Chapter 5: Live On The Other Side
Leah
Less than two months ago, Shane had been just a neighbor—a distraction, a way to strike back at Wendy. But the night he and Leah saved Daphne’s life, something shifted. Shane stopped seeing Leah as that Gen-Z chick with maybe a daddy complex and started seeing a woman with deeper feelings and intellect.
And somehow, her financial free-fall, the trust fund gone overnight, had made space for something honest. Vulnerability. Dependence. Intimacy she hadn’t expected. He’d stepped up without hesitation, covering bills she couldn’t face, holding her when the shame felt too big. The rest—nights tangled in bed, trembling kisses, the way Shane engulfed her body—she still almost can’t believe.
Now, in the pale light of dawn, she’s curled against him, awake early, tracing the curve of his jaw.
Soon, he stirs. “I dreamt that you did it again,” he murmurs against her skin. “You showed up at my door… in that trench coat and that garter belt…”
Leah lets out a soft giggle, curling closer, the warmth of his skin anchoring her. “I don’t know what came over me,” she murmurs, voice low, like she kind of does. The sound of her laugh is lighter than usual, unarmored. Morning light spills through the curtains, and for once, she doesn’t brace against it.
“I hope it makes another appearance,” Shane says with a knowing smile.
“Funny you say that.” Her lips twist into a hesitant grin. “Truth is, it wasn’t even mine.”
“Wait, what?” Shane peers up at her, surprised but curious.
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“It was Tina’s. I found it in her closet.”
“You borrowed your roommate’s sexy lingerie?”
“I know how it sounds, Shane. But I had my reasons.”
“You sure did.” He grins, almost leering now. “Just didn’t peg you as the type to wear another woman’s underwear. Or her garter belt. And Tina, huh? Wouldn’t have guessed she owned that kind of stuff either. But now…”
He takes her hand, guiding it under the sheet.
“Feel that?”
“Shane!” Leah yelps, tugging her hand away. She smiles up at him, eyes sparkling as her laughter fades. “Can I ask you something?”
“Always.”
“Okay, don’t judge me, but… when I went through Tina’s stuff the other night, I found this huge locked metal suitcase in her closet.”
“A locked suitcase?”
“Yeah. It was shoved all the way in the back. And I know it sounds insane, but I had a gut feeling. So… last night I picked the lock.”
He pulls back a little, brows lifting. “Wait, you broke into it? What was inside?”
“Lights. A high-end mic setup. Two laptops. A burner phone. It looked like a full livestreaming rig. Everything was encrypted.”
“That’s… not exactly normal, Leah.”
“Right?” She shifts under the sheets, looking up at the ceiling. “She says she does voiceover work, but this felt like more than that.”
“Could be legit equipment.”
“Maybe. But why lock it up? Why hide it?”
“Just because it was in her closet doesn’t mean she’s hiding it.”
“The reason I was snooping…” Leah rolls to her side, meeting Shane’s gaze, tentative at first, then softening. “Daphne showed up at my door. Wasted, obviously. She told me Tina might be an escort. Claimed her mom knows one of Tina’s clients.”
Shane rolls his eyes, unconvinced. “A hell of a source.”
“It’s probably bullshit. But I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“Does it change how you see her?”
Leah glances toward the window, uneasy. Sunlight floods the courtyard, suddenly too bright to feel comforting. “It complicates things. I want to be supportive. If Tina’s doing sex work, that’s her choice. But if she’s hiding something that big, what else isn’t she telling me? How do I trust my roommate if I don’t know who she is?”
He leans into her, lips grazing her collarbone. “Makes you wonder what other naughty things Tina’s hiding in that closet.”
Leah almost moans. Then flips over, hooks her leg around him, and straddles his lap. “Guess I’ll just have to keep snooping.”
“Or,” he murmurs, “you could stop thinking about Tina for five minutes.” And before she can answer, Shane pulls her down into a kiss.