“Well, I don’t know. If you think real men are like the ones you just saw in Spartacus, I might judge you for being too strict about physical fitness. I don’t come close to those oiled up gladiators.”

She flushed and joined him in his laughter. “You’re a goof.”

“Yep, that’s me.” He seemed delighted with her mock insult.

Their gazes locked, and that thick tension that had surged between them in the laundry room came back. She wanted so badly to walk into his arms and drag him down for a kiss. Make the first move, for heaven’s sake, she told herself. But she was frozen in indecision. What if he didn’t feel anything but platonic like for her?

He stared over her face, tracing a path from her eyes to her mouth and lingering. She saw his chest rise and fall faster. No, he’s into me. Right? Or am I wrong? Being wrong about this would kill our growing friendship for sure.

Xavier coughed, breaking the spell. “You’re fun to be around. I really like you.” He opened and closed his mouth, paused, then said, “I don’t want to overstay my welcome. Or become a pest. So I’ll go now.” He slowly walked to her and gave her a half hug, not full body contact but shared warmth all the same. He quickly pulled back. “See you later.”

She watched him leave, her knees weak, and had no idea why him leaving without a full hug, or even better, a kiss, made her want to cry.

After running into Justine only a few times during the week, by the following Friday, Xavier felt as if he’d gotten a handle on his feelings for his upstairs neighbor. A sweet, funny, yet harried woman, Justine didn’t have time for a man in her life, let alone Xavier, who was still processing his past relationship, wondering how it had all gone so horribly wrong.

They way they all seemed to.

To his surprise, his ex had left him a message about getting together to piece through everything, needing “closure.” But he didn’t think that was Christine’s true intent, so he hadn’t called her back. They’d had closure over a month ago and hadn’t spoken in weeks. Just what the hell else could he do for her?

Plus, lately, his thoughts had been occupied by the gorgeous brunette doing her best to handle an unhappy work life while navigating rocky family dynamics. He really felt for her, but she hadn’t asked for his advice, so he was doing his best to keep his thoughts to himself. Plus, he had a feeling she’d been avoiding him, which made him wonder if he’d made a mistake being so free with his opinions last Friday.

Xavier sighed and continued to watch the clock, waiting on his mother to show up for a home-cooked Friday brunch. She didn’t usually make him wait, always early for everything. So when she still hadn’t answered his texts ten minutes later, he grabbed his keys and left the apartment to find her.