The Handsome Mystery

Chapter One

It was a warm summers day and I was sitting in room doing nothing except for sitting in my chair I have in the corner reading a book. I guess you could call me a nerd. I am twenty-three years old and I live alone in a two bedroom apartment. I have never had a boyfriend but I like it that way. No one telling me what to do or how to act. I am looking for a roommate though to help me with rent. The only job I have ever had is at a little café down the street called, "Earl's Coffee Palace." I have worked there for three years now ad I haven't even gotten a raise. I don't go to college because what I want to do does not require a degree.

Becoming an author in this world is a little more difficult than I had imagined. Writing isn't as easy as it was when I was younger even though the only things I wrote were poems for school which were silly. I can barely afford rent so I don't drive my car because gas in expensive. This is why I need a roommate so I can also afford gas. I am not picky on the gender of the roommate but I'd prefer a female just because there is always a chance that I could end up falling for them if I had a male as a roommate. I don't think I am very attractive to be honest. I have glasses and contacts and long brown hair. My eyes are blue and I don't have a big butt or big breasts. No one finds me attractive. I have been on dates but they went downhill quickly.

I have an interview for someone today to see if they would be a good fit for my roommate. We will see how it goes. I needed to start getting ready so I got a shower, did my hair and makeup, and got dressed. By the time I was finished getting ready, there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find a very attractive man standing there looking at me. Was he here for the interview? Of course he was, why else would he be standing at my door? "Won't you come in?" He stepped inside and walked towards my kitchen. I closed the door and followed after him.

"Thank you for coming to my place. I figured it would be easier for you to come here and get a feel for everything." He just looked around and nodded. "So what's your name?" He looked up at me. "Jake Taylor. What's yours?"

"Melissa Jones."

He nodded but didn't say anything. I started asking him questions about why he wanted a roommate, if how I lived would bother him, how he lived, and things like that. after we were finished we shook hands and he left. I told him I would call him if I decided he was a perfect fir for me. Chances are I won't get anyone else and I could really use the help with rent so I don't really see a choice in the matter.

Later in the day I called him and told him he could move in and he said okay. later that night he started bringing boxes in and took them back to his room. I helped him of course but afterwards I made dinner. I've never cooked for anyone other than myself before so this is something I'll have to get used to. After dinner he said he was going to bed, I said goodnight and decided to get a shower after I did the dishes. I would usually leave my door cracked but since there is a new man in the house I locked it. After my shower I heard him talking kind of quiet so I couldn't make out much of what he was saying. All  could hear was the occasional okay and see you then, but nothing more. When he hung up I quickly went into my room and closed the door. Then, there was a knock. Does he know I was listening? Of course not, he couldn't possibly.

I opened the door to a shirtless Jake Taylor. He was resting one arm on my door frame and he was looking at me. Try to keep it together girl. "Yes? Is everything okay?" I tried sounding friendly and unbothered. "Yes, I was just wondering if I could use the shower? I know I live here now but I figured it would be polite to ask you." He has manners and is hot? How does this happen? "Well of course you can. After all you do live here now so you can help yourself to whatever you would like including the shower." He smiled and stood up straight. "Okay thanks." Something seems off with him though. I just can't tell what it is. I closed the door and went to bed.

The next morning I woke up to such an amazing smell. Bacon, pancakes, and biscuits. I walked out into the kitchen to see Jake standing only in his underwear cooking. I sat down and he turned around. "Good morning, Melissa." He sat a plate in front of me. "Good morning, Jake." He sat down next to me with his plate. "Did you sleep alright?" He looked at me. "Yes, thank you. Did you?" I nodded and grabbed the syrup. When I took a bite of the food Jake prepared, my eyes closed. After a second or two I looked at him. "Where did you learn to cook if you don't mind my asking?" He smiled. "My mother. Before she died she wanted to make sure I knew how to treat a woman." I smiled. "She sounds like she was an amazing woman." He smiled and nodded. "She was." I felt awkward now that we had talked about his dead mom and I am not sure what to say. I kept eating until he finally said something. "So, I am new in town and I'm not really sure what is around here. I was wondering since we are now roommates and all you could show me around? That is if you want to of course." I placed my dirty plate and fork in the sink and looked at him. "Yeah sure. Let me just clean up around here and get dressed. We might as well start as soon as possible. I mean after all we do live in a big city or close to one I should say." He laughed and nodded. "I agree."

I went to my room and got dressed, when I came out he was on the phone yelling. "I told you to stop calling me on this phone. It will ruin everything. We need to stick to the plan and with you calling me on this phone, it will ruin everything. Goodbye." What is he talking about? Plan? Ruin everything? Is there more to him than I saw? I don't know what's going on but I will just act like everything is okay. "Are you ready to go?" He looked at me and his expression softened. "Yes." We walked out the door and I made sure I locked it before we went to the elevator. Making sure we were alone, I turned to him. "Are you okay? He just faced forward looking at the doors. "Yes. Why?" He side-eyed me but did not fully turn to look at me. "I overheard you on the phone coming down the hallway and I heard you yelling at the person on the other end." He turned his full attention to me and had a look on his face like he was scared to learn what I heard. "What all did you hear?" Now I was scared. Am I not supposed to know something? Would he hurt me? No. He wouldn't do that, right? Maybe, maybe not. We did just meet after all.

We got to the first floor and he was still looking at me waiting for me to tell him. "All I heard was something about calling on that phone will ruin the plan and everything." He clenched his fist. Now I'm scared. We climbed into a cab and I told the driver where to go. We lived outside of New York City more on the outskirts towards more of the country. I liked it out there, it was peaceful for me so I could concentrate on my writing. We finally got to Central Park and that's where he sat me down away from everyone else. "Look Melissa, what you heard was just a misunderstanding. I was on the phone with someone whom I wish to not talk about." Now I'm worried. "Jake if you are living with me I must know, are you into some trouble? Are you a drug dealer? What's going on?" He turned towards me and looked around placing his arm on the back of the bench. "I cannot tell you anything that will put you in danger. I guess you could say I am in a little trouble but someone else is in more trouble than I am." I just left it at that because I did not want to pry. Especially since he said I could be put in danger if I knew.

After a few hours of site seeing, we headed home. When we walked up to the door I noticed something was off. The door was open and I rushed inside with Jake. "Fuck!" I walked around the house looking to see if anything of mine was stolen and he checked his things in his room. "Jake will you tell me what is going on now?" He looked at me and shook his head. "I can't. Not right now. When the time is right I will. But not right now. We are in danger and we need to get out of here now. Do you have a car?" I nodded. "Go pack. We need to hurry." I ran to my room and grabbed a suitcase and started packing clothes and my laptop. It took a few minutes but we were both ready and we left. "Where are we going?" He was silent. What is going on?