Halfway to the door, Mags's voice stopped me. "Where do you think you're going?"
I pivoted on my heels, and this time, it was my turn to raise a brow. The girl that had just led me halfway across town stood behind the bar, placing a gigantic plate down. My mouth started salivating at the sight of one of the biggest sandwiches I had ever seen, and don't even get me started on the side of chips, fresh veggies, and dipping sauces.
"Sit down and eat. Then, we'll talk."
What the fuck was going on here?
The food made the choice for me, though. Who knew when I would get that amount of nourishment in one sitting again?
While I was wolfing down everything on the plate, Mags presented me with two offers that day. The first was a job. An actual legit and legal job. The second made my eyes nearly pop out of their sockets: a place to live.
"Why?" was my extremely intelligent reply.
I didn't even question her intentions, though my first thought was that she must have been high. Who the hell drags a stranger—who, by the way, was about to con food out of some poor college kid—to their place of employment, feeds them, and then offers for them to rent a bedroom? Was this for real? I glanced over my shoulder, expecting someone to push through the front door, screaming, "Gotcha!"
"Listen, girl. What's your name, by the way?" There was the quirked eyebrow again.
"Uh, King?"Why do I sound like I'm asking her?
"King." She considered that for a moment. "I dig it! So, King…I've been watching you since yesterday. You don't fit in here."
"Thank you very much," I mumbled, interrupting her.
"No offense, girly." She laughed. A genuine laugh. She wasn't making fun of me. "I'm really good at reading people. My little sister calls it my sixth sense. Anywho, I've watched you. You don't want to cheat meals out of some poor schmuck who only sees your great tits."
At that statement, I sprayed the water I was in the midst of drinking across the bar top.
"I'm also very direct." The girl in front of me shrugged nonchalantly.
"N-no shit." I was still coughing, pounding my palm against my chest.
"I want to help you."
"Why?" I asked her again. This still made no sense to me.
"Call it my good deed for the week."
"The week?"
Another shrug. "I just have this feeling that you could use a friend."
"And you want to be that friend?Myfriend. You don't even know me. Who says I won't rob you the second your back is turned?" I was actually boycotting my way to legal employment and a stable home. What was wrong with me?
"If you would do something like that, you wouldn't just trick one meal out of a person. You would hang around until they figured out that you were using them—however long that might be. And you would use"—she waved up and down my body—"thisto get the max out of the situation."
She wasn't wrong with her assumption.Damn, she is good at reading people.
"Let's say I would agree to this arrangement. What guarantees me that you won't murder me in my sleep?" Yup, I had to up it one more notch.
Mags pursed her lips. "You can lock your door. Get a dog. Whatever makes you feel safe. I just want to help. I lost my roommate; she graduated and moved away. I could use the cash. Grizz pays great as long as you do your job. You'd kill two birds with one stone."
"I didn't plan on sticking around," I admitted. Her brutal honesty was contagious.
"We'll figure it out when the time comes," she replied casually while picking up my plate and balled-up napkin. "So? What do you say?"
I didn't have anything to lose. It wasn't like sleeping in my car, constantly being on the move, and looking over my shoulder was any less dangerous than moving in with a bossy girl I knew all of forty-five minutes. I'd done dumber shit in my life.
"Let's give it a try."