Possessed by Thayer King Read Free Book Online Page B

around.”
    “Mmm.
If you have any trouble at the gate, tell them to call me and I’ll vouch for
you.”

Chapter Four
     
    Sebastian
swiped the back of his hand over his sweaty brow and dropped the paint roller
into the plastic paint tray. He looked around and surveyed his work. The pale
gray wasn’t a boring white but could still be considered neutral. This was the
last room. When he’d purchased the house, the roof had been falling in, the
carpeting was stained and smelly, and there had been holes punched in the wall,
courtesy of the last owner. The real estate in Las Vegas had taken a hit in the
current economy. His friends told him he was crazy to attempt flipping houses
here. They’d begged him to return home with them to California. But he couldn’t
go. Something held him here. This was his second house. The first had sold
faster than he’d anticipated, but he hadn’t counted on the sale. He would have
rented it out if that became a necessity. Fortunately, the house had been in
good shape and the fixes were largely cosmetic. He’d kept his repair costs low
by doing as much of the work himself as he could. His father had been a
carpenter, and Sebastian had worked with him until he couldn’t hide his
abilities anymore. He’d hoped to go into the family business with his father,
but he gave up that dream when his father had thrown him physically from their
house, tossing his belongings behind him.
    Sebastian
pushed down the memory as he always did. It was so long ago. It shouldn’t
affect him anymore.
    He
glanced at his watch. It was nearly nine. He’d been invited over to Luke’s
house for a party. Luke was his friend Mike’s cousin. Sebastian was certain
that Mike had told his cousin to look out for him. Both Mike and Ken called him
daily. He wasn’t sure what they thought he’d do without their supervision. While
he appreciated their concern, he wasn’t a child incapable of taking care of
himself.
    Yeah,
giving up on Web-site design to go into flipping houses was an unexpected and
sudden career change. And he didn’t know how much longer he would do it. Maybe
one more house. He liked seeing the product of his hard work. It gave him a
sense of accomplishment. Yeah, it was the work he liked. It wasn’t because he
was the closest to Keva that he’d ever been. Cursing under his breath, he tried
to banish thoughts of her and keep focused on the moment at hand.
    He
needed to shower before the party. He stripped in the bathroom and stepped into
the cold spray. The air wasn’t on because he had to keep a window open to
ventilate the rooms he’d painted. The cold water cooled his overheated body and
invigorated him. He hadn’t been sleeping much. He’d been working night and day
on the house and he was finally finished. Monday morning he’d contact his
realtor to list the house.
    And
then he needed a new project. If he didn’t keep busy, it gave him time to
think. And he didn’t want that. Invariably, his mind would turn to Keva. He
tried to ban her from his thoughts. Maybe then he wouldn’t turn to her when the
going got rough.
    He
washed his hair and rinsed it. No time for conditioner. His hair was one of the
few things that he did take care of. Whether he was firmly himself or ruled by
pain, he took care of his hair. He dried off and filled his palm with a liquid
leave-in conditioner. He applied it to the towel-dried waves and pulled his
curls into a ponytail.
    He
picked up his paint-splattered clothing off the floor and threw it into a
hamper. He’d have to stay in a hotel once this place sold or he found a new
dump. The bathroom floor and shower stall had been retiled in beige stone. “Not
half-bad,” he murmured to himself. He rarely took more than a second to survey
his progress before he was on to the next thing.
    Naked,
he padded his way to the bedroom. He rummaged through the closet. There wasn’t
a lot to choose from. He grabbed briefs off a shelf, a pair of jeans, and a
clean T-shirt.