Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 119680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
I’ve seen pictures of the houses, but they don’t do them justice. I run my hands up and down my thighs, excitement setting in. “A few of my friends from high school went to college and lived in student housing,” I announce. “None of those places looked like this.”
BJ just smiles. Down the street is the house that’s mine—well, that I’m going to live in. There’s no old couch marring the porch, no sheets masquerading as curtains, no flags in the windows. The walkway is lined with pretty flowers.
“River likes to garden,” BJ explains as we park out front.
“Really?” I haven’t met him yet, but I’ve heard all about him. His twin is Lavender, and she’s in New York. River has a boyfriend named Josiah and he works at a sporting-goods store. He played for the school football team last year, but BJ said he’s not sure if River plans to this fall.
“Yeah. He dresses like a black cloud, but he’s a wizard with a rose bush,” BJ says. “He’s an interesting guy. He’s low-key, serious about his studies, and not big on the party scene, so pretty much the ideal roommate. And he spends a lot of time at his boyfriend’s because Josiah has his own apartment, so he might not be around much.”
“Is he home now?”
Lacey waves as she opens the front door and carries a box inside.
“He’s working, but he said he’d be home later.”
“Cool.” My hand is already on the door handle, waiting for BJ to put the Jeep in park so I can get out, but Lovey comes bounding up to the passenger side and yanks it open.
“Come on! I can’t wait to show you your room!” She’s practically vibrating with excitement.
“Just let me grab a couple of bags from the trunk.” I give BJ an apologetic smile.
He tips his chin toward the house. “Go check it out. I’ll be up in a minute with some of your stuff.”
Lovey opens the door to the back seat and grabs my duffle and a plastic bin. I pull out my backpack and another bin and follow her up the front walk. I spot Rose two doors down doing a cartwheel on the front lawn, followed by a roundoff. She waves and skips up the front steps of the house, meeting Quinn at the door.
Lacey holds the door open for us. “Can I take anything?”
“We’re good. BJ has more of Winter’s stuff in his Jeep,” Lovey says.
“I’ll grab a tote.” Lacey is the quieter of the twins, and her face is slightly more angular than Lovey’s. She also has a small birthmark above her lip on the right side, which makes it easier to differentiate between them. Although their style helps with that too. Lovey is all pastel colors, and Lacey is a bit more funky.
“This is the kitchen,” Lovey says as we pass through the spacious room.
It’s eat-in, with white cupboards and gray countertops. It must be at least twice as big as the cabin’s kitchen.
“Wow. This is amazing.”
“It’s great for communal dinners,” Lovey agrees. “The living room is through there. I’ll show you once our hands aren’t full.” She leads me up a staircase and down the hall, passing one closed bedroom door and two open ones—those belong to Lovey and Lacey. At the end of the hall, we climb to the third floor.
“It’s a long way up, but it’s private and has its own bathroom.” Lovey elbows the door open and steps aside to let me through.
“Holy wow.” I set down my load and take in the huge, open room with sloped ceilings. A sliding door leads to a balcony, which overlooks the backyard. “Are you sure you want me to take this room? Maybe you or Lacey would rather have it? Or even River?”
“River spends a lot of time at Josiah’s place, so he already said he doesn’t need the extra space. And Lacey and I are settled in the bedrooms on the second floor, so this is all yours.”
“Every student house I’ve ever visited has been run-down and in need of a serious paint job,” I admit. “I feel bad that I’m taking this from Rose.”
The walls are painted a purple so pale it almost looks white at first. The floors are honey hardwood, and in the center of the room is a square area rug. The bed is set in the middle of the room, and I’m pretty sure it’s a queen. Dark purple curtains frame the sliding door, pulled back and tied with white ribbons.
A huge white dresser sits across from the bed, and on the other side of the room is a pale wood desk, a combination whiteboard and corkboard fixed to the wall above it. Broadway play posters decorate another wall between two doors. The open one leads to the bathroom, and the other I assume is a closet. The spare room at BJ’s house was nice, but this is so much different. It symbolizes freedom and new beginnings.