The Flat on the 7th Floor

by E. L Barry

  “Fancy meeting you here.”

  She turned and looked up.

  Wow, he’s good looking, she thought instantly as a tingle raced across her arms and down her spine.

  Confusion and curiosity split her mind in two and stunned her into silence for a second. His chestnut hair stood on end. He had chiselled cheekbones and eyes so blue that she felt she could get lost in them. He smiled broadly at her, waiting for her to reply.

  “Hi,” she almost whispered as she felt her cheeks flush.

  She couldn’t place where she had seen him before and was pretty sure she would have remembered a body like his. The way she was feeling was unexpected. She felt winded and hadn’t yet composed herself enough to say anything more than ‘Hi,’ – how embarrassing!

  He looked amused and paused longer than Josie would have liked. He looked like he took pleasure in her confusion and obvious discomfort. Breaking the silence, she enquired, “Remind me, where have we met before?”

  He laughed and pulled up a bar stool next to hers. Kim had stopped talking to hear what was going on.

  “Now this will be fun. It’s like getting a text from someone and you don’t have their number.”

  Josie replied, “Except those are usually from exes and I’m pretty sure we’ve never dated!”

  The guy gave her a cheeky grin. “Still time for that yet!”

  Kim couldn’t help giggling, to which the guy then looked past Josie and spoke to Kim, “We haven’t been introduced. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Nicholas, and you are?”

  “I’m Kim,” as she reached out her hand to shake his. As he reached over in response, Josie couldn’t help noticing his hands were tanned, but with no ring or tan line.

  Single? I hope so.

  The watch he was wearing looked weighty and she imagined it was a designer one and cost a small fortune. Josie could smell his aftershave too.

  Oh no, Josie thought, I’m completely done for now.

  While Kim chatted away to Nicholas, Josie was getting frustrated trying her best to figure out how she could have forgotten meeting him and how to find out where they did without embarrassing herself further.

  She could tell by his suit and watch that he was well off. The way he carried himself made him look like he could command attention in any room he walked into. He wasn’t a client or a friend of anyone she knew. She was sure he hadn’t been at the gym.

  So where did we meet? And how did he know who I am but not the other way round? Hopefully, he’s not a stalker. Josie hoped she wasn’t unwittingly setting herself and Kim up on a dangerous night with a stranger. Just in case, she wasn’t going to let either of them be alone with him.

  At the next gap in the conversation Josie joined in with, “So, are you going to put me out of my misery and tell me where we’ve met then?”

  She shuffled on her stool slightly and adjusted her dress around her knees nervously.

  Nicholas paused dramatically, “Well…how about I give you a clue?”

  Josie rolled her eyes and Kim giggled again. Clearly the two of them were getting on well.

  “Sure, why not. It can’t get any worse,” she replied.

  He smiled warmly, put his hand on her elbow, leaned in and whispered, “I like you by the way.”

  Josie was caught off guard and struggled not to gasp as she felt his warm breath behind her ear.

  He really does smell good, she mused. She looked into his eyes and she kept her gaze fixed on him.

  “Thank…thank you,” she stuttered.

  Kim chimed in, “So, let me try and work it out.”

  Josie laughed out loud at Kim’s suggestion. Nicholas may have known them for only ten minutes, but Josie knew Kim well and was aware she was vying for Nicholas’s attention. Three was a crowd and it was bound to be a bit awkward until one of them left.

  I’ll find out how this guy thinks he knows me and then I’ll get Kim and I out of here. For all I know, it’s just a pickup line to talk to women at a bar.

  As if Nicholas could read Josie’s thoughts, he looked over at the window and nodded. Josie looked over too and could see a silhouette of what looked like another man.

  Nicholas stood up, buttoned his jacket and smiled broadly.

  “Sorry ladies, I must wish you goodnight. Duty calls.”

  Kim, still nursing her cocktail waved and responded, “Hope to see you around,” then continued sipping.

  Josie stood up instinctively to say goodbye and couldn’t help but notice that he was just the right height for her head to nestle against his shoulder.

  Stop it, she scolded herself, concentrate!

  Nicholas glanced down at her and smiled again. “See you Josie…from the lift this morning.”

  He watched Josie absorb what she had just heard, and she felt mortified.

  “What?” she exclaimed, “You saw me this morning?”

  He laughed and replied, “Yes, you look lovely any time of day.”

  Josie put her hand over her mouth embarrassed. “Thank you,” she murmured.

  “You’re welcome, I hope to see you again, Josie,” he said before he left.

  Josie watched him leave and for the second time Kim broke her trance by asking, “What time is it Josie, do we have time for another drink?”

  Sitting back down, Josie ordered another round of drinks. Her mind raced to rewind to the morning and piece together where Nicholas could have seen her. He was the one with the shoes in the lift – she had no doubt. Even though she hadn’t seen his face in the lift, she could sense it must have been him.

  “So, you kept quiet about Nicholas,” Kim started the conversation.

  “I haven’t met him. He must have seen me when I was running late this morning.”

  “Well, if you’re not going to see him again, can I? Did you see his watch? He must be loaded.”

  Josie laughed. Typical Kim keeping her options open. Josie wasn’t quite ready to admit to Kim that she found Nicholas attractive. Kim was now flirting with the bartender leaving Josie to ponder again.

  Where was he coming from to be in the lift? Where was he going when he left the building?

  As the music played in the background, all she could think about was the electricity that ran down her spine each time he made eye contact her, and his touch that lingered on her elbow. She wondered if she would see him again.

  Chapter 3

  Payday couldn’t come soon enough for Josie as she had spent too much money on clothes the last few months. She stood in the queue at Simply Sweet a couple of days later. Her debit card was always her first choice for paying for things, but as the end of the month approached, she was often tempted to use her credit card. Her father had been insistent that it was always best to pay cash and have an emergency fund.

  He’d told her, “Cash is cheaper than credit cards and even the person who invented the credit card doesn’t use one. What does that tell you?”

  She considered what he had told her and vowed to set up an emergency fund one day. But in the meantime, she had got a credit card like all her university friends. She would have been hard pressed to convince anyone that her morning coffee counted as an emergency, no matter how strong her caffeine addiction was.

  Just thinking of her father filled her with sadness. She hadn’t spoken to him for a couple of years now.

  Since her mum passed away five years ago, he’d become a recluse. Josie thought it was the shock, but he had started to become paranoid and completely obsessed that everyone was trying to get hold of his money. It had become so bad that he had made all his decisions through his solicitor Mr Mellors.

  Josie had followed the traditional route of education through to university level. Her business and economics degree was helpful, but there was a part of Josie that lacked confidence, especially as her father always insisted that she follow the same path he did. He told her repeatedly, “Go to university, get a job, buy property, never get into debt – except for the property, and make sure you pay in
to a pension.”

  She’d achieved most of this, except the property and debt part. Her father couldn’t change the fact that she was allowed to live in a flat that her mum had owned. It was clear in her mother’s will that she had wanted her daughter to always have a place to call home.

  Being fortunate enough not to have to pay rent, Josie never learnt how to handle the flow of money.

  She had no savings and her attitude of ‘I’ll get round to it one day’ had gone on longer than it should have. A lot longer in fact. Josie had everything she wanted but not what she needed.

  I’ll start again on Monday, she thought as she tapped her card against the reader.

  Josie moved towards the end of the bar to collect the drinks she had ordered. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed a man who had taken a seat at the back of the café. She felt him watching her. It was the same man, Michael, who had come into the office earlier in the week. Avoiding him, she picked up her drinks and went outside towards the office. She looked forward to the rest of the day as there was a new property on the market and she was going to assess the state of it.

  Josie walked into the office and saw that Kim was already there.

  “Morning, how are you today?” Josie enquired in a sing-song voice as she put Kim’s coffee down in front of her and took her own towards her desk.

  Kim ignored the question completely. “Why are you in such a good mood?”

  In an exaggerated voice Josie replied, “Fine, thank you, Josie, and how are you too?”

  Josie laughed as Kim joined in.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” continued Josie as she slouched on the chair and started to swing it from side to side.

  “Not still thinking about Nicholas are you?” Kim asked mischievously.

  Just as Josie was about to reply, Gareth walked through from the kitchen into the office.

  “Morning Josie. And who is Nicholas?”

  Josie looked round and saw that Gareth was there in his white t-shirt and black trade trousers, ready for the day’s work.

  “Hi Gareth. He’s just a guy who bumped into us at The Tote a couple of nights ago,” she said dismissively.

  “Ah,” he said, “I hope he looked after you both?”

  “Yeah, thanks. Nothing to worry about,” Josie said, and then tried to change the subject swiftly. There was nothing more cringeworthy than talking to a guy about another guy, especially when at work. She respected Gareth and kept personal things personal.

  Kim didn’t care and continued gossiping, “He saw Josie in the morning and then came to find her in the evening. He must fancy her!”

  Josie desperately willed Kim to be quiet, but to no avail. Josie noticed a fleeting intrigued expression on Gareth’s face, but she couldn’t tell for sure.

  Josie stood up and encouraged them, “Come on, let’s get to work!? I’m off to the see 45 Riverside this afternoon and I’m determined to get the paperwork done this morning before I go.”

  Kim began to describe her day, which was the same as any other, “On the phone, sorting the contracts, updating the website…”

  Gareth moved towards his toolbox by the front door and bent down to pick it up. Josie was momentarily distracted by his arm muscles as he lifted it. Josie stopped herself looking and carried on listening to Kim.

  “…book Michael’s house visit…”

  “Wait, what was that last one, Kim?” Josie interrupted suddenly.

  “Oh, before you came in this morning Michael called to say he wanted to visit Whitefield on Saturday morning. He asked for you specifically.”

  Josie felt unsettled. She knew it was her job to show clients around properties, but Michael made her uneasy for some reason that she didn’t understand. The thought being in a property alone with him made her feel nervous. For a moment, she almost asked Gareth if he would come with her and take a look at something or other to make it look like he was there on a job.

  Don’t be silly, she thought, as she straightened up to give herself some confidence.

  “Okay, pop it in my diary and I’ll work around it,” Josie replied and then took a pile of contracts from the drawer to start the day.

  Gareth waved from the door, “Cheerio. See you later, Josie.”

  “See you,” Josie replied, without looking up from the piece of paper she had picked up.

  The morning passed quickly, and Josie decided to nip out at twelve thirty to grab lunch from Simply Sweet before her meeting. The café was starting to get busy, so she joined the queue with three people in front of her.

  Not a problem, she thought trying to convince herself that all of them would be ordering something quick and easy. Not like the Post Office queue that felt like every customer took half an hour and all chose to go in at lunchtime. As her train of thought wandered off to her feelings about queues in general, she suddenly jumped when an elbow bumped her from the side.

  Apologising instinctively, even though it could hardly have been her fault for standing still, she looked up to see who had bashed into her. Her irritation faded away in an instant as soon as she saw Nicholas.

  She felt the familiar rush of feelings wash over her as their eyes met. She thought his eyes were brighter than before as he smiled at her.

  “Josie, what an unexpected pleasure!”

  He was carrying two drinks and a bag, which he placed on the empty table next to her as he continued, “I’ve got to dash in a minute but if you’re free…” he said, looking along at the queue ahead of them.

  Josie chuckled, “Might as well stay and talk to you since there’s nothing else to do.”

  “Oi!” he retorted and playfully elbowed her.

  Josie smiled and elbowed him back. Anyone would think they were on the school playground!

  “So…” Josie started, “…we must stop meeting like this. It’s been three times in a week. Anyone would think you were stalking me!”

  Nicholas stepped back, moved his hands wide and shrugged, “Maybe I am!”

  “You’re the best-looking stalker I’ve had so far.”

  “Oh really? How many have you had?”

  “Not many, don’t worry.”

  “Have any of them invited you out for dinner at Jacques?”

  “Sorry?” she replied, caught off guard.

  “I’ll take that as ‘no’ then. Well, let me be the first.”

  She couldn’t hide her expression as her eyebrows raised in surprise. He’s inviting me out to Jacques? Nobody ever gets a table there unless they are someone who can pull some strings or know someone important.

  “I’d love to!”

  “Great, I’ll pick you up on Saturday at eight.”

  Within a second or two, he’d retrieved his drinks from the table and left, just as Josie was called forward to have her order taken.

  During the short walk to the underground car park, she replayed the scene in her mind.

  She thought how much better Nicholas looked in daylight than in the dimly lit bar.

  She felt a flutter of butterflies in her stomach linger at the thought of him, and she knew it would distract her for the rest of the day.

  As Josie arrived at her car, she noticed a scratch near the passenger side lock as she approached.

  Oh no, that’s the last thing I need. Are kids messing around down here? she wondered.

  She looked around for a CCTV camera that may have caught them.

  Nope, just my luck!

  Her car was brand new and driving with the roof down was one of her favourite things to do. The pearl white paint finish was annoying to clean but there was a monthly car wash option included with her parking fee. She could always book in an extra clean after a long drive too. Although the car cost her a small fortune and the payments were her biggest monthly expense, she thought it was worth it. She loved how people looked at her when she drove it. It made her feel like she was successful.

  She wondered if the parking attendant had noticed anything, but she didn’t have time to ask, as sh
e needed to go to her meeting on the outskirts of the city.

  I’ll sort that out later.

  At the house, Gareth was already stuck into finding all the potential repairs that would need to be done before anyone could move in. Josie’s job was to follow him round taking notes and photographs.

  The agency had just splashed out on buying Josie a new work tablet. It came with a touch pen that she was able to handwrite with, and the software turned it into text and sent it straight into the agency’s admin system.

  It saved lots of time and allowed Josie to work from any location.

  Gareth and Josie worked side-by-side, as they went through the house room by room. They worked well together, meticulously taking care to cover all the usual problem spots, as well as thinking about the potential of the property.

  Josie loved the magic of turning a poorly kept property into a palace by imagining where furniture and appliances might be placed. Gareth seemed to be content with doing one job at a time and that suited them both.

  They talked about work until they’d completed their tasks, and then Gareth asked, “Are you doing anything this Saturday night? I’m having a few people over to celebrate my birthday if you’d like to join us.”

  “Oh, happy birthday,” Josie said breezily, as she continued, “Sorry, I’m out Saturday night at Jacques.”

  The moment the words left her mouth, she instantly regretted telling him. Everyone knew that Jacques was a special date venue.

  Gareth looked back to what he was doing and sounded disappointed, “I hope you have a good time. I’ve heard the food is great.”

  “Thanks.”

  There was an awkward silence until Gareth finished what he was doing and stood up. “All done!”

  “Me too. Thank you for your help today,” Josie said warmly, returning to their familiar topic of conversation.

  They left the house, locked up and parted at the gates.

  “Take care, Josie,” Gareth said and then waved as he drove away in his van.