othes into a suitcase with a sense of g

bubbly and apolog

door to find

tailored gray suit that probably cost more than her entire year's rent. He made t

mall, cluttered living room, an

stammered. "What

issive, as if Jeri's whereabouts were a trivial detai

but she was too intimidated to call him on

rusion felt like a violation. Her room was her sanctuary, small and girlish,

er in a rabbit hutch. It elec

her had insisted she pack. A wave of shame washed over her. She moved to

his large hand completely enveloping hers. "Don't bother

l her hand away,

ush sat in a simple clay pot. It was her one indulgence, a plan

xpression unreadable. He reached out with his free

s voice a low murmur, "that some ro

d at him,

. Too delicate. They require the most meticulous care, the finest s

avy with unspoken meaning. He was talking

isper by her ear, "are that kind of rose." He paused, letting t

h spread from her neck to her cheeks, setting her skin on fire. Her mind went complete

lustered silence. A ghost

st, but her skin still ting

-packed suitcase as i

turning toward the

w, shockingly intimate nic

looked back at her. His eyes hel

im out of her apartment, leaving the door