K. Bromberg - Bend

Then eleven years later?

Congratulations—it's a girl!

Don’t get me wrong, I was never mistreated or neglected; it was more along the lines of my simply feeling invisible to them. My best guess was that's why I tended to sometimes do things for the pure shock value. I mean attention, whether positive or negative, is still attention, right?

"So how do you like D.C., Paige?" Cain asked, taking a bite out of one of the deviled eggs I’d made, and quickly dropping the remainder of it back onto his plate.

I started to reply, but he held up his hand, stifling a cough, and reached for his glass of lemonade, gulping it down. "Jesus Christ," he muttered, wiping his mouth, "How can someone fuck up deviled eggs?"

I felt myself flush, realizing my earlier suspicion had been correct.

"Sorry," I murmured sheepishly. "Actually, I think I might've sprinkled those with chili pepper instead of paprika."

"No shit," he grumbled, now starting to chuckle.

"I probably should take them back into the house and toss them," I said, starting to get up.

"Stay," he instructed mischievously, "I don't want to miss Eli's reaction when he bites into his." He nodded towards the other side of the patio, where Eli was standing next to Darcy, listening to her prattle on about something while taking the first bite of his deviled egg.

"Holy Shit!" he rasped, spitting it back out onto his plate. Everyone turned to look over at Eli, who was now taking gulps of his iced tea, and swishing it around in his mouth.

“ Fuck , Darce,” he pretty much snarled, wiping away at his mouth, “I get that everything domestic isn’t your strong suit, but seriously?”

"Excuse me?" Darcy said, totally injured and confused.

"Shit, I can't let anyone else bite into those fire bombs," I said, giggling. "Be back in a few."

I hurried over to Darcy and Eli, explaining my faux pas with the eggs. We quickly went into 'damage control' mode, collecting the uneaten eggs off of everyone's plates, and took the platter into the house to be disposed of properly.

Once back outside, I resumed my place next to Cain. Eli had pulled up a chair and the three of us became better acquainted.

I explained to the both of them about my internship at the FBI academy, including my limited income, thus the reason I was freeloading with Easton and Darcy.

Eli shared that he worked at Baronton-Sheridan, the company owned by Darcy's father, and Easton. Cain was part-owner of a catering company in D.C. that was small, but growing steadily.

"So, how do you like living here with Easton and Darcy?" Eli asked, quirking a brow.

"You know," I replied, taking a sip of my iced tea, "They've been great, but I probably need to find a place of my own, if possible. I'm not sure what the cost of living is like here as far as rentals."

They exchanged glances.

"Honey," Eli spoke first, "I don't have a clue how much money you're making as an intern there, but I have a feeling the type of apartment you could afford would fit into one of Darcy's closets, and your roommates would be small…and furry."

"Eww," I said, wrinkling my nose. "The thing is, I have a boyfriend and well, Darcy made it plain that he isn't to stay over here, and we're not at that stage—or even close to being at that stage where we've discussed living together—"

"Wait a minute," Cain spoke up. "Eli and I have been tossing around the idea of getting another roommate to share expenses. We recently bought a home together in Silver Spring, and to be honest, we are a little financially strapped, what with the mortgage payment and all."

Cain looked over at Eli for input. "You'd have to pay for your own groceries, split the utilities and your rent would be $450 a month," Eli said. "And also pitch in with the housework. We don't have a staff like Darcy has," he added with a grin.

"Hmm," I replied, calculating it in my head. I still had a car payment and my pay at the bureau was really just a stipend at $1000 a month. It wouldn't leave me much to live on, but if I was frugal, I doubted I could do any better, or even as good trying to find a place of my own.

Cain could tell I was struggling to figure out whether I could manage it or not. "Babe, I gotta tell you that you can't touch an efficiency in D.C., or the surrounding area, for less than $900 a month. With us, you'll have your own room and bathroom, plus use of our fully equipped kitchen and laundry room. I mean, you don't even have any furniture, right?"

I nodded. "I've been saving up my earnings and planned on going to some second hand shops for the basics," I replied.

"So there you go," Cain continued, shrugging like it was a done deal. "And if you need a little extra money, I occasionally need help on the weekends with the catering business, so we could put you to work there, uh…as long as you promise to stay out of the deviled egg making," he finished with a wink.

I found myself grinning, not just because Cain gave me one of his sexy winks, but because my shoulders could finally relax as if an entire city had been lifted off of them. It was kind of a friggin’ crazy moment because one minute, I’m living with Darcy and Easton and the next…Cain and Eli are offering to bring me in as a roomie.

Holy shit?

I glanced back over at Cain who was nodding at something Eli must have just said.

“So,” I started with a huge non-resistant smile on my face, “Is this weekend too soon?”

I'd been living with Cain and Eli for almost two months now, and we had settled into a pretty comfortable routine. Living with dudes was different than I expected, and with those two, it was starting to feel more like family.

It had felt a little weird for the first week or so, but after that, it felt like my home too.

I loved their brick ranch-style home that was nestled on a tree-lined street in Silver Spring. The houses weren't far apart, yet not on top of one another either. They had a fairly large backyard with a privacy fence around it, along with a deck that was right off of the kitchen that had a kick-ass hot tub/Jacuzzi combination.

We split the chores up, and took turns cooking dinner. Both Cain and Eli were great cooks and had taken me under their wings in the kitchen. I figured getting a little domestic training, compliments of my roomies, was an additional perk in our living arrangement.

Eli was just getting home from work, still dressed in his office ensemble as I was packing up some ingredients. And I say ensemble, because with Eli? That’s exactly what it was. The guy dressed better than most brides do on their wedding day.

He came into the kitchen, loosening up his white tie, watching me as I put a box of angel hair pasta, tomato sauce, and fresh mushrooms in a box I planned on hauling over to Darin’s. Because tonight, I was cooking for my man, and I was eager to show him my new awesome kitchen skills.

"So, I see you intend to get to your man's heart through his stomach tonight, eh?" he teased. "Don't forget the Parmesan cheese," he reminded me.

"Yeah thanks, Eli," I replied, grabbing it from the fridge. "With any luck, you won't see me for breakfast," I said with a grin.

Eli scoffed playfully. "I'm betting you two don't make it through dinner with those tight little shorts you've got going there," he remarked, picking up the stack of mail I'd placed on the kitchen table and sorting through it. "Which, by the way, you rock," he winked, giving me some of his flirtatiousness that I'd come to enjoy.

"Trust me," I replied, smiling, "I won't be offended one damn bit if he prefers me to my cooking."

"Yeah, yeah," he mumbled, shaking his head.

"I know you don't care for Darin," I remarked, grabbing the package of chicken breasts out of the sink where I had them thawing. "But so far, he's the closest thing to a steady relationship that I've had…ever. I mean, it's not just about the sex, you know?"