I worked in one of his realtor offices, and I was renting a place in one of his lower-end units.
This man had never been worth less than six figures a day in his life, and I couldn’t believe he was trying to make any person with a brain buy into a fake-ass sob story.
The moment I made a major sale, I was leaving his realty company and working for someone else.
Anyoneelse.
After tossing the magazine into the trash, I rolled out of bed and grabbed my shower caddy.
Slipping down the hall, I knocked on the floor’s bathroom door.
“Hello?” I called out. “Is anyone in there?”
I hesitated before knocking again.
Since I had to share it with three other tenants, I’d learned that each of them had their own way of saying “yes” without saying a word.
Several seconds passed without the slight jiggle of the door handle, a tap against the sink, or a cough that sounded like the plague.
Pushing the door open, I placed a sock on the door and slammed it shut.
I immediately wished I hadn’t.
Strands of hair that didn’t belong to me clung to the sink, and whoever used the shower last hadn’t wiped down the glass doors.
Why is this my life?
Sighing, I tightened the strap on my rubber sandals and turned on the water.
I held a hand under the stream, waiting for it to warm, but the water’s temperature dropped with every passing second.
My fingers went numb, begging me to withdraw from the cold.
Before I could call the landlord, the stream slowed to a trickle.
Then it cut off.
What the hell?
“Heads up, floor thirty-three!” a gruff voice shouted from the hall. “We’re doing some maintenance on the pipes today!”
“Really, Mr. Rowen?” I opened the door and glared at him. “Why can’t you ever tell us a week before? Hell, even a day before?”
“Because—” He shrugged. “I can’t predict when the rats are going to chew through the tubing, Miss Sterling. I’m not a fortune teller.”
“Sorry I even mentioned it.”
“You’re forgiven,” he said. “Make sure you don’t have any food boxes on your floor. I’ve already caught four of ’em on the floor below you.”
UGHHHH!
Swallowing a scream, I returned to my room and pulled on a dress.
I couldn’t risk another day without taking a warm shower, so I pulled out my phone and looked over my list of upcoming condo showings.
My next one wasn’t scheduled until Wednesday afternoon, and that was too far away.
I logged into the Hudson Luxury portal and scrolled through the most expensive listings.