Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
London
Damien Prescott looked incredibly sexy in his black designer suit, white dress shirt, and black and purple tie.
I only agreed to go to his business dinner because something about him drew me in.
Maybe it was his rudeness or his mean nature.
But I believed that, deep down, there was a good man inside him.
He was a man who was addicted to his work and didn’t appreciate the life that was around him.
He was conceited, arrogant, and just an overall dick, but something told me that it was all a facade.
All he needed was some time away from his demanding work schedule to see what life was about and what mattered most. I had a small thought that maybe while I was in New York, I could help him.
“So, London. I don’t see a ring on that pretty little finger.” Mr. Bradbury smiled. “What are you waiting for, Damien?” he asked him.
Damien chuckled. “We are definitely talking about it. She knows she’s the love of my life, and I can’t live without her. Isn’t that right, sweetheart?”
“Yes.” I smiled brightly. “We’re just waiting for the perfect time.”
“There is no perfect time,” Mr. Bradbury spoke. “How many kids do the two of you want?”
Damien glanced over at me.
“Four.” I grinned. “A nice even number.”
“Four is an excellent number.” Mr. Bradbury beamed. “Dana and I planned on four, and just when we thought we were done, two more surprised us. But it was God’s will that we bring six children into the world. Who were we to argue?” He let out a jolly laugh.
“Yes. You can’t argue with God’s will.” I smiled. “When he has a plan, there’s nothing in the world that you can do to stop it. What’s meant to be is meant to be.”
“That’s right, young lady.” Mr. Bradbury held up his glass. “You’ve got a real keeper, Damien. I suggest you hurry up and put a ring on that pretty little finger of hers before someone swoops by and snatches her away from you.”
Damien gave him an uncomfortable smile. “Don’t worry about that, Don. I plan on it.”
Dinner ended, and we said our goodbyes to Don, his wife, Scott, and Madison. Climbing into the back of the car, Damien shut the door and let out a deep breath.
“You did good, London. Thanks. I love how you threw in the part about God. That was a nice touch.”
“It’s true.”
“Yeah. Okay.” He rolled his eyes. “Anyway, I better get you home. It’s late. By the way, I’ll have to meet you at the Empire State Building tomorrow. Say around eleven?”
“Sure. That’s fine.”
“I have a meeting early in the morning.”
“On a Saturday?” I asked.
“Yes. Regardless of what day it is, my work doesn’t stop.”
I had a feeling inside me. The same feeling I always got when I knew a guy was lying to me.
He said he’d meet me at the Empire State Building at eleven, but I knew, deep down, he wasn’t going to show at all.
I’d get a text message around ten forty-five from him saying his meeting was running late and he wasn’t sure when it would end.
“You work too much.” I politely smiled.
“So you’ve told me before,” he spoke.
The driver pulled up to my apartment building, and Damien climbed out first so I could get out. He held out his hand to help me from the car, and I refused it.
“I can get out myself. Thank you for dinner. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I casually smiled and walked away.
“London?” I heard him call my name before I stepped into the building.
I turned around and looked at him as he stood by the car.
“Thanks again for tonight.”
I gave him a small smile and a nod as I walked inside and went up to my apartment.
The next morning, I climbed out of bed, let out a long yawn, and headed to the kitchen to make some coffee.
Leaning over the counter as I waited for my coffee to finish brewing, I thought about how excited I was to see the Empire State Building.
It was no big deal to some, but it meant the world to me.
Even if Damien didn’t show, I wouldn’t let it ruin my day.
It was probably best that he didn’t come anyway because I didn’t need his comments and negativity.
Being physically alone in the world was something I was used to and being alone was how it had to be.
I did, however, have friends all around the world.
People who followed my blog and my journey—five hundred thousand to be exact.
After finishing my coffee, I took a shower, got dressed, and headed to the Empire State Building. When I arrived, it was ten-fifty. At ten-fifty-five, a text message came through from Damien.
“I’m sorry. But I’m still stuck in this meeting. Not sure how long it’s going to last. Maybe another time.”
“No worries. I didn’t expect you to come anyway. Have a great day.”
“What do you mean you didn’t expect me to come?”
I smiled as I read his last message and tucked my phone into my purse.
Life would go on without Mr. Damien Prescott in it.
I took in everything the Empire State Building had to offer.
As I stood on the 86th-floor observation deck, I looked out at the huge city as a feeling of peace washed over me.
Life was happening all around me, and I could only smile at it all.
“Pretty cool, eh?” a man who was one of the uniformed personnel asked as he stood next to me.
“It is.” I smiled as I glanced over at him.
“First time here?” he asked.
“Yeah. It is.”
“You haven’t seen anything until you see it at night. Come back after ten p.m. You’ll be happy you did.”
“Thank you. I will.” I smiled.
“Have a nice day, ma’am.” He tipped his hat.
“You too.”
I spent a total of three hours there exploring and taking pictures. Before heading out, I grabbed lunch and a coffee from Starbucks. When I reached the city streets, I pulled my phone from my purse and noticed I had three text messages from Damien.
“Hello?”
“Why didn’t you respond to my question?”
“London, this is very rude not to text me back.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. Was he calling me rude?
“Mr. Prescott, I just left the Empire State Building. I was there to see the sights, not be on my phone. Priorities. And replying to your text message wasn’t a top one.”
“Seriously? Are you serious? It’s called common courtesy.”
“Are you being hypocritical right now? Because I believe you don’t reply to half the women who text you.”
He didn’t respond, and I hailed a cab back to my apartment. When I stepped off the elevator, I stopped halfway down the hall when I saw Damien standing in front of my door.
I sighed. “Damien, what are you doing here?” I asked as I slid the key into the lock.
“I came to have a little chat with you because I don’t particularly like your attitude.”
I let out a light laugh as I stood there with my hand on the doorknob.
“You think this is funny? I don’t put up with women talking to me like you do.”
“And I don’t put up with lying men either. So please do us both a favor and move along.”
I opened the door, and my feet were covered in water when I stepped inside.
“What the hell?” I exclaimed as I looked down. “Oh, my God.”
“What the hell is right,” Damien spoke as he looked down at the carpet. “It looks like you had a flood. Did you leave the water running or the washer on?”
“No! Nothing was on when I left.”
I walked further into the apartment while Damien stood outside in the hallway. I looked around and found that the entire apartment was flooded.
“If you’re just going to stand there and watch, I suggest you leave,” I spoke with irritation.
“Fine. We’ll talk about this another time.” He began to walk away, and I slowly shook my head.
“Shit,” he spoke as he took off his shoes and walked into the apartment.
“I thought you left.”
“Be quiet, please,” he said as he looked around. “It looks like a pipe burst. You better call the people you’re renting from right now.”
I pulled my phone from my purse, called the lady I was renting from, and explained to her what had happened. She told me to hang tight and that she was calling the building manager right away.
“London?” I heard Sharlene call from the doorway. “Oh my God, it happened to you too. I just got home, and my apartment is flooded.”
“The building manager is on his way up.” I sighed.
“This happened a few years ago, and I had to move into a hotel for two months,” she spoke. “I can’t go through that again.”
Russ, the building manager, walked into the apartment wearing tall rubber boots.
“Damn it.” He shook his head. “I know you’re renting this place from Carly, and I’m sorry to say you’re going to have to collect your things and leave.”
“For how long?” I asked.
“I really can’t say. The last time this happened, it took about two months to get the apartments cleaned and restored.”
“Okay. I’ll grab my suitcase. Good thing I haven’t unpacked yet.”
It was also good that I had my suitcase lying across a lounge chair in the bedroom. I went into the bathroom and collected some personal items, threw them in my suitcase, and zipped it shut.
“Damien, can you please carry this for me?” I shouted from the bedroom. “I don’t want to wheel it in all that water, and it’s quite heavy.”
He walked into the bedroom, picked up my suitcase, and carried it down the hallway.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Where are you going to go?” Sharlene asked.
“I don’t know. I guess I’ll have to find a hotel for a couple of nights and look for a new Airbnb to rent.”
“Why can’t she stay with you?” Sharlene asked Damien with a narrowed eye and her hand on her hip.
“With me?” he asked with surprise as he pointed to himself.
“Yeah. I’m sure you live in some fancy schmancy penthouse with an extra bedroom or five. After all, she did do you a favor last night.” She bopped her head from side to side. “Now it’s your turn to repay the favor. It’s called paying it forward.”