"Your fist is the size of a toddler's, that's probably the cutest thing I have ever seen in my entire-"

"I'll punch you in the face with my toddler sized fist if your finish that sentence, playboy."

Alec bit his lower lip then proceeded to salute me. "Aye, Captain."

I rolled my eyes. "Just rinse off the dealf like a good little lad."

I brushed by him and smiled when I heard his dramatic gasp. "Little lad? I'm big all over, baby!"

"Yeah, I noticed how big your feet were," I called back down the hallway as I neared my bedroom.

"They are average size for a man my size!" Alec bellowed. "Besides, you know what they say about men with big feet, right?"

"Yeah, they wear big socks."

"Smartass!" Alec shouted making me laugh as I closed my bedroom door.

I shook my head still lightly laughing as I moved around my bedroom five minutes later. I opened my bedroom windows, stripped the sheets from my bed along with my pillowcases and put them into the wash basket in the corner of my room. I got fresh linens from my wardrobe and put them on my bed. When that task was don, I got the hoover from my wardrobe - yes, items besides clothing were stored in my wardrobe because my apartment was so small I had no hot press for storage - and hoovered my entire room.

I opened my bedroom door and hoovered the hallway then inside the bathroom and back out into the hallway until the cord belonging to the hoover halted my movements as I neared the kitchen entrance. I went back to my room and unplugged it from the socket on my bedroom wall and brought it out to the hallway. I left it there so I could bring it into the kitchen and sitting room when I was finished cleaning the bathroom.

I was about to ask Alec how he was getting on with the dealf when I heard him singing. The fucker was not only good looking, but he could sing and sing really well. His choice of song caused my eyes to roll though.

"Sex bomb, sex bomb, I'm a sex bomb-"

"You're a sex bomb!" I corrected the lyric cutting him off as I went into the bathroom.

Things were silent then and I didn't notice he entered the bathroom until I looked up into the mirror and saw him behind me.

"Did you just call me a sex bomb?" Alec asked his gaze locked on mine through the mirror.

I would have laughed at him if his gaze wasn't so intense.

"I was correctin' the lyrics," I said then blew out a breath. "You aren't goin' to jump me, are you?"

Alec cocked an eyebrow. "I'm sorry did you say jump me or fuck me?"

I gasped. "Alec Slater, don't be so crude!"

Alec's pretty smile stretched across his face. "Did you just chastise me, little kitten?"

I narrowed my eyes. "I did, and I'll kick your arse if you keep up that dirty talkin'."

"I'll keep the dirty talking up as well as something else up if you don't stop being so damn innocent."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. "What makes you think I'm innocent?"

Alec deadpanned. "You just yelled at me for being crude."

I rolled my head on my shoulders feeling frustrated. "Just because I don't like you bein' crude doesn't mean I'm innocent."

"Prove it," Alec challenged.

I raised my brows. "How?"

Alec pumped his eyebrows at me and said, "Surprise me."

I cracked my knuckles. "Stop tryin' to bait me into doin' somethin' sexual with you. I'm not havin' sex with you now or ever."

Alec stepped closer to me molding the front of his body into the back of mine and covered my hands on the bathroom counter with his. He kept eye contact with me through the mirror as he did this then he lowered his mouth down to my ear and lightly blew on it making me shiver.

His breath on my ear caused my eyes to drift shut as shudders shot throughout my body.

"I told you I will fuck you kitten and trust me, I will fuck you, but not until you beg me," he whispered.

He words were sobering but I still kept my eyes closed.

"You have a better chance of teachin' Storm how to roll over than you do havin' sex with me, playboy."

I opened my eyes and winked to a now smirking Alec. I jumped and yelped when he slapped my behind then ducked out of the room when I tried to return the slap, only to his face instead of his arse.

"Don't be violent," Alec grinned as I followed him out of the bathroom and into the hallway.

He was walking backwards while I moved towards him.

"You know what they say; actions speak louder than words."

Alec laughed. "I don't think that quote makes it okay for you to hit me."

I shrugged. "You slapped me first."

I continued to advance on Alec. I wasn't going to hit him but I was going to make him pay and when he tripped over the hoover I'd left in the hallway and fell over onto his arse, my payment was received.

"That's karma, bitch," I sang then turned and pranced into the bathroom.

I could hear Alec grumbling to himself from out in the hallway which made me chuckle as I went about cleaning the bathroom. I tuned everything out as I cleaned the bathroom; the only thing that got my attention was Storm when he came into the bathroom.

"Hey beautiful," I cooed.

Storm rubbed his head against my leg then whined and cocked his leg before putting it back down on the floor. I shooed him from the bathroom as I quickly ran to my bedroom to get his lead from the hook on my bedroom wall. When I re-entered the hall I clipped the end of the lead onto Storm's collar and moved towards the hall door.

"Be right back, Alec."

"Where are you going?" Alec asked.

"Storm needs to go to the bathroom," I said then looked to the kitchen only to find it empty. I looked to the sitting room then and gaped at Alec's body lying across my sofa making it look smaller than it was. He was reading something.

A book.

"What are you readin'?" I curiously asked.

"That porn book we were talking about earlier at my house. This dude is my God! He just fucked this Ana chick while she was on her period."

"Stop it!" I screeched. "Stop readin' and put the bloody book down!"

He was reading Fifty Shades of Grey.

I was both horrified and mortified.

Alec got up from the sofa, placed the book on the coffee table and turned in my direction.

"Why are you blushing?"

Him noticing my embarrassment only caused my already red cheeks to heat up even more.

"Oh damn, your cheeks are so flushed," Alec said and took a step towards me.

I held up my free hand. "Hold it right there, buddy. I've to bring Storm outside so just rinse the dealf like I asked you to do half an hour ago and if you have a minute please clean up Storm's food and water on the floor. We're supposed to be a cleanin' team."

Alec bowed. "Yes dear," he said and moved out of the sitting room and into the kitchen.

I left the apartment and hurried down the stairs of my apartment with Storm before one of the neighbours caught me. The apartment complex doesn't have a ban on animals but if enough neighbours complain about one, the animal or the tenant has to go. Storm is a good dog, but I still don't want to give any of my neighbours reason to report me so that's why I whisk him in and out of the building without being noticed.

Once we got outside I headed in the direction of the park that was located directly across from my building. I never let Storm off his lead for the simple fact that he never comes back to me when I call him. I was terrified he would run out of the park one day if I let him off the lead and get hit by a car. So to keep him safe and my nerves tamed, I bought a lead that extends pretty far so he feels like he is roaming free whilst still being secured on the lead.

Storm relieved himself as soon as we got to the park; I grabbed one of the doggie poop bags that were located around different stations throughout the park to bag it up. When that nasty business was bagged and placed into the bin, we spent half an hour walking around so Storm could stretch his legs. When he was ready, we walked back to my apartment. All the way back I was cursing myself for forgetting my hand sanitiser, I wanted to wash my hands so bad.

When I made it back into my apartment building, Storm and myself hauled arse up the stairs and down the hallway of my floor. I heard laughter coming from inside my apartment so I stuck my ear to the door to see if I knew whom it was.

I fumbled with my keys to open the door, when it opened wide Storm shot forward and because I had his lead in my hand, I was jolted forward and face planted on the ground.

Things went silent then.

"That looked painful," Alec's voice commented after a moment or two.

I groaned.

"She's fine, she can be very clumsy. Never mind Keela, let's talk about you Mr. Slater."

"Please, call me Alec."

"Okay, Alec."

I groaned even louder when I heard my mother's voice.

If there was a Hell, I was in it.

"Are you okay?" Alec asked me as he helped me to my feet.

I nodded my head and brushed down the front of my dress as I ignored the throbbing pain in my knees and chest.

"I'm okay."

I wasn't okay, I was pretty sure I cracked a bloody rib.

"Are you sure, kitten?" Alec asked me, worry laced in his tone as he rubbed the back of his fingers across my cheek.

The sign of tender affection did nothing for me, but when I glanced to my mother I could see the smile on her face as she watched Alec interact with me.

Did she like him?

"Hey ma, I didn't think you would get here until later," I said as I straightened myself up.

My mother cut her eyes to me. "Mam or mother, Keela, never ma."

I inwardly bitch slapped her.

She was one of the few Irish mothers who had a preference on what her child should call her.

"Sorry, mother," I mumbled.

She made me feel like a kid again and I despised it.

"Come sit so we can talk," my mother said and moved to the one seater settee which left me and Alec to sit on the two seater settee.

"How and when did you two meet?" my mother quizzically asked when we were all seated.

Fuck!

I swallowed my tongue horrified that I didn't even think to go over questions like this with Alec on the drive from his house so we would have the same answers.

I started to sweat.

"Um... Well... Um."

I jumped a little when Alec's fingers suddenly threaded through mine.

I looked at him and relaxed when he winked at me.

He had this... or at least he better have it.

"We met three months ago in a night club, Ms Daley. We hit it off straight away and went on a few dates after that night. Three weeks into dating I knew she was the one so I asked her to be my girlfriend and she agreed. The days sort of meshed together then and flew by and before we knew it, we decided to move in together. As you can see, we just started the process today since all of my stuff is still in my bags."

My mother glanced over to the apartment door and to the two large duffle bags next to it.

"Are you sure your things will fit in this box?" my mother asked, a grin on her face.

I clenched my free hand into a fist, I knew my apartment was tiny but no one else could hate on it except me.