Our eyes meet, and my heart begins to thud. God, I wish it would stop doing that.

“Thought you might be hungry, just lettin’ you know there’s food downstairs.”

“Thank you,” I say in a small voice. “I’ll come down soon.”

He nods and goes to turn, but I find myself calling his name. He glances at me over his shoulder.

“I’m sorry about before.”

He turns back towards me, and gives me a small, gorgeous grin.

“Ain’t no problem darlin’, what you did was real nice.”

“Not about the cleaning, but the, err...”

His grins gets bigger. Oh my.

“It ain’t every day a man gets a nice view like that to come home to. Don’t you worry about it, made my fuckin’ day.”

My mouth drops open, and he turns and leaves. Did Jackson just say my ass and nipples, made his day? My entire body breaks out into tiny little goosebumps. What is happening here? Did Jackson just give me a moment of flirting? Or was he just being honest? This is bad, this is so bad. I can’t feel a connection towards the man I am lying to...can I?

Shaking my head, I stand. My stomach is growling loudly at me, and there is just no way I can ignore it. I make my way downstairs, and see Muff and Jackson sitting in the living room, drinking beer and eating Chinese food. The steps creak as I get lower, and they both turn to start at me. Such beautiful men, the both of them. Jackson is tall, dark and handsome, but Muff is so fair, so different. They’re both incredibly nice to look at.

“Food on the counter,” Muff says, nodding his head towards the kitchen.

“Beer in the fridge,” Jackson adds.

Is that an invite? I’ve never been able to sit with men and just talk. Back home, the men had their place, and we had ours. We were treated like dogs; we weren’t treated with any kind of respect. Not like this. These guys, they’re so gentle compared to what I’m used to. I feel odd, and yet so warm at the same time. I walk over and serve myself some food, and then I take a beer, before sitting on the small recliner over from the guys.

“So, Serenity, you got yourself a man?” Muff asks, spooning food into his mouth.

I shake my head. “No.”

“Really?” he says, like that’s so shocking to him.

“They’re not so great where I come from.”

“Why?” Jackson asks, his eyes piercing mine.

“They’re abusive, mean, and just not honorable. I guess you could blame the people I hang around with, but still, I prefer not to go near the men.”

“Fair enough,” Muff says. “Some men are jerks.”

I laugh softly. “Yeah.”

“You study?” he continues.

“No, I wanted to, but...”

“But what?” Jackson adds.

“Well, we couldn’t afford it, and I wasn’t allowed.”

“You should do it,” Muff says gently. “Fuck everyone else.”

I smile at him. “Maybe one day I will.”

Jackson leans over, gripping his beer. “What did you want to do?”

“I wanted to be a nurse, I know it’s lame, but...”

“Helpin’ people ain’t lame, darlin’. It’s a gift, and you’re sure sweet enough to have that gift.”

I smile at him, unable to hold it back. It’s a smile filled with gratitude and emotion. “Thank you.”

“Just sayin’ what’s true.”

I turn away before he sees the expression of want on my face. My heart begins to thump steadily. I’m so confused. I’ve been here only a few days, and Jackson is getting to me in a way no one has before. It’s one of those instant attractions that you have no say so over.

“Well, thanks for dinner you two,” Muff says standing. “But I got business to attend to.”

“Bye Muff,” I smile.

“Later, beautiful.”

“Later man,” Jackson says.

Muff gives us one more grin, before leaving. It’s then I realize I’m now alone with Jackson. Standing quickly, I take my bowl to the sink and finish the last few mouthfuls before washing it and putting it up to dry. I turn to Jackson as I walk out.

“Thanks for that.”

“Don’t have to run, I don’t bite.”

My heart feels like it stops beating. He wants me to stay?

His eyes swing up to mine, and hold my gaze. “There’s some scary shit on T.V, but you can watch it with me, if you want.”

Oh god, he’s offering to watch movies with me. I feel my knees wobble as I walk over and sit on the couch beside him. We’re quite a distance away, but I can feel his presence like he’s sitting right beside me. He turns the volume up as the movie begins to play.

“You aren’t gonna scream, are you?”

I laugh nervously. “It’s highly possible, considering I’m scared of the dark...”

He gives me a look. “Seriously?”

“Seriously. It’s childish, but it’s true. I probably won’t sleep tonight, because I won’t be able to turn out the light.”

He chuckles.

“It’s not funny,” I protest.

“It’s kind of funny,” he grins, “a grown girl gettin’ scared over this bullshit.”

“This bullshit is very real!”

He laughs, and the sound is like music to my ears. I smile and drop my head back.