Chapter 1 - The Viewing

CHAPTER 1: THE VIEWING

Flat Hunters, two blocks away from campus.

This was the night I died.

At five past eight, I grunted, banging my head on my steering wheel, willing myself to get out of the bakkie. I just started my final year at varsity and I was getting kicked out of my place. I decided to celebrate by sitting in the parking of a flat-finding company, hyperventilating over having to walk in there and talk with a stranger. Well, not a complete stranger.

Some guy named Kevin waited for me. After exchanging a few emails, he agreed to meet after my evening class to help me find a flat. He seemed nice enough, but I loathed having to deal with change and any of the legal documents it entailed. Something about signing my life away on paper made me feel like I was agreeing to the slavery of responsibilities. I hated responsibilities. When I inevitably didn't get them done, someone was bound to annoy me about them.

I checked the address one more time on my phone to make sure I was in the right place. Steeling my nerves, I tucked my keys into my pocket and got out. I was five minutes late. Well, I was five minutes early, but it took me ten minutes to get out of the bakkie. I did not want to be there.

Just as I reached for the door, I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye. When I saw nothing in the shadows, I assumed my imagination got the best of me. Or, more likely, I was looking for any excuse to avoid this. But then something tiny and black darted toward me. I ran inside and closed the glass door behind me. The small, black beast howled, pawing at the door. It looked up at me with piercing, lavender eyes, challenging me and sending a chill down my spine. It was a kitten. A small, black, grungy cat. It did have some white on it — a dip at the tip of its tail, a circle around its right eye, a left boot — but it was still a cat. I shuddered and backed up before turning away, willing myself to forget about it.

Most of the place was void of life. There were a few rows of desks, all empty. Only one desk was occupied… all the way in the back. Such a long way back. A man sat there with a smirk. "Livvy?"

I walked toward him, trying my best not to trip. It was a challenge.

"Yes. Olivia, actually."

Wait. I hadn't told him my name. "Lungile," I corrected, shaking off the thought. "Lungile Moloi."

"Hi, I'm Kevin… Are you okay? You seem a little shaken up."

"I'm just great." I tried to keep the sarcasm out of my voice, I really did.

When I reached him, it was all I could do to keep from gawking. God, he was handsome. He had short, dark, messy hair and broad shoulders with biceps that strained against his shirt. His smile sent a heat through me I was desperate to ignore.

Keep it in your pants, girl. He's so out of your league, anyway.

"Have a seat and we'll get started." Even his voice was deep and panty-dropping, not at all what I'd expected when I read his emails. His eyes twinkled as he focused on me. "So, Lungile." My name was almost a challenge on his tongue. "What are you looking for?"

Ahem, a ride with you would be nice. My cheeks heated at the unbidden thought and I looked away. Either my hormones were going crazy, or he was sending a lot of pheromones my way. I pushed my spring twists behind my ear.

"Short-term, long-term? Amenities?" His words stayed on-topic, but his smirk told me he knew where my head was. That only made me blush harder.

I cleared my throat. "Close to campus would be nice, near the back where the art building is, and someplace cheap. Nothing else matters to me. A safe enough neighbourhood, maybe."

He clicked away at his computer. Slapping the enter button, he moved the monitor in my direction and sat back. "What about these?"

I glanced at the screen, not paying close attention. "They look good."

"Cool. I can get into this one tonight. Let's take a look. That is, if you want to."

"Of course."

He reached into a drawer and pulled out a loaded keyring that reminded me of a caretaker's set. Then, after turning off his computer, he motioned me to follow him. "We'll take my car."

"Sure." My stomach twisted into knots at the thought of being so close to him. As we neared the door, I remembered the black beast that had tried to attack me earlier. I stayed a few steps back as he opened the door. When he held it for me, I poked my head out, studying the shadows to see if there was any movement.

"Are you all right? You seem a little on edge."

He placed a hand on my back and suddenly that was all I could focus on — that one contact point. I cleared my throat. "Uh, I just… It's dark. I wanted to make sure there were no wolves out or anything."

"Wolves? In the city?" He offered me a lopsided smile as he locked the door up behind us. "I'm sure we'll be fine."

He walked me over to his car. The moment he unlocked it, I scrambled in, just in time to avoid another assault from the tiny black blob. "See? There!" He got in and locked the door before the beast made it to his side, then looked out, studying it. "Oh, how cute. It's a kitty!"

I glared at him. "It is a beast."

"I'm guessing we won't have to worry about a security deposit for pets."

"Hell, no. No dogs, no cats, no animals."

"Not a fan, huh?" He smirked as he started the car.

"I'm not a fan of cleaning up after them, but I don't like cats — especially not black ones."

I kept my eyes on those lavender pupils as we drove away. It chased after us for a few blocks but then gave up. When its frame blurred into the shadows, something dashed through the air. Maybe a hawk had flown by and picked up the nasty thing. Good.

Kevin

Lungile sat in my passenger seat, looking beautiful but skittish. She had chin-length spring twists, thick lips, and manicured nails that could do some real damage to a man's back. She tapped those nails on the door handle, her eyes flicking to the side-view mirror. As the drive took us through some curves, she relaxed in her seat and focused on the road ahead of us.

Tonight was going to be simple and easy. Many of my jobs comprised a plethora of research, and the people I came across were often impossible to deal with, but Lungile was proving to be easy-going, aside from the cat incident. That could be a problem.

"This place isn't right behind the university," I said, "but it's close. You'll be able to walk to class."

"That's fine." She chewed on her lower lip.

Those lips should be around my— God, no. Fuck. I'm on the job. I took a deep breath and thought about Madame. That sobered me up. The last thing I needed was a hard-on when we got to the empty flat.

"To be honest," she said, glancing over at me, "I just need an affordable place, and fast."

"Shit got bad, huh?"

She quirked an eyebrow up and smiled. Finally. "No, not really. The rent went up."

"High enough for you to move?"

"They've been doing renovations. New management."

I nodded. "That sucks. How much longer do you have?"

"This is my last year. Then I'm moving away."

"Yeah? To where?"

She shrugged, lifting her breasts — the perfect size for my hands. I shifted in my seat, wishing my jeans weren't so tight. Focus.

She sighed as though she hated to answer the question. "Cape Town? Joburg? I'm not sure."

"What about your parents?" There was an awkward pause. "I'm sorry if I stepped out of line with that."

"No, it's fine. My mom passed away last year, and my dad's been gone since I was a baby."

"Ah, sorry to hear that about your mom. It's never easy losing a parent." I glanced over at her. There was a longing in her eyes, but she blinked it away. "What happened to your dad?"

"Mine accident. Some kind of explosion underground… honestly, I'm not sure." She shifted in her seat. "How much longer 'til we get there?"

"Half a second." I pulled into the small parking. Though surrounded by the city, the complex felt secluded and was a building of only four flats. It hid in a small dip that gave the illusion it was far away from everywhere else. It was perfect. I opened the door for her and turned on the lights, letting her look around. I glanced outside before closing the door and securing the lock.

Thanks to my big mouth, I would have to give her the grand tour, get her mind off the sad shit.

Lungile

I moved around the empty living room. "This place seems pretty…"

"Nice? Private?"

"Small." Her voice fell flat. No — my voice. I was losing track of myself around him.

"Small can be good. It means cheaper rent, after all. Come here and check out the kitchen. The counter's just been redone," he said, and I could have sworn his eyes lingered on me a second too long.

"Can't fit much in this stove." I peered inside and sighed.

"You do a lot of cooking?"

"Something like that." I peered into the fridge, and felt his gaze on my round ass in my tight jeans. I wondered if he would mind if I turned around. If I caught his mouth with mine and kissed him. I wondered how he tasted. Applesauce. Pterodactyls. Mice running on tiny treadmills. I needed to keep my mind from wandering. The heat between my legs was getting distracting, and the closer he got to me, the harder it was not to think about touching him.

"Do you know what the electricity situation is like?"

"It comes with the rent. All-inclusive," he said.

"Wow, nobody does that around here." I walked out of the kitchen, following a short hallway, and opened the accordion door. "Oh, and it comes with a tumble dryer and washing machine." This place was a steal. "Do you know what the neighbours are like?"

"Dead quiet," he said with absolute certainty. "You won't have to worry about them."

"Is this the bedroom?" I pointed to a door at the end of the hallway.

"It is. I think you'll like it here." He opened the door for me, and I caught his scent as I walked into the room. Damn, he smelled delicious.

The bedroom of the flat had three small windows on the back wall at the top, like a basement. Off to the side was the bathroom. That meant any guests would need to go through my room to get to the bathroom — not that I had guests often, but there was the occasional group project. No way was this dump going to work out for me. I knew the instant we pulled into the parking, but continued the tour because I wasn't sure how to end it on a polite note. Besides, time with Kevin was a nice reprieve from the reality of critiqued artwork, unfair criticism, and a blinding student debt that I wasn't too keen on paying off.

"Want to check out the bathroom?" He motioned toward a door in the far corner of the room.

I really didn't. With a stiff smile, I walked up to him. I expected him to get out of my way, but he didn't; he just stood in the door frame looking innocent. With a racing heart, I realised I would have to squeeze past him to get in. How could I do that without touching him? Was he doing this intentionally?

I shook off the thought and walked in, angling myself so we barely touched. The smell of his cologne wafted over me and sent a warmth between my legs. I squirmed and then tried to hide that by looking around at the tiny bathroom, where I could see everything I needed with just a glance. How was I supposed to pretend to be interested in a minuscule bathroom?

I glanced in the mirror and met his eyes. A salacious smile spread across his lips that sent my cheeks flaming. I turned away and studied the shower until he stepped back out into the bedroom.

How embarrassing. This stranger was igniting something inside me with just a glance, and if I didn't know any better, I'd say Kevin was relishing the effect he had over me — like he knew it and may have been doing it on purpose. No, that's crazy. I'm reading too much into it. I took a deep breath and stepped out into the bedroom, prepared to put on a big, bright smile and act like this place was a lot more impressive than it was, but he wasn't there. The three windows on the back wall reminded me of an old western film, where the person on the outside tied a rope to the bars on the windows and tried to pull it free. I faced off with it, and all I could picture was waking up to that jail scene every morning. This place was the worst. Just as I was about to turn around, a light touch grazed my hip. Were my thoughts so loud I hadn't even heard him walking up behind me?

"Got a pretty view, huh?" Kevin's breath tickled the back of my neck.

I stiffened, a tingling sensation running through my body. Also, it was an awful view. "I hope that was sarcasm."

He chuckled. His body was close enough that I could see his feet on either side of my own. The view no longer mattered. I gnawed on my inner cheek, trying to keep myself calm. After all, him being so close behind me, in a small space, in a bedroom, alone, meant nothing. Right?

And then his arms wrapped around my waist. This was the moment. I had two options. I could shrug him off me and walk away, or I could let things happen. The excitement rushed through me, weakening my legs at the thought of having him between them. But he was a stranger! Then again, maybe that's what made it so much better. I could let it happen and then walk away. No attachments. How perfect was that? Especially after the last jerk I dated, having something simple and, hopefully, satisfying sounded like a perfect excuse for a bad decision.

I felt lightheaded. I took a deep breath and leaned into him, wondering just how much encouragement he would need. He held me, trailing his lips over my cheek and down to my neck, where they rested on my racing pulse. After a moment, he took a step back and turned me around. The heat in his eyes took down whatever resistance I had left.

He leaned down for a kiss, pulling me into him. This wasn't something I did, but just the scent of him washed away all inhibition; it was intoxicating. Without any hesitation, I attacked him.