down hard. Oliver held o

it, Elena reache

ing him a hard time. He was

hard to ignore, and him being t

nce she was safely insi

el and fastened his seatb

artments,"

wood Apartments? That's pre

It's nicer there,"

After a moment, he casually asked, "How much do you

prised look. He was

guys like that, he probab

wanted to play with cars, they went to private tracks or e

car, and she couldn't deny that he had handle

s business. Whatever Oliver's situation was, it

nd a month,

t Elmwood Apartments pretty old? I hea

nough," Elen

een around for years, and most of the guards at t

ths earlier after a huge argument with

fterward, her mother had worked hard to r

family rose with her. From then on, her mother turned her attention

ister were concerned, only

even more because her father's death had been caused by a g

ever completely left her. Like the endless rain outside the wind

Elmwood Apartments, the

and handed Elena her key

"Thanks for bringing me b

"Don't worry about

sidential complex. A long strip of greenery stretched

ory building with eight units. Every apartment o

didn't actually liv

the way he stood there, he clearly intended to wai

g careful when you live alone, but d

d but polite smile. "You think I'm being too careful,

eyebrow. "You pai

mind, she'd paid for the service

e other two hundred back," Elena reminded him. "I'd say you'

lf look suspicious. He backed off. "Alright. I'l

umbrella from the car like a cane. She slowly made her

t straight to the window and carefull

and flopped onto the couch. Then she hooked a throw pillow with her

settle down when her phone b

that it was her mother, Martha Bar

didn't work out either," Martha

ena replie

e proven right. "What kind of decent man do you expect to find by yours

lena re

gotten bold, haven't you? Rosalie and I are

introduced me to," Elena said. "And

ghed as if Elena had said something r

my life." Elena was usually quiet and distant, but whenever

furious that

Rosalie Sullivan. She had spoiled Rosalie into something vain and pampered, wh

ned fourteen, when her father was still alive and the

tly while Elena stayed home and gav

obbing, so she took a cab t

two periods of the morning, so she went stra

hat had happened. Elena simply smiled, told the

dow leaned toward her. "Hey, didn

ran over a nail

ixed? How much di

e kind of dynamic balancing, and they

r had also given her coffee and sn

he extra two hundred dollar

cheap. Was it the new

gave a

ice there? I took my car somewhere else for maintenance l

s are all scams. Half the time they won't even give you a str

up with a smile. "You guys seriously haven't heard yet? The logis

iately asked,

Staff get thirty percent off with their ID. The school worked out a

ghtened. "And the owne

ne off laughing, and a few

ile. She was never taking her

other choice. And then she'd ended up hav

ringe. Running into Oliver again

lena's foot finally

sugar, she made a point of waking up earl

ck-to-back that morning, so she left th

nlocked her car and op

ht her home, so the driver's seat was s

th her left hand for the power s

lever next. The seat

ed at the seat. After all that, she was go

arted toward the main gate while ope

p and tried to find Oliver's repair shop. She scrolled for

. Karma really ha

d send a free tow truck-way too much hassle for a stuck seat. After running through every option,