by Sandi Lynn
“I do love this space,” Mrs. Mathers said. “And the master bedroom is huge.”
“Oh, and don’t forget the private elevator,” I said. “The other apartment didn’t have that. Plus, all the bedrooms are tucked away down the hall at the other end of the apartment for complete privacy.”
“When will it be ready for move in?” Mr. Mathers asked.
“Thirty days,” Grant spoke.
“I’m not thrilled with the view,” Mr. Mathers said. “I like the views of the other apartment better.”
“Well, you’re not getting that apartment unless you accept it for $5.2 million. This apartment has a great view and exceptional lighting during the day. It truly is a gem. But…Mr. Mathers, I know you’re a view kind of guy and I must show you the view from one of the other apartments. I’d hate for you to miss out on seeing it.”
“In this building?” Mr. Mathers asked.
“Yes.” I smiled as I looked at Grant and mouthed ‘Penthouse A.’
He stared at me for a moment and slowly shook his head.
“Why are you wasting both our time?” he whispered.
“You’re the one who wanted to come. Now let me do my job.”
We took the private elevator up to Penthouse A. The moment we stepped into the grand foyer, I took note of the look on Mrs. Mathers’s face.
“If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you that amazing view I was talking about.”
I led them through to the living room and over to the panoramic view of the Hudson River, visible through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
“Wow.” The corners of his mouth curved upward as he tucked his hands in his pants pockets.
“Right? It’s so special. I just wanted you to see it. I have a place in Tribeca with a view of the Hudson and I can’t even tell you how much peace it brings me every time I look out my window.”
“What’s the square footage of this place?” Mrs. Mathers asked.
“Four thousand one hundred and sixty square feet. It’s gorgeous. Isn’t it?”
“I’m obsessed with this kitchen.”
“Anyway, I just wanted to show you the amazing view from up here. We can go back down to the other apartment if you want to take one more look at it,” I spoke as I headed towards the elevator.”
“Wait. I want to see the rest of this apartment,” Mrs. Mathers said.
I stopped and looked at her.
“Oh. I apologize. Go ahead and have a look.” The corners of my mouth curved upward. “The view from the primary bedroom is just as spectacular. Imagine lying in bed at night after a long and busy day with that view staring back at you. Ugh. Such peace and tranquility.”
Grant looked at me and rolled his eyes.
Pulling out my phone, I sent a text message to Samuel.
“Call me.”
A moment later, my phone rang.
“Bella Marcus. Hi Samuel—” I paused. “That’s great. I’m showing the penthouse right now to another client. What time does your client want to come see it tomorrow? Excellent. I’ll see you at nine a.m.,” I spoke in front of the Mathers. I ended the call and placed my phone back inside my purse. “This penthouse is already getting a lot of attention.” I grinned.
“How much?” Mr. Mathers asked.
“For what?” I played dumb.
“This penthouse.”
“This penthouse is listed for $11.5 million. Did you want to go back down to the other apartment and take another look before we head out?”
“No. We’ve seen enough.”
The five of us stepped into the elevator and went down to the lobby.
“Thank you for showing us the apartments. We’ll talk it over and have Ricky get in touch with you,” Mr. Mathers said as he shook my hand.
“You’re welcome. Enjoy the rest of your day.”
“I see what you did there.” Grant’s lips gave way to a smirk.
“What did I do?”
“You planted the seed and created an urgency. Who called you?”
“Samuel.” I grinned.
“Well played. But I still think showing them the penthouse was a waste of time.
“Maybe. Maybe not,” I said as Grant locked up the building and we climbed in the back of the car.
An hour later as I was sitting at my desk going over some things with Cody, my phone rang. I answered it and put it on speaker.
“Hey, Ricky.”
“Bella, my clients would like to present an offer.”
“That was fast. So, they fell in love with apartment 10A? I knew they would.”
“Um. No. They want to purchase the penthouse for $11.5 million. Cash deal and occupancy in thirty days.”
“Shut up, Ricky! Wow. I’m in a little bit of shock right now,” I said as I stood from my chair and did a little dance of excitement. I looked over at Grant who sat there with a shocked expression splayed across his face.
“You and me both. But somehow, I think you knew they’d want it, and that’s why you took them up there. Anyway, send the paperwork over ASAP so we can close this deal.”
“I will. Thanks, Ricky.”
“No. Thank you, Bella. You’re going to be hearing a lot more from me.”
“Hey, before we hang up, how did they go from a budget of five million to eleven million?”
“They were going to also buy a condo in Miami and decided to forgo that and put the money towards the penthouse instead.”
“That’s great, Ricky. I’ll be in touch.”
“Unbelievable.” Grant grinned. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” I smiled as I took a bow.
Chapter 22
Grant
I couldn’t believe she pulled it off.
“Excuse me, Grant?” Tina spoke as she poked her head inside my office. “Your dad wants to see you.”
“Thanks, Tina.”
I got up from my desk and before heading up to see my dad, I turned and looked at Bella.
“Let’s celebrate tonight. Dinner at my place. I’m cooking.”
“You don’t cook.” She smirked.
“Sure, I do.” I gave her a wink.
I walked into my dad’s office, and he was on the phone. Standing in front of the window, I tucked my hands in my pants pockets and stared out at the busy city while he finished his call.
“Thanks for coming up, son,” my father spoke as he set his phone on his desk.
“What’s up, Dad?” I took the seat across from his desk.
“Ross Engelman called me. He wants us to list his townhome on the Upper West Side. Here’s his number. I told him you’d be calling him.”
I took the piece of paper from my dad and placed it in my pocket.
“How was your date with Cassandra?” I asked with a smirk.
“It was nice.” The corners of his mouth curved upward.
I steadily narrowed my eye at him because my dad never used the word “nice.”
“Just ‘nice?’” I arched my brow.
“Fine. We had an amazing night. She’s a great woman and I’m taking her out again tomorrow night.”
“Wow. Okay. Two dates.” I smiled.
“Don’t make a big deal about it.” He pointed at me. “How did things go when you showed Bella the West 21 building?”
I let out a chuckle. “Things went fine. She just sold Penthouse A.”
His brows furrowed for a moment as he placed his hands on his desk.
“What?”
“She managed to get a client who offered a million dollars less on a $5.3 million dollar property to buy an $11.5 million dollar penthouse.”
“I’ll be damned.” He shook his head. “How did she do that?”
“Dad, honestly, I don’t really know. I was there with her and the clients, and I still can’t explain it. She has this way with people. It’s crazy.”
“She is quickly becoming this company’s most valuable asset. I’m putting you on warning.”
“About what?”
&nbs
p; “You don’t do anything to make her leave.” He pointed his finger at me. “In fact, you do everything in your power to make her happy so she’ll stay on here. Give her anything she wants. Do you understand me, son?”
“You don’t have to worry. I think she lives to show me up.”
I went back down to my office, and when I stepped inside, I saw a man standing by the window looking out at the city.
“Hey, man. Is there something I can help you with?”
“Hey. I’m looking for Bella Marcus.”
“She was just here a little bit ago. Let me go ask her assistant where she is.”
I walked out of the office and over to where Cody stood talking to Tom.
“Do you know who that guy is?” I asked. “Is he an agent or something?”
“I don’t know. He’s here to see Bella. She just ran to the bathroom,” Cody said.
“Okay.”
I went back into the office and took the seat behind my desk.
“She just ran to the bathroom,” I spoke. “She’ll be back in a minute.”
“Ah. Okay.”
He was a good-looking guy. Six three, short brown hair, dark eyes, mid-thirties.
“Are you an agent?” I asked with a suspicious feeling in my gut.
“Ah, no. I’m a doctor.”
I glanced over at the door and saw Bella standing there with a shocked expression across her face.
Bella
“Ian? What the hell are you doing here?”
I was mortified when I looked over at Grant.
“You really gave me no choice since you refused to answer my phone calls and text messages. Is this Grant?” He pointed to him.
“Ian. Not here.”
“Why not? You don’t want him or anyone to know that you broke up with me via text message while you were in Hawaii without any explanation at all?”
The sick feeling which I thought was gone returned as my body began to sweat and my heart raced as I closed the office door.
“Ian—”
“No explanation, Bella. All you said was ‘It’s over between us, and I’m not coming back to California. I’m sorry.’ Who the hell does that? I thought things with us were good. We were together for over a year. I think I deserve better than that.”
“Let’s go talk somewhere in private,” I spoke with a shaky voice.
“I’ll leave, and let you two talk,” Grant said as he began to get up from his seat.
“Nah, man. Don’t bother. I’m not staying. I just flew out here because I needed to put closure on our relationship before I leave.” Ian stared at me with a mix of hurt and anger in his eyes.
“Leave?” My brows furrowed.
“I’ve joined Doctors Without Borders, and I’m leaving for Haiti tomorrow. I’ll be there six months and then I’m going to Africa for two years.”
“So, you decided to do it.”
“Why wouldn’t I? You knew it was my dream, and now there’s nothing or no one keeping me here.”
“Is Marley going?”
He pursed his lips as he looked down for a moment.
“Yeah. She’s going.”
“Of course, she is.” I shook my head.
“Regardless of what you think, Bella, there isn’t and never was anything going on between us. I think that was something you wanted so desperately to believe in that fucked up little head of yours.”
“Hey. That’s enough,” Grant snapped.
“It’s okay.” I put my hand up. “He’s right. Can you give us a moment, Grant?”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. I’m sure.”
Grant stood up from his chair and walked out of the office, closing the door behind him. Walking over to Ian, I stood in front of him and took hold of his hand which he quickly jerked away.
“I’m sorry, Ian. I truly am. You’re an amazing man, and you didn’t deserve what I did to you. In fact, you don’t deserve someone like me in your life.”
“That is not true,” he spoke.
“This is what I do, Ian.”
“You know why?” he asked. “Because of him. You’re still in love with him, Bella. Whether you admit it or not. You can go from relationship to relationship, and you’ll never be happy until you figure yourself out or put him behind you. I can’t compete with him. In fact, no man can. I tried, but I always knew in the back of my mind things were going to end up this way.”
“I’m so sorry.” A tear fell down my cheek.
He wiped my tears and softly pressed his lips against my forehead.
“Goodbye, Bella Marcus. I really hope one day you find the happiness you deserve.”
He walked away and headed towards the door.
“Ian?”
“Yeah?”
“Have a safe trip and please be careful.”
The corners of his mouth slightly curved upward.
“I will. And for the record, Grant was a fool to ever let you go. Even if you were only sixteen years old.”
He walked out of the office, and I took in a deep breath.
“Are you okay?” Grant asked as he stepped back inside.
“Yeah.” I wiped my eyes. “I’m fine.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No.” I shook my head. “I have to get back to work.”
“Sure. Okay. I have a meeting with a client soon, so I’m going to head out. I’ll understand if you don’t want to do dinner tonight.”
“No. Dinner is still on. Just text me your address and I’ll come over around seven o’clock.”
“Okay.” His lips gave way to a small smile.
After Grant left, Cody walked in and hooked his arm around me.
“Are you okay, boo?”
“I’m fine. Ex-boyfriend drama is the worst,” I said.
“The total worst.” His arm tightened around me. “And I’ve had my fair share over the years. But now that you’ve got that settled, you can focus on your relationship with a hot and sexy Grant Roman.”
“There’s nothing between us.” I shot him a look.
“Boo, I see the way you two look at each other. Even if you don’t mean to look at him that way, you do.”
“Grant and I are complicated.” I sighed.
“I can tell.” He smiled. “We’ll have lunch soon and you can tell me all about it.”
“Enough talk about us. We have work to do for the West 21 open house.”
Chapter 23
Myles
Before heading out of the office for an appointment, I stopped by Grant’s office to speak with Bella. When I arrived, I saw her sitting at her desk with her assistant. Before stepping inside, I lightly tapped on the door frame.
“Hey, Myles. If you’re looking for Grant—”
“I’m not here for Grant. I just came to congratulate you on your first sale at the West 21 building.” I smiled.
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
“If you can sell the penthouse, then the rest of the apartments should be a piece of cake.”
“I’m not worried.” She grinned.
“I know you aren’t. I need to get to an appointment. I’ll talk to you later.”
As I sat in the back of the car, stuck in traffic and on my way to an appointment, I couldn’t stop thinking about Cassandra, and I certainly couldn’t stop thinking about our time together. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I sent her a text message.
“Hello, beautiful. How is your day going?”
“Hi, handsome. My day is good. Did you enjoy the cranberry muffin I sent with you this morning?”
“I did, among other things.”
“You’re bad, Mr. Roman. Call me later? The bakery is pretty busy.”
“Of course. Talk to you later.”
I smiled as I placed my phone back in my pocket. When I first met Cassandra, all she was to me was a pretty face, but after our conversations, I found she was smart, and she knew exactly what she wanted in life. I liked her enough to want to take he
r out again, which was rare for me. I normally saw a woman once, slept with them on the first date and then never called them again. But Cassandra stimulated me in more ways than one. Maybe I was just bored with the younger, flaky women I normally took out. They only thing those women saw were dollar signs when they looked at me. It had been a long time since I’d met an intelligent woman that I was attracted to and that could hold an adult conversation. The one thing that bothered me was the fact she admitted she wanted a relationship with someone. I wasn’t looking, nor did I want such a thing. I was treading on dangerous waters, and I needed to be very careful where Cassandra Peters was concerned.
Grant
Wow. Bella had done to Ian what I’d pretty much done to her. And yet she had the audacity to treat me the way she did because of it. The only difference was she sent him a breakup text. But nonetheless, it wasn’t any different as far as I was concerned. Maybe she had her reasons for doing it the way she did. I had my reasons, but we’d only been together five days, not over a year. I wanted to know why she did it, and I was sure as hell going to find out tonight. I already knew she wasn’t the sweet, shy and innocent girl I’d met all those years ago, but fuck, that was not right the way she handled it.
I arrived home around six forty-five. After quickly changing my clothes, I started the grill on the terrace and prepped the steaks. I’d bought a pre-made salad which I’d thrown in a large salad bowl and threw the already baked potatoes in the oven on warm.
I heard the ding of the elevator, and when I looked at the clock, she was right on time.
“I’m in the kitchen,” I shouted. “Straight ahead and to the left.”
“Nice place.” She set a white box down on the island.
“Thanks. You didn’t have to bring anything.”
“I wanted to. I stopped at Cassandra’s bakery and picked up a delicious looking apple pie. I figured since fall was almost upon us, it would be appropriate.”
“Apple pie is my favorite. Thank you.” The corners of my mouth curved upward. “I need to get these steaks on the grill. I have a bottle of wine on the counter if you’d like some.”
“Thanks. Can I pour you a glass?”
“Yeah. That would be great.”