried dirt covered the land but other than that there was a pretty decent sized area of luscious green grass.
I really hoped that Leo tried his best to keep it as beautiful as he could but then I figured I would end up having to take that task on by myself. I was a little surprised to see that Leo was actually entranced in the land below as we flew over us, his bright blue eyes wandering all over the place.
I don't know why I noticed but I did; he pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and has his eye brows furrowed the entire time we up in the air. It looked like he was looking at a complicated math equation that he didn't know how to begin.
After spending hours flying and walking around the area we were flown back to the closest airport and then took the Stavros private jet back to New York after Leo insisted we head straight home. It was an odd demand since we were scheduled to stay for a couple more days, but I wasn't about to question Leo at the moment. Even if his sudden plans might put us in the path of Adrik sooner than I would like.
I sat across from Leo on the flight home, trying to sleep as we flew through the night sky. The whole day had taken a toll on me and all I wanted to do was succumb to sleep. However Leo didn't think the same. Instead he sat bent over the table between us scribbling furiously on papers skewed all over it, his hair falling over his forehead so I couldn't see his eyes as he worked on who knows what. I didn't want to interrupt in whatever he was obviously so invested in (of which I also didn't care to figure out what exactly was) so instead I curled up next to the window and closed my eyes.
When the jet touched down in a not so sleeping New York City I woke up as the turbulence tasseled me around. Grudgingly I sat up straight, stretching the kinks out of my back and discovered that sometime during the flight Leo had placed his jacket over me. I looked over at him to see he was sleeping up straight in his chair, his head fallen back with his mouth gaping open and snores falling from his mouth. Since his suit jacket was around my body the whole night he was wearing a dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. It was a pretty light blue that made his eyes pop.
Just as I was admiring the view of his muscled forearms and appreciable appearance he let out a snore so loud it shook him awake.
I stifled a giggle as he jolted forward, his eyes wide in panic.
"Well hello there sleeping beauty," I teased.
He looked at me, frowned, and curled up like a little kid on the chair closing his eyes peacefully.
"Somebody obviously doesn't like to be woken up."
He grunted.
"Well it doesn't look like you have much of a choice Leo," I said, unbuckling my seatbelt as the light dined off. "We're back in New York."
He grunted again.
"Leo I'm not carrying your big ass home," I growled.
...
I ended up carrying his big ass home.
Not literally, although that would have been funny to see. But I did have to carrel him into a car, drive with him to his house, force him inside and figure out which room he was sleeping in the giant mansion as he only mumbled incoherent directions at me.
After searching the mansion for what felt like hours I finally found a room on the first floor that he could sleep in. I doubted it was his bedroom but I was too tired to go on a scavenger hunt through the house while Leo hung onto my shoulder like a drunken idiot. Honestly I was so tired I thought about ducking into one of the other guest bedrooms and spending the night but I knew I had to go pick up Caesar from doggy day care. I didn't want him to spend a night there if he didn't have to.
As for Leo though, as I was sliding into the back seat of the car, I realized that I was willing to sleep in the same house as him. If someone had said that I would be doing that a month ago I probably would have laughed and punched them in their face. I never thought I would be getting along with Leo let alone having a friendship with him.
The world always seems to have a trick hidden up its sleeve.
Much like Leo who still has not told me what his master plan was for fighting Adrik back. I hated that he was trying to keep whatever was going on in his head from me, especially when it involved my ex fiancé. I was worried if his plan would work or not or maybe it didn't even exist in the first place.
I felt a head ache wrack my brain as I tried to think about the whole situation. I pushed it to the back of my thoughts and easily distracted myself as I reunited with my true love: Caesar.
...
Caesar wasted no time in running past me when I opened the door of my apartment. His big tail was wagging furiously behind him as he ran laps on the hardwood floor. I hadn't even turned on the light before I knew something was wrong.
Every time Caser would take step there would be a sound following it, and not the normal sound of the pad of his foot hitting the floor. No it was different, like when a child jumps into a puddle of water on the street.
With dread filling my body I listened harder as Caesar happily ran through my flat. It didn't take long for me to realize what was wrong but still I didn't want to turn on the light. Maybe it would be better if I just didn't see it.
I walked down the steps leading into the living room which held every door in the house other than the front door which was raised on a plat form. When I heard the splash of my shoe connecting in water. . . deep water, I mentally cursed.
I turned on the light switch revealing my entire apartment floor covered in at least two inches of water.
"FML," I yelled, throwing my bag back at the only dry place in my home, the front door.
Caesar stopped in his tracks, his happy mood diminishing as he took in my sour one.
Not only was the floor covered in water but so was every piece of furniture I had. Water droplets fell from the edges of the coffee table, my TV screen looked like someone had splashed water on it, and my couches which were once a light brown were now a dark ugly color. I looked up and saw what had caused the damage. The fire sprinklers that dotted my ceiling dripped water every few seconds, causing a ripple in the puddle below it.
It took me only five minutes to get the owner of the building on the phone and when I did I released everything thing I had been holding in the past day. By the end of the call he was stuttering in fear and apologizing profusely. I had even thought about begging Adrik to become involved but I quickly shot that idea down before I went through with it. I was only upset. . . really upset and tired and I wanted to sleep. Of course I couldn't because my faulty sprinkler system had ruined my bedroom as well.
The maintenance men came at two in the morning after their boss demanded them too. They were none too happy when they showed up at my door in the middle of the night but I let them know that I was clearly not happy about coming home to a ruined apartment. I would have found it amusing that two grown burly men were afraid of an innocent twenty six year old woman and her dog but I couldn't even lift my lips in a smile.
"I'm sorry ma'am," one of the men said, keeping his eyes down casted as he spoke. "We won't be able to clean this up until tomorrow when we have the right supplies."
I ran hand through my hair, gripping it at the roots so tight that I nearly pulled it out. "You're telling me that my apartment will continue to serve as a bathtub until tomorrow? Where will I sleep!"
The man looked up at me finally as his college stayed behind him. Clearly someone lost Rock Paper Scissors. "Anyone you can stay with?"
"No," I snapped.
The man swallowed, fear and guilt ridden in his eyes. "I really am sorry this happened miss. I don't know how this apartment passed through inspections at the beginning of the year."
I know how. I didn't pay the bill that month so I refused to let them inside, fearing they would ask me to pay up or get out. January is always the hardest month for me to pay my expenses because how can I say no to getting myself a whole array of Christmas presents?
The maintenance men left after they helped me salvage as much as I could. The TV, couch, my blankets, rugs, paintings, and a basket of my dirty clothes were all ruined. We put the few dry sheets I had stuffed away on every other piece of furniture I had to ensure that no more moisture would ruin them. I already had my bag packed for a week long trip that only lasted two days so I didn't have to scavenge through my dressers and closet for clothes that stayed dry. As soon as I got the opportunity I kicked the men out and locked my front door. I walked down stairs to the dangerous streets of New York City with Caesar by my side and absolutely no place to go.
...
It was seven in the morning when I finally grew the balls to knock on Leo's door. Out of everyone I knew Leo was the only person who could possibly let me stay with him. It wasn't like he was using every room of his mansion anyways.
I had to knock five different times and call him three times for him to finally come to the door.
He swung open the large heavy door and my first thought was "Holy crackers on a biscuit." Apparently after I had put Leo to bed the night before he took off his shirt. . . and his pants.
He stood in front of me with nothing but black boxer briefs on that left nothing to the imagination. He didn't seem to notice though, or care. He was leaning up against the door frame, his eyelids heavy with exhaustion and his hair sticking up all over the place. I would have thought he was sexy if he wasn't. . .
I didn't have an excuse.
He was looking sexy as hell.
"What are you doing here Ivory," he yawned, stretching his arms over his head in the process. His abs rippled across his stomach and the veins in his arms bulged.
I cleared my throat and did my best to look him in the eyes. "I'm looking for a place. Mine is under water."
Leo stared at me silently for only a few seconds before moving past and sweeping his arm in the air. "Mi casa is . . . um your house now. Fuck just go find a random room." With that Leo turned around and sluggishly climbed the grand staircase, leaving me alone in the center of his entry hallway.
"Well," I said, taking in my surroundings. "Do you think he noticed you boy?" Running into the room with his tongue hanging out of his mouth was Caesar, his paws still wet from my indoor pool. "No I don't think so either," I cooed, patting his head. I closed the front door and turned back to my overly large dog. "Let's go find you something to eat buddy."
...
I feel like this chapter is really bad but I wanted to give you guys something since I haven't updated in a while