by Queau, Amy
Not only was she still upset about running into Lily, but she also had to spend her evenings alone, as Samuel wouldn’t be returning from New York until Saturday.
*
Tuesday
“All right, boys, listen up! Eat your donuts, drink your coffee. You’ve got eight minutes before we head out. We’re going to start on the third floor today, since starting on the first floor didn’t do crap for our luck yesterday. We’ve got to keep the pace up to make up for the time we’re going to lose having to come back to the first floor today…” Charlie assigned her maintenance guys to team up and then ran to the office to make sure Roxanne had everything she needed for the day.
“Hey, hon. How’d it go yesterday?” Charlie asked.
“It was really quiet, so I was able to get to some filing,” said Roxanne.
“Oh good! Here, I brought you a donut and some coffee. Two sugars, right?”
“Oh, thank you! Oh, we have two appointments today. One this morning, and another at two o’clock. I’m ready to lease this baby up!” Roxanne said.
“Sounds good. I’ve got my phone on me, so call if you need anything.” With a wink, Charlie stuffed half a donut into her mouth and turned to head back to the maintenance gathering. Her cheeks puffed out with chocolatey goodness, she rounded the corner and plowed straight into Roxanne’s morning appointment.
Charlie fell backward and landed hard on the floor. The other half of her donut went flying down the hall and she made a strange grunting noise. “Oww!”
Charlie looked up at the potential leaser and saw him.
Silver-blue eyes staring down at her, he crossed his arms over his chest, revealing a long-forgotten tattoo. A tiny dancer.
“Well, I was hoping I’d run into you, but I didn’t quite imagine it so literally,” Jesse said.
Panic. You’re panicking, Charlie. Lily said a few weeks! It’s only been a couple of days! I need more time! Hide your necklace. Compose yourself! Jesus, I forgot how absolutely gorgeous he is. Shit! Stop staring at him with your mouth open! Talk, Charlie!
“Hi—” Oh god, I think I’m going to puke.
Roxanne rushed to the scene. “Is everything okay out here? Oh, no! What happened? Charlie, are you okay? And why are you all red?” she asked while offering a hand to help Charlie to her feet.
Jesse walked a few feet down the hall and retrieved the other half of Charlie’s donut. “You dropped this. Actually, you sort of threw it.”
“Roxanne, this is…Jesse. He’s,” she paused a little too long, “an old friend of mine,” Charlie said.
Oh, and did I mention, a gorgeous, tattooed, bad-boy with a soft heart that can still manage to make me shiver just by looking at his…
“Oh! Jesse! You must be my nine o’clock! Well, come on in!” Roxanne said enthusiastically.
“Just give us a minute, will you, Roxy?” Jesse said, winking at a flushed Roxanne. She nodded and headed back into the office.
Roxy? Did he just call her Roxy?
“I see you haven’t lost your touch, Jess.” Charlie tried to straighten out the fresh wrinkles in her pants.
Jesse smiled and handed her the donut.
Get your head straight, Charlie. Focus.
Shaking her head, she said, “You can’t live here. You can’t possibly want to live here. I run this place, Jess.”
“Oh, I don’t know… I was speaking to Roxy on the phone yesterday and she pretty much sold me on it,” he shrugged. “Seems everything I need is right here.”
Remember he said that, Charlie. Process his words, later.
“I don’t mean to be rude. Really Jess, I don’t. But I just don’t think that this is the best idea—” Charlie’s walkie chirped and she noticed the time. “Damn it! Look, I’ve gotta go. This conversation is not over; we seriously need to discuss this.”
“I haven’t signed anything yet, Charlene. Roxy is going to show me the place and I’ll think about it. That’s it. Go do your thing, and maybe I’ll see you around,” he said.
Smirking as though he had a sudden idea, he turned back to Charlie, who was still gawking at him. Slowly bringing his hand to Charlie’s mouth, he wiped some chocolate from the corner of her lip and sucked on his finger. “Mmmmm. Delicious,” he whispered, wrinkling his nose with a sly smile, and walked into the office where Roxanne was noticeably eavesdropping.
Charlie scratched her forehead, exaggerated a sigh and walked back to maintenance, groaning and mumbling obscenities the whole way there.
*
The morning buzzed by. Charlie couldn’t decipher if it was the chocolate for breakfast or all the possible things Jesse said to Roxanne that made her stomach throb and her heart feel scrambled. Or maybe it was the other way around. She couldn’t wait for the lunch break to begin so that she could get to the office and see Roxanne.
When Charlie walked in, Roxanne was on the phone. “Yes, Jesse. That sounds just fine. Yes? Oh, I’m sure it’s not going to be a problem. I will let Charlie know, I’m sure she’ll be thrilled! I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know. In the meantime, if you have any other questions, just give us a call. Yep, b-bye!”
“Woohoo! I got a lease!” Roxanne shouted as she hung up the phone.
“No, he didn’t—” Charlie said.
“Yes! Your friend Jesse filled out an application this morning for apartment two-oh-nine!”
Charlie rolled her eyes and sulked as she walked over to sit across from Roxanne at the desk. She buried her face in her hands.
“What’s wrong? I thought you’d be happy,” Roxanne said.
“I’m so happy you got the lease, Roxanne. You did a great job, really. I just don’t know how excited I am to have Jesse living here, that’s all,” Charlie said.
“Oh. I thought you were friends.” Roxanne’s smile turned down.
“Yeah. We were. May I see his application?”
“Did I screw up here?” asked Roxanne.
“No, not at all! I’m very proud of you. We really need to fill this place. I just need to get over it, I guess.” She faked a smile to Roxanne. “Did he leave a phone number?”
“Yes, right here.”
“Did he say anything else? Did you show him the actual apartment?”
“Yes, I showed him two-oh-nine and he loved it! He liked the view and loved that it was getting new carpet. He said he’s moving here from the east coast and wanted a fresh start. He wants to move in before the weekend, too! You know, Charlie…he’s very cute.”
“Yes, Roxy,” she said, emphasizing his pet name for her. “I am fully aware of his good looks.”
Roxanne gave Charlie a half smile and began processing the application.
Summoning her professional voice, Charlie scratched her temple and fidgeted with her necklace. “We had pizza delivered to maintenance, so if you’d like some lunch it’s on me today. Good job again, Roxanne.”
Walking slowly back to the maintenance office, Charlie contemplated her dilemma.
Why does he want to live here? What is he up to? Is he out for revenge? What did he mean by ‘everything I need is right here?’ What if he hits on you? What do you say? Do you just tell him about Samuel and end it right then and there? No. You can’t let this happen. You have to get his phone number from the application and put a stop to this—today. You’ll jeopardize everything if you have with him around distracting you: your relationship, your job and most of all, your sanity.
Why does this shit keep happening to me? Why does JESSE keep happening to me? This is all moving too quickly.
Damn it! Everything was absolutely perfect one week ago. Now everything has gone to shit. I don’t think it could get much worse.
Charlie’s phone rang. “Charlie here.”
“Hi Charlie, it’s Robin! How are you?”
“Oh hey, boss lady! Good! Just about to grab some lunch and then back to maintenance checks.”
“I just spoke with Roxanne, and she told me that she got a lease this morning!” said R
obin.
“Oh, yeah. She’s pretty excited about it. I’m not sure if he’ll qualify though, we’ll see.”
“Well, I certainly hope he does. If he qualifies, you’ll be ninety-nine percent leased, and you know what that means don’t you?” Robin asked.
“No, what does that mean?”
“It lines you up to be a contender for Manager of the Year! Well, as long as you can maintain that occupancy until the award ceremony in a few weeks.”
Oh, so I was wrong. This situation could get worse.
“Oh, that’s fantastic. I certainly hope he qualifies, too.” Charlie’s voice was monotone.
“Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Your first year of management and you win a two thousand dollar bonus? You sure are doing a great job! Keep up the good work. Gotta run, I’ll see you tomorrow morning at the managers’ meeting.”
“Thanks again, Robin. Bye.”
Charlie glared at her phone and had to stop herself from throwing it across the room. Shit, shit, shit!
Chapter Five
Thursday
Charlie had no choice but to approve his application. There was no way she could justify denying him. No felonies, no evictions, even his credit was good.
By Thursday, Jesse had signed his lease and Roxanne had given him his keys. He was now Charlie’s resident.
Charlie had been a mess. Her once happy and seamless routine was now chaotic and unorganized.
No, no, no. This isn’t happening! I need to talk to Sam. I need to stay calm. I just need to hear his voice.
“Knock, knock.” Jesse said, peeking into her office.
Not the voice I wanted to hear.
“Hey, stranger. Come on in. What’s up?” Charlie said, trying to act as casual as she could.
“I have a few maintenance issues,” he said.
Turning to her computer, Charlie pulled up a work order. “What’s going on?”
“Well, the dishwasher doesn’t seem to be working correctly. It could be user error, though.” He smirked. “Oh, and the water pressure is really low in the shower. I’m not sure if you can do anything about that.”
“It might be your showerhead. I can have the guys check it out. What is going on with the dishwasher?” she asked.
“I turn the knob and nothing happens.” He shrugged.
“Hmm, well I was just about to check out a vacant near your apartment. I could take a look at your dishwasher right now. We can find out if it’s user error or not.”
“Great,” he said as they both walked out of the office.
“So, your application says that you’re working at a golf course. Do you still play?” Charlie asked as they walked slowly down the hall.
“I don’t start until next week, but yeah, I’ve been playing more this past year. Well, when I wasn’t working. It was different in New Hampshire, not like it was back here,” he said.
“How so?”
“Oh, I don’t know. It was quiet there. From a work standpoint it was difficult to stay busy, so I was always trying to find new ways to drum up business. We were located around a few tourist seafood restaurants on the coast and there wasn’t much of a call for pizza and burgers. People didn’t spend thousands on their vacations just to go to a restaurant that they could go to at home. So, the majority of our business was for the five thousand locals in town. Business really picks up in the winter all around, only because there are fewer fishermen on the water and more in the bars. The only thing I really did with my time off was sleep or golf.”
After a brief silence, Charlie tried to think of an innocent question. “What’s the ocean like?”
His eyes darted around the hall and his steps slowed. “It depends on the day. Some days there’s more sun than others. Sometimes there’s more algae in the water. I’ve seen it every color. It depends on the wind and weather on other coasts, too. It can be calm or violent. It can be cold or warm. The only thing consistent about it is its size. Sometimes I wished it would swallow me,” he said.
Charlie’s head snapped up. “You wished? You wished it would swallow you?”
“No, that’s not what I said. I said I thought it would swallow me.”
Did he? Why am I asking him about the ocean? This small talk is killing me. I have so many questions, I have so many things I want to say. I don’t even know where to begin. Why are you here? Did you miss me? Did you have a girlfriend out there? Do you still ride your bike? Are you still playing the drums and writing music? Gah!
“I’ve thought about you,” she said quietly. “Often.”
“Oh yeah? Been lonely, huh?” he said, his face hardening.
Shaking her head and letting out a giggle, she said, “No, not lonely. I actually have a fiancé, but I wondered about you from time to time—how you’ve been, if you still ride, whether or not you’ve played any chess recently. You know, you creep into my head once in a while.” She watched his face at her mentioning of ‘fiancé,’ and nothing about the word evoked a physical response from him.
Ask him, Charlie. They continued at a slow pace through the hallway.
“So, did you have a girlfriend out there?” She swallowed.
Without a word, Jesse pushed her up against the wall, with his hip to hers and his forearm over her clavicle. His strength was overwhelming as he had her tightly pinned against the laundry room door. She lost her breath and looked down each side of the hall for any witnesses before making eye contact with him. Charlie could feel his warm breath on her cheek as he leaned in to whisper in her ear.
“No, Charlene. You know I don’t do the girlfriend thing.”
Oh, you thought you’d be so strong if this happened. And look at you. Completely smitten with him…again! It’s been less than a week since he returned, and you’re as weak and debilitated as the day you met him. You’re so pathetic.
“Then what thing do you do?” she whispered.
“My apartment is right there, I could show you,” he said, thrusting himself roughly against her thigh. “Have you missed me?”
“Hey, Charlie, there you are… I…was looking for you,” Roxanne said as she came around the corner, convinced she had interrupted something inappropriate.
Charlie gently pushed Jesse away from her, but he instinctively pushed her back. Her eyes opened wide, pleading with him. After realizing the severity of the situation, he retreated and stepped away from her.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but Robin keeps calling about one-oh-seven. You forgot your walkie in the office, and your phone keeps going straight to voicemail. Robin said you’d know what it was about—,” Roxanne began.
“Yes, I know. I was just going to do a quick walk-through on this one and then I’m going back to the office. Thanks for the message.” Charlie turned toward Jesse. “And I will see you another time. I’ll make sure the guys take a look at your dishwasher.” With a smile, Charlie turned and walked toward the vacant apartment and waited to breathe until she was safely inside, alone.
*
Looking through the peephole, she made sure that both Jesse and Roxanne had left the hallway. After locking the vacant behind her, she walked quickly back to the office.
She couldn’t focus. She was forgetting work orders, spacing out on applications, and not following up with prospects. Jesse was proving to be more of a distraction than she had anticipated.
“Hey Roxanne, can I ask a huge favor?”
“Of course, what’s going on?”
“I need to take a long lunch today. I’ll be back by four or so. Can you stay here in the office?”
“No problem, Charlie. But make sure you call Robin before you go.”
“Oh god. Yes, one-oh-seven. Thank you. I completely forgot already.”
*
Making a pit stop at her apartment to grab her old journal and a Nutri-Grain bar, Charlie headed for the park—their park—chain smoking the whole ride there.
Stepping out of the car, she felt a calming. This was her park. A place that once meant so
much to her; spending days and nights listening to the crickets and frogs, watching the pussy willows sway in the breeze and looking for minnows in the pond. It was almost seventy degrees that day, all the snow had melted, and everything was a drab brown in comparison to what she was used to there. Knowing the ground would be soft and wet, she grabbed a blanket from the backseat.
She found her seat, lit a cigarette and started thumbing through her journal. Time had certainly done its work in changing her, but it had also successfully stolen half of the memories she had.
As soon as she hit the first entry, her memory sparked a flashback.
“Why haven’t you had sex yet? Waiting for a knight in shining armor?” he asked.
“Knight? Are you kidding me? I’m not waiting for anyone! In fact, if there was a way I could just get rid of it, I would. I’m kind of embarrassed about it.”
“Normally, I would agree with you. But, for some reason it suits you.” He smiled.
Charlie laughed a little. She looked toward the parking lot and another flash crept up.
“You must really like frogs…” he said, raising one eyebrow.
“I suppose. But, it was more of the principle.”
“So, are you Little-Miss-Do-Gooder…”
Charlie shook her head and continued reading. She got to the pages that she had filled about her trip to Karalee’s cabin. Vividly, she recalled his words on the beach.
“I have one more confession to make.” He looked down at the sand and picked up a small shell.
“I’m listening.” She waited.
He threw the shell back in the lake and smiled, not meeting her eyes.
“I saw you last night. Coming out of the water, picking up your clothes and walking to the fire.”
“Hey.”
Hurtled back to the real world, she was startled by the word. She turned and put her hand up, shielding her eyes from the afternoon sun.
Jess.
“What…what are you doing here?”
Smiling, and at a loss for words, he shrugged. “Probably the same thing you’re doing here.” He looked just as surprised to see her.