here.
âNice to meet you.â I shook his hand. His grip was strong, and I noticed the veins bulging in his forearms.
âWelcome to Polk and the Alhambra.â He let go of my hand and scrutinized my face. âYouâre here for college?â
I nodded and opened my door. âYeah. Can I get you a drink or something?â
âNo, Iâm not thirsty, but thanks.â He grinned at me. âBut I do want to see the inside of your apartment.â He winked. âJeff and I saw the furniture being delivered yesterday. You have excellent taste.â
âJeff?â
âMy boyfriend.â
My heart sank. Of course he has a boyfriend, I told myself as I beckoned him to follow me inside. Gorgeous guys like him are undoubtedly all taken. âDoes he live with you?â I asked as I went into the kitchen and opened a can of Coke.
Blair walked into the living room and whistled. âThis is really nice.â He plopped down on the couch. He looked at the painting hanging over the wide-screen TV and whistled again. âIs that a Lindsey Smolensky?â He looked at me, his head cocked to one side and his eyes narrowed just a fraction. âThose are worth a fortune. My dad has a few at his place in Palm Springs.â
âJust a print,â I lied, cursing at myself. So much for just being another college student! I made a mental note to have the painting shipped back home.
âOh, come on, now, donât bullshit a bullshitter.â He crossed his legs, exposing the bulge in his blue bikini. I tried not to stare. âFor one thing, this place ainât cheap, Jordy. Neither is any of this furniture.â He gave me a wink. âDonât worryâthere arenât many students living here, and any student you might have over wouldnât know the difference between that painting and something you bought at a gas station.â He narrowed his eyes. âI gather you donât want anyone to know you have money?â He grinned. âHey, itâs okay, really. I know the feeling. My parents are Steve Blanchard and Nicole Blair.â
It was my turn to goggle at him. âSeriously?â They were two of the biggest film stars in the world. Even at St. Bernard, where the faculty disdained popular culture, Iâd heard of them. Iâd never seen any of their films, but it was almost impossible to go on the Internet and not run across a photo of one or the other. I could actually see the resemblance to both of them in his face.
He threw his head back and laughed. âYes, seriously. So I know where youâre coming from, right? You donât want people to like you because you have money, right? You want them to like you for you.â
I nodded.
He shrugged. âCute. Me, I donât care why people like me as long as they like me.â He made a gesture with his hand. âThen again, only someone with the most pedestrian of tastes wouldnât like me.â He grinned, blinking his eyes rapidly.
I laughed. Thereâd been no one like Blair at St. Bernard.
Blair got up and walked over to the door to my balcony. He unlocked it and pulled it open. âAh, youâre luckyâyouâve got a pool view.â I was just about to say something about the gorgeous hunk at the pool when Blair screamed, âJEFF! JEFF!â
I walked out on the balcony just as the hunk in the white bikini got up from the lounge chair and looked, shielding his eyes.
âNEW NEIGHBOR!â Blair shouted, gesturing at me with his arms, and then waved for him to come over.
âThatâs your boyfriend?â I managed to stutter out as I watched the god in the white bikini gather up his stuff and start shuffling toward us across the parking lot.
âTongue back in your mouth, young one.â Blair shook his head at me. âYes, thatâs my boyfriend, Jeff Morgan, he of the godlike body that stops traffic, makes pussies drip, and gets gay men hard