T W E N T Y - O N E

Avoiding Colton hadn’t been easy. Kate returned to her apartment for good after coming to a compromise with her landlord. He agreed to let her out of the lease after six months, rather than the twelve she’d signed up for, if she still wanted to go ahead by the end of the month. Kate thanked him profusely. It was a relief, to say the least.

Colton seemed to come out for a smoke whenever she was leaving her apartment. They had conversations here and there, but Kate always made sure to keep her distance. She didn’t think she could handle anything more. Her chest ached every night, waiting for the inevitable moans perforating her walls, but they never came.

She was sitting cross-legged on her bed, her laptop laid out in front of her along with some papers for work. She’d put some music on, hoping to give herself an escape from imagining Colton. She had heard his bed creak, his soft grunts echoing through the wall. Thankfully, he was keeping his lady friend quiet, although he