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THE LIVING ROOM OF Landon’s apartment is starting to look like an art gallery. Don’t’ get me wrong, he needed something hanging on his walls, but I think I’ve gone a little crazy with the photographs that I’ve been taking all over the neighborhood while he’s at work. Over the last week, I’ve gone out every day and taken more pictures.
After we got home from the hardware store the other day, we went through the boxes together that came from his grandmother’s house. He didn’t want to hang any of the other pictures that we found in those boxes. He did take a family portrait from when he was about five years old with his parents and put it on his dresser. The rest of the pictures stayed in the boxes and went to the back of his closet.
We’ve gotten back in the routine of going out every afternoon to practice driving. Now that I have my learner’s permit, Landon has been making sure that I’ve had plenty of practice so I can take the driving test next week. I’m feeling more confident and comfortable behind the wheel lately but I’m not ready to go out on my own yet. Not that I have a car, but Landon does have a second car that he said I could drive after I get my license. I don’t know yet how I feel about that to be honest. But we’ll see what happens. It will be nice to be able to get around on my own while he’s at work instead of having to walk everywhere or call an Uber.
Which is exactly what I’m doing today. Over the last few days, while we’ve been out driving around town, Landon has directed me to several of his buildings. The ones that he designed. Including the one with the angel fountain modelled after his grandmother in the front. Having made sure to take my camera with me anytime we leave the apartment, I’ve collected hundreds of shots of his properties from different angles over the last week. Today I’m printing and framing them and plan to surprise him later this morning while he’s hopefully still at the office.
He hasn’t taken me to his office yet. But a little internet sleuthing and I was able to find it online. My plan is to walk in with a box of photos and surprise him with them. He should have them hanging around his office where everyone can see them. Honestly, after having stalked his website, he needs to have more pictures of his buildings online. He doesn’t even have an online portfolio that I’ve been able to find. Maybe that’s something that I can talk to him about when I show up at his work.
“Oh shit,” I groan to myself when I try to lift the box holding all the framed photos I want to take to Landon’s office. “I think I majorly overestimated my ability to carry this box.” Setting the box of pictures on the floor, I use my foot to slide it through the apartment to the front door. “What am I going to do now?”
Think, Emi. Think.
Leaving the box sitting by the door, I grab my keys and walk out to the elevator. Stepping off in the lobby, I see Steve working at the desk again. I’m glad, at least I’ve already met and talked to him so I shouldn’t feel like a moron when I ask him for help.
“Emi,” Steve stands as soon as he sees me step off the elevator. “Going back out for more photos?”
I can’t stop myself from smiling as he greets me for the third time today. “Do you ever get a break, Steve?” Stepping up to the desk, I rest my elbows on the smooth surface and lean forward to view the monitors.
“Nope.” He chuckles as he crosses his arms over his chest, his stance widening to make him appear intimidating with an aura of confidence. I know better, however. There is nothing ruthless about this man – he has a heart of gold and cares far too much about the tenants of this building. He’s basically everyone’s grandfather.
“I need your help with something,” I mention before pulling my bottom lip between my teeth nervously.
“Anything. Just name it.” He relaxes his posture as he awaits my request.
“I have a box of photographs that I’ve taken around the city. They’re all of Landon’s properties, the ones that he designed. I’m hoping to take them to his office and surprise him with them. But I hadn’t realized how heavy the box was going to be and I couldn’t get it downstairs. I have no idea how I’m going to get it to his office.”
I watch patiently, still biting on my bottom lip, as Steve’s brows rise toward his hairline. The corners of his walrus mustache twitch slightly and I know he’s fighting a smile. “I think I have just the thing to help you.” He holds up a single finger, indicating that I should wait here, while he turns and walks toward a door next to the elevator that I hadn’t noticed before. From this angle, with the door standing open after he disappears through it, it appears to be a storage closet of some sort. He returns a few moments later pulling a cloth-lined wagon. “This folds down flat so it will fit easily into the trunk of a car. I assume you have an Uber coming?”
“I haven’t ordered one yet, but that was my plan. Yes.”
“Well, you’re welcome to use this to transport the box. Will you be able to get it into the wagon?”
“I think so. It’s sitting on the coffee table right now, so I’ll probably be able to just scoot it off the edge right into the wagon.” I reach for the handle as he steps closer to my side. “This is perfect, Steve. Thank you.”
With a wide smile and a perfect glimpse of his dimple, he nods his head once before stepping back behind the desk. His attention immediately going back on the monitors.
Pulling the wagon behind me, I step into the apartment and over to the coffee table. Just as I expected, it’s the perfect height to just slide the heavy box off the edge. Pulling my phone from my back pocket, I open the app to order my Uber. Hopefully, the driver won’t mind helping me move the box and wagon to the trunk of the car.
Double checking that I have everything – box of photos, camera bag slung over my shoulder, apartment keys, phone – I step back into the elevator and press the lobby button. Stepping off a few minutes later, I toss a wave over my shoulder to Steve as I step out into the warm afternoon sun to wait for my ride. Thankfully, when they arrive and see me standing there with a wagon and full box of pictures, they don’t hesitate to get out and help me load everything into the back of their car. It does take us a few minutes to figure out how to fold down the wagon though.
Settling into the backseat of the small SUV, I watch the city pass me by through the passenger window. The driver, thankfully, doesn’t talk while we travel through town and I’m able to relax to the soft music playing through the stereo speakers. I know I have no reason to be, but I’m actually nervous about showing up at Landon’s work with these pictures. Will he be upset that I came to his workplace unannounced? Will he be surprised to see me there in the middle of the day? I’d like to think he’d be happy to see me, but it isn’t like he’s given me the address. He’s never offered to take me to the building he works in. He hasn’t offered to show me his office. I’m probably massively overstepping here, and I can’t help but feel a little insecure.
Chewing nervously on my bottom lip, I take several deep breaths to try to settle my nerves. The car begins to slow, and I look out the front window to see we’re approaching our destination. Fisting my hands in my lap, I force myself to remain quiet, so I don’t shout out to keep driving. The decision is already made, I’m not backing out now. I’ll take whatever comes from his reaction to me just showing up here unannounced.
Thankfully, opening the wagon is easier than folding it down. We have the box loaded in only a couple of minutes and I’m walking toward the entrance. Looking up is a little daunting and makes me feel like I’m falling backwards, even though I’m standing upright. Taking a few minutes to just stare at the clouds moving above the building – it has to be at least twenty stories tall – I take a deep breath and lower my gaze to the doors ahead of me.
Removing the camera from the bag slung over my shoulder, I step closer to the building before dropping the handle to the wagon. Looking through the view finder, I raise the camera to point straight up. I move my view until the view shows the entire building at the front, the sky showing straight over head with the few clouds moving along the rooftop and snap a photo. Turning to my right, I angle the building to the left and take another photo. I want to immortalize the feeling of vertigo that I felt momentarily when I first looked up at the clouds. I don’t know if Landon designed this building too, but if he did it will look good in the digital portfolio I’m putting together for him.
The lobby is wide open with marble flooring, four elevators lining one wall to the left, and three unlabeled doors on the wall to the right. The desk in the middle of the floor is lined with monitors with a single security guard sitting behind them. That’s it – no receptionist.
Pulling the wagon behind me, I step closer to the desk and wait for the guard to acknowledge me – which he doesn’t. “Excuse me,” I say after a few minutes of silence.
He finally looks up, but he doesn’t smile. He doesn’t say hello – not that I expected him to. He just looks me over slowly, lifts his brows in question, and waits for me to say something else.
“I’m looking for Strong Designs.”
“Top floor.” He lifts his hand and points to the elevators to the left before turning his attention back to the monitors. I’m honestly shocked. If that’s all it takes to gain access to the building, then why employee a security guard to work at the desk. There’s nothing very secure about the way that anyone is permitted to enter the building. He didn’t even ask me about what I have in the box. It could be a bomb for all he knows.
Maybe I’m just being paranoid.
There’s no reason for me to think that this building isn’t safe. I’ve been safe ever since Landon took me out of Independence.
Stepping into the elevator, I look over the buttons on the inner wall to the right of the doors. The top floor is twenty-five, so I was close in my estimate of the number of floors in this building. Pressing my index finger to the twenty-five button, I watch as it lights up and the doors close with a soft swoosh sound. The ride up to the top floor is quiet, aside from the grinding of the gears overhead as the elevator is lifted along the tracks. I’ve never had an issue with small spaces, but being the only one in the quiet elevator is a little disconcerting. Landon’s apartment building is only twelve stories, and even it has music playing in the elevator.
I watch the display above the doors as the numbers count slowly. It takes several minutes to reach the top floor before the elevator comes to an abrupt halt. The doors slide open with the same swoosh and I step out quickly, not wanting to be alone in the car any longer. Blowing out the breath that I held most of the way up, I step toward the reception desk. I see a nameplate that indicates the receptionist is named Melodee, and watch as the lady sitting behind the desk types on her phone, both thumbs moving quickly across the screen.
Huffing out a breath, she places the phone face down on her desk and looks up at me, her head tilting to the side. “Can I help you?”
“I’m here to see Landon.”
Her brows raise at my request, obviously not used to anyone referring to him by his first name. “Do you have an appointment?” she asks, her tone of voice showing her aggravation at my obvious interruption of her phone time.
“No, I...”
“You need an appointment,” she interrupts me.
“I’m sure it’s okay. If you’ll just let him know that I’m...”
“Not without an appointment,” she interrupts me again. She lowers her gaze and reaches back out for her cell phone, blatantly blowing me off.
Stepping back, I look around the open reception area to see if I can figure out for myself where Landon might be. There’s a wall of windows behind where Melodee sits, separating us from what appears to be a conference room. Inside, a conference table is surrounded by empty chairs, all turned to face the large flat screen television mounted on the far wall. I assume that would be where he gives presentations or pitches for new building projects. There’s a short hallway to the right of the conference room, leaning to my right I see a door at the far end that appears to be a restroom.
To the left of the reception desk is another door that’s closed. It’s the only other door on this floor that I can see and I’m almost certain that it’s Landon’s office. Deciding against being interrupted again, I choose to bypass Melodee all together and walk toward the office door. Of course, she doesn’t appreciate that in the least.
“You can’t go in there. I told you, you need an appointment,” she raises her voice on the last word. Her annoyance shining through at how many times she’s already used that word with me.
“I’m sure it’s okay.” I call over my shoulder, reaching toward the door handle. What I’m not expecting is the hard shove to my shoulder before I can push down on the handle and open the door. Losing my balance, I release the handle on the wagon and hit the floor, ass first, my legs sprawled out in front of me.
“I said, you can’t do that!” Melodee stands over me, crosses her arms beneath her breasts, pushing them well above the low-cut neckline of her shirt, and furrows her brows in frustration. This isn’t a good look on her. “I’m calling security.”
“Sure,” I yell in her direction. “Maybe he’ll actually act like he works here for you. He certainly didn’t when I was downstairs a few minutes ago.”
“What is going on out here?” I hear Landon growl as his office door is ripped open from inside.
I watch, wide-eyed from my seated position on the floor, as he storms out of his office and looks down to see me on the floor. He narrows his eyes momentarily and I worry that I’ve upset him by showing up here after all.