"Oh, um, hello." She stammered, unconsciously tucking her dirty blonde curls behind an ear and casting her mismatched eyes at the ground. Maddison had been born with two different colored eyes, one green and the other blue and he found that people either got grossed out by them, or were so fascinated that they stared too much.

  "Hi..." said the man as Maddison examined his socked feet. "Can I help you?" His voice was smooth and almost commanding in tone.

  Refusing to have a conversation with this man's feet, she looked back at his face. She saw him give a small start when he noticed her mismatched eyes, but he hid it well enough. He really was handsome. The exact kind of man that never showed her any attention.

  Maddison wasn't ugly by any means. No, she just wasn't very memorable, except for her eyes. With muted blonde hair that hung down to the middle of her back, a small splattering of freckles on her nose and shoulders, and a height that was nearer to small than average, she was nothing special to look at. Kalie always said that she had an aura about her that made up for her plainness, but Maddison just didn't see it.

  "I just noticed the for-rent sign as I was passing by... I wanted to ask if the owner was still looking for a renter?" she said nervously.

  The man looked up at the ceiling as if he could see through it, before looking back at Maddison with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah, I'm still looking for a renter." He said. "You wanna come take look at it now?"

  "Oh! Um, sure." She hadn't expected to be invited in today, but she didn't need to hurry home. This way she wouldn't have to bug him again later.

  "Alright." He said, slinging his shirt over one of those massive shoulders and stepping away from the door. "This way. It's a shared front entrance."

  Maddison stepped into the small space feeling a little crowded by the bulk of the man next to her. There were two doors and the man lead her toward the one directly across from the front door.

  When he opened it there was a stair case leading to the second floor. Stephanie followed him up, trying her very best not to look at the rippling muscles of his back, nor his firm butt.

  "Oh, the name is Reece by the way." He said throwing a glance over his shoulder.

  "I'm Maddison. Its nice to meet you."

  "Same. Okay, so it's a one bedroom and everything is new. I just bought the place off a friend and had to do a lot of renovations. Its why I'm renting the place, to pay for the upgrades." He explained removing a key from a nail in the wall at the top of the stairs.

  "So you just moved in yourself?"

  "Yeah a couple weeks ago."

  Stephanie followed Reece into the apartment and he stood aside so that she could get a good look. She stood in what was the dining/ living room. The place was not furnished, but the large window let in a great deal of light and the walls weren't the typical off-white, but a pleasant mellow yellow color.

  The open concept had the kitchen just on the other side of the door. It, too, was painted the same yellow with black cupboards and stainless steel appliances. She was pleased by the ample counter space and double sink.

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  "Right down that way is the room and washroom, as well as a linen closet." Said Reece, pointing to a short hallway across from the kitchen.

  Stephanie walked at a steady pace toward the hall while Reece waited by the door. The yellow continued down here. She opened the first door and found the linen closet. The door across the hall from that was the washroom. It wasn't huge, but comfortable enough with a big soaker tub/shower and small vanity sink. The walls were pleasant blue flower patterned and the floor a plain white tile.

  Satisfied, she continued to the last door to what must have been the single bedroom. Stephanie opened the door and saw a fair sized room this time, painted a pleasant pale blue color similar to the blue flowers on the bathroom's wallpaper. The view from the window showed the spacious backyard, fenced with high pinewood planks . She saw a new bar-b-que and some comfortable lawn furniture.

  The closet was surprisingly large. A walk in with several built in shelves. There was even a small brown leather bench set between two hanging bars.

  Satisfied with her inspection Maddison made her way back to Reece, who was leaned against the wall with his massive arms crossed over his still bare chest. Had he forgotten that he had a shirt with him, or was his usual state a bare chested one?

  "How do you like it?" he asked in a pleasant enough manner, but his face remained neutral.

  "Its very nice." Said Maddison, finding it hard to keep her eyes on his face. "You really made the place up well. How much are you asking a month?" she would have guessed a high number. This apartment was by far the nicest she had seen yet. She actually really liked it. It wasn't even too far from the shelter! She could ride her bike there in less than a half hour.

  "Eight hundred a month, plus a four hundred dollar deposit. Heat and light are included, and for an extra fifty bucks ill put you on my internet plan. If you want a phone or cable you'll have to take care of that yourself."

  That was actually a very fair price. Fifty for the internet was good and she had no need for cable since she only ever used her cell phone. Eight hundred was at the limit of what she wanted to spend, but she was okay with that.

  "Well, that all sounds good to me." She told Reece. "Is there anything else I should know? What about pets?"

  "Pets? That should be fine so long as they are clean. But animals don't like me much..."

  Maddison laughed behind her hand. "Mittens is eighteen years old and mostly sits in the window sun bathing."

  "That's fine then. Lets see... well, I'm a pretty private person. I'm not going to tell you not to have guests, but no wild parties or friends you know can't mind their own business. Though I should also tell you that you might hear some racket from my place from time to time. No parties, but I have a pretty rowdy family."

  "Hmm. I really don't have too many friends, but my best friend can be a little nosey and crass. She knows to hold her tongue when it counts. Any noise you make wouldn't be a bother to me either."

  "Well then," He said flashing a truly stunning smile that made Maddison feel liquid all over. "I take cheques. If you can't pay the deposit now, then we can just add a little to your monthly rent till you've made up for it, or you can pay it in full within the next month."

  Maddison smiled. He didn't beat around the bush; she liked that. She was the same way, but much louder.

  She reached into her purse and pulled out her cheque book. This was working out well.

  "If you are okay with it I can start moving in within the next couple days. I can pay extra for the week left in this month."

  "Don't worry about it. I'm just glad to get the place rented so fast." Again, Maddison was dazzled by his smile, this time there was a roguish glint in his green eyes. "Besides, having a pretty girl living above me is better than a smelly construction worker."

  Maddison blushed. His thinly veiled flirtations did sit well with her, though she could tell he hadn't intended to be creepy or anything. Sure she wasn't exactly swimming in handsome men paying her compliments, but men flirting with her always made her suspicious. Still, she wasn't about to judge her new landlord and neighbor on a single comment. She smiled back at him in a neutral manner.

  "And what makes you think I'm not a city worker who works in sewage?" she joked.