The Apartment Read Free Page B

and his father had remarried when he was five. Sean had felt oddly out of place within his own family.
    He’d enlisted in the army as soon as he finished high school and had been in the Special Forces for the past nine years. One of those years had been spent in Saudi Arabia. He now spoke Arabic well enough to pass as a national.
    Dave phoned around ten that morning. Sean didn’t mention the mix-up with the apartment. No need to, since it was fairly obvious to him what was going to happen.
    Hilary didn’t want to move. He didn’t, either. And it wasn’t likely she was going to be able to come up with his deposit and first month’s rent.
    They had no choice.
    Hilary had rarely had a more unnerving morning. Now her afternoon wasn’t going much better. Just when she was beginning to understand what Mr. Murphy expected of her, Sean Cochran casually strolled into the store.
    Talk about a bull in a china shop! The man couldn’t have been more out of place.
    With Mr. Murphy smiling serenely toward her, indicating she should assist this newest customer, Hilary walked purposefully toward Sean, doing her best to disguise her irritation. This entire situation irked her. It seemed that she was never going to be free. First her mother, and now…Rambo.
    â€œHow may I help you?” she asked calmly, although her eyes were spitting fire.
    â€œDo you have my cash?” he asked.
    Hilary briefly closed her eyes, calling upon every ounce of composure her mother had so laboriously drilled into her. “I’ve already explained that I don’t.”
    â€œAny chance of getting it?”
    Hilary had spent the majority of the morning pondering that same question. She couldn’t very well ask for an advance on her salary since she’d only been employed for three hours.
    She’d debated approaching her mother for the money and decided it was out of the question. The bank wasn’t likely to give her a loan, either, since she was from out of state and had only recently established credit.
    Hilary didn’t know what to do.
    â€œWell?” he pressed. “Do you have a way of getting it or not?”
    â€œNot on such short notice,” she admitted reluctantly.
    â€œThat’s what I thought.”
    â€œI’m doing the best I can,” she said between gritted teeth.
    â€œIs there a problem?” Mr. Murphy inquired.
    â€œNone at all,” Sean assured the music-store owner with a satisfied smile.
    â€œAre you trying to get me fired?”
    â€œNot when you owe me money.”
    â€œI don’t owe you anything, the Greers do.” The man was becoming increasingly unreasonable. He looked even more intimidating now than he had earlier.
    â€œBut the Greers aren’t here. You are,” Sean reminded her casually.
    â€œI’d give it to you if I had it.” Hilary knew that was little consolation, but it was all she could offer.
    â€œListen,” he said, rubbing his hand along the back of his neck. “I’ve come up with a tentative solution. For now it’s the best I can do.”
    â€œAll right,” she said, hoping he had more ideas than she did. As far as Hilary could see, they were deadlocked. She didn’t have the money and he wasn’t going to budge until he got it.
    â€œWe share the apartment,” he said, “just until the Greers are back.”
    Share the apartment! So much for being independent. So much for freedom. She’d leapt from the frying pan into the fire. “But that’s six weeks,” she said, tasting defeat.
    â€œI know how long the Greers are going to be gone,” Sean returned testily. “I’ll stay out of your way and you stay out of mine. It isn’t like I plan on sticking around there much. I haven’t got a job yet, otherwise I wouldn’t be so concerned about the cash.”
    â€œI’m going to be busy, as well,” Hilary added, realizing they had no