Surrendering (2 page)

In other words, I love my first impression.

“Holy shit, Raven, Martha Stewart lives here!”

“Shhh, don’t let anyone hear you.”

As we walk up to the front door and ring the bell, I hear the Rolling Stones. Was that the doorbell tone?

“Well at least we know Martha Stewart has good taste in music.”

I swat Finn just as the door swings open. The cutest girl I have ever seen stands in front of us with a big smile. She has shoulder length auburn hair with green eyes that are mesmerizing. She looks like she could cover for a magazine.

“You must be Raven Hayes. I’m Abigail, but you can call me Abbi.” She looks at me and then turns her attention to Finn. I can see it in her eyes; she’s impressed with what she sees. “And you are?”

“Hi, Abbi, it’s nice to meet you. This is my friend Finn Black. He came with me today to look at the room.” I try my best to emphasize the word friend.

“Oh, I didn’t realize this was a couple’s visit,” she says disappointed.

“Please don’t misread this situation; Finn has his own house on the other side of campus. I assure you he’s just here to help me find somewhere to live.”

She looks at us with relief on her face and invites us in.

As we walk in the house we’re immediately engulfed with the smell of chocolate chip cookies and gingerbread. It’s wonderful. The living room is an addition to the front porch with vibrant colors and welcoming furniture. You can tell it’s inhabited by women with a taste for flair and flamboyance. I love it!

“My sister, Ella, is on the phone, but she’ll be right out. I made some snacks in case we wanted to sit down and talk details after you look at the house. As you know already, we have three full bedrooms and two and a half baths. My sister and I have lived here for a few years and have done everything we can to make this more than a college crash pad. We live here year-round. Our last roommate moved out when she had a small conflict and we now have a room available for rent. We prefer to sign a year’s lease, but would be open to nine months if needed. I’m going to pop back to the kitchen and get some drinks. Please feel free to look around.”

We start with the first room we find and it looks to be the Master bedroom. The room is large and spacious with a walk-in closet and bay window. There is a bathroom with an enclosed shower and separate tub. The room looks freshly painted with cleaned carpet. The view is limited, but you can see the quaint backyard and neighboring home. I immediately get excited, but I can’t help but wonder why this room is vacant.

Off the small dining area is a decent size kitchen and half bath. Abbi hands us a bottle of water and goes back to setting out the cookies. Finn and I proceed out into the hallway and veer to the left. This hallway leads to two bedrooms across the hall from one another and a bathroom at the end. You can tell these girls keep their house clean. There’s a noise on the other end of one of the closed doors and remember the sister is on the phone.

Finn and I turn around and make our way back to the kitchen to talk to Abbi.

“Well, what do you think? Did you get enough time to view the whole house?”

“You and your sister have done a great job with the house. I love your front walk and porch and the decorations are lovely. It doesn’t seem like a college house at all. But I have to ask, why is the Master bedroom vacant? I thought the advertisement said you were renting a room. I would think one of you would take the Master and your new roommate would have one of the other rooms.”

Abbi surprises me by yelling. “Ella, get off the damn phone and come out here now. You need to meet Raven and you aren’t leaving me to explain this by myself!”

The door down the hall opens and a pretty brunette walks out with the phone in her hand. She looks around the room and immediately hones in on Finn. Her eyes widen at him.

“Abbi, you didn’t tell me we were getting a male roommate.” Ella smiles.

“Ella, get your head out of your ass. This is Raven and her friend Finn. He’s helping her look for a place to live. He has his own place.” Abbi tells her and holds out a plate of cookies for us.

“Okay, Raven, we need to be honest with you. Our last roommate moved out because of a conflict of interest and she paid extra for the Master bedroom. Ella and I have argued for months over who deserves to get the room, but we can’t come to a conclusion. Recently, we decided to keep our rooms and offer the Master to a new roommate. The only condition is that the rent will be a little more since the room has its own bathroom and walk in closet.”

“How much more will this add to the rent?” I ask.

Ella pipes up, “We figured about twenty dollars would be fair. In all honesty, the rent is not the problem, but we thought we could put the extra money towards a house fund. The house fund can pay for pizza night, or wine Wednesdays, etc.”

I looked at Finn and hid my smile. This was exactly what I was looking for. “Finn, can we talk on the front porch? Please excuse us for just a few minutes.”

As we walk back through the living room, I look around with a new sense of vision. I can see myself in this house and the few things I have will fit in nicely.

When we get outside, I turn to Finn. “Tell me honestly what you think, is this a good deal? Are these two solid characters telling the truth, or are they the
Mean Girls
in disguise?”

“Well, Rave, I get the feeling these two are solid. Don’t get mad, but I ran their backgrounds before we came over today. The mortgage on the house seems to be in their dad’s name and it’s current. All utilities are up-to-date and neither one of them has even a parking ticket on their records. Abigail and Ella Collins are both full-time students. Abbi is an Art Major with a minor in Design at Belmont. She’s a senior and turned twenty-two this past May. Ella is twenty and is a Nursing Major at Vanderbilt. Both have several scholarships that cover their tuition. They have one older brother who is twenty-five and lives in the area. Their dad lives about thirty miles away. From what I can tell, there’s nothing in their background to be suspicious of. If you think this is a good situation, we should get the paperwork.”

I don’t know what to do first, kick him or kiss him. I’m furious about his decision to look into these two girls before we had even met them, but I’m not surprised. I know that wherever I end up, Finn will have to give my dad and brother a complete run down on the situation, and it will require a thorough background check. But since it’s already done, there’s no delay in moving forward.

“Ok Finn, we’re going to go back into that house and I’m going to do my best to pretend I know nothing about their personal lives. I’m going to suggest we have dinner and drinks to get to know each other and see if this will work out. Can you look around the place and check out the security while I talk to them?”

As I walk back inside, I go straight to the kitchen and leave Finn to look around.

“Abbi and Ella, I have a proposition to make. I’m interested in the room and sharing your home. I have no problem with the extra rent and think it’s a great idea to put it towards a house fund. But I realize we know nothing about each other. I think it would be a good idea to have dinner and drinks and get to know each other before we sign anything. What do y’all think?”

Ella speaks up first, “When and where? I think it’s a great idea.”

“How about the Italian place around the corner tonight at seven? I have to swing by Finn’s place and change and then I can meet you there.”

“Sounds good Raven, we’ll be there at seven.” Abbi replies with a smile on her face. She is looking over my shoulder and I turn to see her watching Finn as he bends over the window seals and checks for the latches to catch. I roll my eyes.

“Okay, see you then and you have my cell number if anything changes. Finn, you ready to go?”

As we walk outside, I have a little pep in my step. I hope this can work out.

Chapter 2

Dinner with the Girls

After agreeing with Finn that I would call him after dinner, he drops me off in front of one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the city. It’s a place where you can enjoy the lively atmosphere at a full bar or sit at a booth with authentic Italian cuisine. Since I’m early, I head to the bar to order a drink. I text Abbi, letting her know that I’m waiting here. When the bartender approaches me, I realize I haven’t seen him in here before. His dark hair and smoldering dark eyes scream sexy. What really stands out are the dimples on both of his cheeks. As he grins at me, I swear I feel dizzy.

I order a glass of wine and pick up my phone to keep from staring. As I fiddle with the free apps, a hand appears on the bar in front of me. Hot Bartender is standing there smiling with both dimples on full display. He slides my drink to me and leans against the bar.

“My name’s Damon. I haven’t seen you in here before.”

“I’m Raven, and I was thinking the same thing about you.”

“I guess you could say I’m new. My family owns this place and I just started a few weeks ago. I’ll be bartending a few days a w
eek. I graduated college and recently returned to Nashville. I’m trying to figure out my next step. What about you?”

“Similar story, I graduated in May and returned home. I start the MBA program in a few weeks. Nothing too exciting.”

Out of nowhere, there’s a screeching from behind me. “Ravenel Hayes, is that you?” I turn on my barstool and see her coming to me with her arms over her head.

“Sissy, how are you? You look beautiful as always.” I say to the middle-aged Italian woman that has just announced my name to the entire bar. Even though I’m slightly embarrassed, I smile.

“Ravenel, you are stunning as always. When did you get back into town? I haven’t seen you in forever. How’s your family?”

“I know, Sissy. Things have been crazy. I came back after graduation. Robbie’s doing great and my parents are thrilled we’re both back in the same city. I’m meeting my potential new roommates for dinner here tonight.”

I look back to see Damon watching our exchange with confusion on his face. He shakes his head and seems to snap out of his haze. And that’s when Abbi and Ella show up.

“Hey Raven, sorry we’re late. We had trouble parking so we decided to valet for the night.” Abbi says as she looks around and her eyes land on Damon and Sissy.

“No worries, I just got a drink. Sissy and Damon, these are my friends Abbi and Ella Collins. We’re going to have dinner.” I state as I introduce everyone.

Sissy smiles and leads us to the best booth in the restaurant. We have a full 360 degree view of the room and yet we also have privacy. Not to mention, I can still see Damon at the bar.

After we are seated, Sissy hands us our menus and kisses me on the cheek. “Enjoy, sweet Ravenel.”

“Thank you, Sissy.”

When I look up, both Abbi and Ella are staring at me with wide eyes. Before I can even ask them about ordering drinks, a round of Cosmopolitans is delivered to the table.

“Ladies, these martinis are compliments of the bartender. Enjoy.”

I glance over at the bar and see Damon smiling at me as he pours drinks. I smile back and wave.

“Okay Raven, please tell me who the godlike creature behind the bar is and tell me he’s single.” Ella purrs.

“I’m not sure of his relationship status because we just met tonight. He’s related to the owners and works a few shifts a week. His name is Damon.”

“He looks like he wants to devour you. You should give him your number.”

“Ella, shut up.” Abbi breaks in. “So Raven, tell us about you.”

“Well, let’s see. I was born and raised a little south of Nashville. I went away to Emory immediately after graduation and finished in May. My parents still live here and my dad owns his own business. My brother recently came back to Nashville after serving in the Marines for the last seven years. I came back not only for the MBA program, but also for my family. I loved Atlanta, but Nashville is where I need to be right now.”

“Why are you looking for a place off campus to live?” Abbi asks.

“Well, I’ve always lived on campus in either dorms or campus housing. I want to live in a place that feels like a home and has character instead of just an extension of the classroom. All of the other places I’ve lived the last few years lacked personality. I’m ready to change that. I have several girlfriends still in Atlanta that got a place together for their senior year. Since I fast-tracked through school, I never got the opportunity to move-in with them.”

“Well that sounds fine to me. I can understand needing space and character. I’m an Art Major and by definition, an ‘artist’. I cannot even function in a place void of personality,” explains Abbi.

Ella raises her glass, “I say we toast to new opportunities.”

We all raise our glasses, being careful not to spill the contents as we clink and laugh. Even though I know Ella isn’t old enough to legally drink the Cosmo, I don’t let on. Instead, we drink our drinks and talk about living in campus housing. When it comes time to order our dinner, the three of us are at ease with each other. Damon sends another round of drinks over and I turn to toast him. He raises his hand in acceptance. I learn about each of their majors and their school schedules. Even though Abbi attends Belmont, her schedule pretty much mirrors both mine and Ella’s. As an Art Major, Abbi is encouraged to volunteer at the local and national artist events around the city. In return, she’s received extra- credit towards her final grades. As a Nursing Major, Ella volunteers at VMC in any capacity she’s needed. She only spends about ten to fifteen hours a week at the hospital, but she says it’s a way for her to inch closer to deciding on a specialization.

I explain to them that I’ve spent time with diverse charities, but recently decided to focus my time with those groups that provided assistance to veterans returning from war. I don’t have a specific group I stick with, but I’ve attended various events.

As we finish our second round of drinks, the food is served. We continue to get to know each other as we eat.

“Raven, I know it’s none of our business, but are you dating anyone? Do you have a boyfriend?” Ella asks and seems embarrassed.