We stood in silence, locked in an epic staring contest.

Miss Priss was humming the Western theme song to the good, the bad, and the ugly.

And then I caved.

Way to go Melia. In the animal world, my actions would mean I accepted him as alpha. So, I bravely snapped my eyes back to him.

He stared at me triumphantly with a grin.

He was still in the same baggy clothes with his black-rimmed glasses but if possible, his hair seemed even more disheveled. He had the nerd look down to a T, yet there was still something mysterious about him, a dangerous glint of mischief in his blue eyes.

It's called manners find some, Miss Priss said while tapping her foot at me.

I snapped back to reality. "Uhm, hi?" I managed in a small voice.

Smooth real smooth, Miss Priss sassed me.

The arrival of Mr. Blue Eyes had flushed my appetite firmly down the drain, so I placed my half-eaten sandwich back on the kitchen counter.

He raised an eyebrow before he cleared his throat. "Hi."

I remained silent.

"Small world. It's Melia, right?" he asked with raised eyebrows. He probably sensed that I got an 'F' in small talk, so he took it upon himself, and I was grateful.

"Yes, small. Uh...who are you?" I mumbled, staring at him suspiciously. Why was he at my work? And how did he even know my name?

Heck, why is he at your home? Miss Priss yelled alarmed.

He sighed, pressing his lips together, and looked me up and down again. His expression remained guarded behind his glasses.

"Stop checking out my roommate, you hound dog." Bex strutted back into view, wearing her Snoopy pajamas.

This girl had no boundaries. I was ambushed like this, but her contribution to this now-turned pajama party was her own choice.

She pulled Mr. Blue Eyes in for a crushing hug, and he audibly groaned. "This nerd is Axel, my baby brother," she cooed at him, poking his cheek.

Her brother. I felt relieved. For a moment, I thought he was one of her toys or worse...a stalker.

"Get off me." He pushed her off, still blushing brightly from her remark.

I frowned, looking at the two of them. Since he towered over her short ass, he sure as hell didn't look like a baby brother to me.

Axel. such an exotic name for such a seemingly ordinary man.

After hearing he was her 'baby' brother, I immediately relaxed. Suddenly he had a legit reason for showing up and I could switch off the stalker alarms still ringing in my head. However, I still felt a strong compulsion to cover up. There was just too much of me on display and his wandering eyes made me blush very much the same way he did when I caught him staring.

Talk about awkward. It's like trying to avoid the elephant in the room, nearly impossible.

Obnoxious as ever, Bex punched his shoulder before she gasped and grabbed his arm instead. "Hey, have you been working out? I don't remember these bad boys being there," she said, poking at his biceps.

He smacked her hand away. "Obnoxious much?" he snapped at her.

"Obnoxious much," she mimicked him in a silly deep voice.

I tried to sneak out of the kitchen. My main goal was to lock myself in my room, but if that mission failed, I would settle for grabbing a robe to cover up my dark force goodies.

Miss Priss was humming some spy tune as I tiptoed around the counter.

"Melia! Where are you sneaking off to?" Bex's screeching voice made me stop dead in my tracks. Caught in the act, I snapped up straight from my hunched-over position.

Busted.

I shrugged, scrambling for an answer. "My room," I managed with a frown. Seriously, this woman had no filter, she knew better than to call me out.

Introducing my roommate, Rebecca Sterling, a.k.a Bex. I ran into her at a coffee shop and for the first time since I came to this city, I bonded with another human being. Mostly because she was crazier than a bag of cats and that gelled well with my inner lunatic, but hey, who's judging right?

She had blonde hair ending in blue ombre tips, a nose ring, and a large but beautiful tattoo of flying birds across her right shoulder blade. Her appearance was literally the opposite of what I looked like.

Anyway, I was new to the city, and she had a spare room and rent to pay. So naturally, an evening of bottomless Irish coffee and several tequilas shots later I moved in, and we had been living together for almost a year.

What can I say? She gets me on some obscure level, the Yang to my Yin, the jelly to my peanut, and together we just butter. We had done a lot together; burned bras, sobbed, analyzed The Notebook several times, devoured tons of ice cream, and fought crime in the moonlight.

She was flirty, fun and got her cardio done mostly in the form of sex. Her hobbies include playing matchmaker with me and taking long romantic strolls to the local club.

And now I can add a cute, mysterious, and nerdy brother to my list of known things about the infamous Bex. I mean, I knew she had a little brother...but I did not expect Axel.

So, you do agree he's cute? Miss Priss popped up.

"I am going to my room," I stated confidently while giving Bex a death glare. I was about to march out of the kitchen when she just had to open her mouth again.

"Why? Have you been a bad girl? Because if that's the case then go to your room, young lady," she sassed me with her hands on her hips.

If looks could kill, that would have been the end of my friend Bex. May she rest in pieces.

Axel had his hand over his mouth, clearly trying to hide his laughter. His blue eyes were fixed on me in amusement, probably making a mental checklist of all the reasons he should avoid me.

My insecurities fueled my paranoia and I dropped my head as I walked the plank back to my bedroom. But not before realizing I still had a half-eaten sandwich. I greedily grabbed my precious like the Golem I was and scurried off to my lair.

It was already late, so I finished my sandwich in solitude, brushed my teeth, and went to bed. I took care to arrange my limbs in such a manner as to not inconvenience the already sleeping cat in the middle of my bed because heaven forbid, I disturbed his slumber.

The numbness of sleep crept over my consciousness and soon enough I was lost in some glittery nightmare with bright blue eyes mixed into the whirlpool of random nonsense that bad dreams were made of.

"Axel..."

💋💄👗👠🌸❤

Axel's POV

I stared at her awestruck.

It was the same girl from the elevator only now, I saw her through new eyes. She shook that tight ass of hers to the annoying pop song blaring through the speakers. Her singing was horrible, but I would endure the screech for the simple pleasure of watching her move in that dangerously short little piece of fabric she called pajama bottoms.

Hello, kitty!

She turned around and, honestly, she looked good with something in her mouth, as ridiculous as the moment was. Her t-shirt immediately caught my attention. Some aspects of the nerd façade were real, and who wouldn't love a hot woman in a Star Wars shirt?

The whole exchange was awkward. I couldn't keep my eyes off her delectable body, and fuck me, she wasn't wearing a bra.

Everything from her long thick auburn hair, smooth sun-kissed skin, and full pouty lips right up to her big blue doe-eyes appealed to me.

I was a flustered mess at the mercy of this beautiful and equally flustered woman. Just like in the elevator, she seemed uncomfortable in my presence. I had a feeling she had her walls built up pretty high.

Bex was obnoxious as ever, but I love my big sister. She is the only family I have left. I was disappointed to see Melia leave, but she was damaged goods. Beautiful women, like her, only acted the way she did because they got burned once before. Yep, best to avoid her kind.

I finally settled on the couch when I heard a suspicious scratching noise coming from Melia's room. I frowned, sitting up to stare at the door for a moment, conjuring up wild scenarios. I strained my ears; there it was again—scratching. Slowly, I got up heading to her door, well aware that my actions themselves were suspect. I was sneaking into her room in the middle of the night. Creep much?

I deliberated for a second, but the desperate meow coming from behind the door made up my mind. I opened the door slightly and a cat sped out of the room making a beeline for his kitty litter box. I stared at the cat as it desperately dug a hole then sat with a relieved expression.

Okay then, guess I am that cat's new hero.

I turned my attention back to her dark room and just as I was about to close the door again her soft mumbling reached my ears.

I paused with my hand still on the doorknob, listening intently. Did I wake her?

"Axel..."

Shit.

I carefully peered into her room trying to think of how to explain my uninvited presence, in the middle of the night. Her dark hair was wild around her head and her lips slightly parted while her chest gently rose and fell with her breathing.

She was still asleep.

"Axel..." she mumbled again.

My ego grew three sizes, just like the Grinch's heart. Was she dreaming about me?