A Beautiful Thought (The Beautiful Series) by Alicia Rae Read Free Book Online Page B

right now in my life, sleeping only a wall away from a stunningly beautiful woman.
    With every passing second, roommate felt like the wrong term to use with her because every fiber of my being wanted more.

~Gail~
    By the third weekday, Damon and I had a morning system. He would wake up and stomp around the apartment, which would wake me up, too.
    I peeled my eyes open at the sound of him moving about in his room. I climbed out of bed, and still in my pajamas, I strolled toward the kitchen to start the coffee pot. All the while, I suppressed the excitement I felt for having these few minutes with him before we went off our separate ways to work.
    “Morning,” Damon said in a gruff morning voice, coming up behind me.
    “Good morning.” I reached for two bagels and put them in the toaster.
    He walked over to the fridge and pulled out the cream cheese, orange juice, and a bowl of grapes. I stretched to reach into a cabinet, and I grabbed two plates and two cups.
    “So, what’s on your agenda today?” I asked him casually.
    He poured us each a glass of juice. “I’m finishing up the drywall today with Jason. Then, we are moving on to taping and mudding.”
    “That sounds”—I wrinkled my nose over at him—“fun.”
    “I don’t know if fun is the right word.” He chuckled. “But Jason and I try to make the best of it. What about you?”
    The bagels popped up, and I carefully reached for them. “I’m jam-packed with patients today, so I won’t be home until about six.”
    I spread the cream cheese on each of our bagels and carried them over to the table as Damon brought our glasses and napkins. We sat down in the wooden chairs across from one another.
    “That’s a long day.” He took a chunk out of his food.
    “Yeah, but yesterday was short, so I guess it’s a give-and-take kinda thing.”
    Damon nodded thoughtfully. “Do you like your job?”
    I took a bite and swallowed. “I love it. Helping people recover from physical injuries is very rewarding. I’ve always known what I wanted to do from a young age.” I reached for my napkin and looked back at him. “What about you?”
    “As a kid, I enjoyed drawing everything from people to buildings all the time. Then, in college, I gravitated toward designing buildings from the ground up. It was like a puzzle. I wanted to make a building eye-catching yet highly functional, so pursuing architecture seemed like the right path for me.”
    “What will you do now as a partner with Jason and Kyle?” I asked, intrigued.
    “The same thing,” he answered. “Instead of the company contracting that part out to someone else, I’ll be an in-house architect.”
    I could not help but tease him. “Except, right now, you’re just the laborer.”
    “Yep.” He grinned handsomely. “I gotta earn my keep somehow.”
    “We all do,” I agreed.
    “So, tell me about your family,” he said, finishing up his breakfast.
    I pushed my plate aside, feeling full. “Well, my parents are still happily married after nearly thirty years, and they live about twenty minutes outside of town,” I said in a loving voice. “And my sister, Caroline, just recently turned fifteen.”
    “Uh-oh. The rough teenage years…”
    “Yep.” I laughed. “Although, Caroline is a sweet, good girl. She loves fashion, swimming, and being outside at every given opportunity.” I resisted frowning at the thought of some of the things she would miss out on due to many circumstances. I continued with the positive, “And she was just accepted into a new program that my parents have been trying to enroll her in.”
    Damon genuinely smiled. “That’s great.”
    “It is. We are so happy for her,” I replied. “So, what about your family?”
    “My dad recently retired, so my parents are excited to start traveling. Jason—well, you met him, so enough said.” He grinned devilishly.
    I bent forward, picked up a grape from my plate, and gently tossed it at him. “Oh, stop.” I snickered. “Jason