Dirty Neighbor(7)

Maybe she should just go back home.

No, Elisha, you’re going to do this.

Knocking on the door, she waited for someone to answer. Nothing happened.

Lifting her hand, she knocked again, and still nothing.

“What are you doing?”

She spun around to find no one around. Frowning, she raised her hand only to pause when someone started talking.

“Just come in.”

Looking up, she found Brant leaning out of a window.

“You’re not going to come and see me in.”

“I was just taking a piss. Come in. It’s a party, and you’re invited.”

“You know leaving your door unlocked is unsafe.” She was only next door, and there was no way in hell she would leave her door open.

“How do you expect to have a party unless you leave your door open?” He leaned further out of the room. “The door is shut, just not locked. Come in, have fun.”

“Wash your hands,” she said, opening the door, and entering chaos.

I can do this. It’s just a party. A big party with lots of people.

She was suddenly grateful that she didn’t wear her cocktail dress. Some of the women were wearing bikinis, and others miniskirts. She was overdressed.

“That wasn’t so bad,” Brant said, coming downstairs.

“I’m here.”

“And now it’s time for you to have some fun. First, I want to introduce myself. I’m Brant Miller, your new neighbor.” He held his hand out.

Just do it. Just take his hand, and get over whatever shit is going on.

“I’m Elisha Jackson. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Was that hard?” he asked, smiling.

“A little bit. You did wash your hands, right?”

“You’ll never know. You’re going to have to trust me.”

He kept hold of her hand, and led her through the maze of people toward his kitchen. The state of the kitchen was a nightmare, but she kept it together. Not once did she make a comment that it was a mess, or that he needed to do something to the state of the surfaces.

“You don’t drink, so I’ve got something special for you. I went out to the store, and where we go.” Brant leaned into his fridge, and retrieved a small can of soda. She stared down at the brand, and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“You went and got soda for me?” She took the can, cracking it open.

“Ah, wait, I also got you a straw in case you couldn’t stand to drink where other people put their mouths. Here.” He went into a draw, and she watched him open a fresh packet, and hand her one.

“Thank you.” Placing the straw in the drink, she took a sip of the cool orange soda. “Perfect.”

“See, not an awful neighbor.”

“No, sorry.” She liked standing close to him. Being this close and personal with him reminded her how damn sexy he was. His arms were thick, and bare of any ink. The shirt he wore was stretched over his chest, highlighting how muscular he was, or the fact he liked wearing smaller shirts. “What happens now?”

“Now, we have some fun.” He took hold of her hand, and he started introducing her to his friends.

She discovered that he had a lot of friends, and several of them were in the art business.

“You’re a professional cleaner?” Danny asked. He was an event planner.

“Yes. I clean pretty much anything. We’re contracted by businesses, or for personal home cleaning. Anything that is a mess, I clean.”

“There’s a venue I was looking at for my client’s latest art exposition, but the building has just been recently renovated. The décor is finished, but it’s a mess. Builders clean away their tools, but there hasn’t been any time to clean it.”

“Do you have a picture?” she asked.

He pulled his cell phone out, and proceeded to show her.

“Yep, we can do that.”

“Sweet.”

She gave him her business number, and left him to it.

“You’re using my friends to get business,” Brant said, placing his arm around her shoulders.

“Don’t blame me. I was asked. If you want I don’t have to take the business.”

“Nah, Danny’s harmless, and it’ll stop him from moaning about finding the perfect venue. Be warned, baby, you’re going to have a lot of work thrown your way.”

They made their way out toward the backyard, where people were dancing. Brant owned a pool, and it was full of men and women kissing. Averting her gaze from the action, she sipped from her soda, and she found herself having fun.

“This is my brother, Sean,” Brant said.

“Pleasure to meet you,” Sean said, smiling.

She shook Sean’s hand, and started talking with him. He was a business major, and he had a thing for sports. Brant never left her side, which made her rather nervous, but she liked it. Elisha liked being in his company. He wasn’t that bad after all.