7. Levi
‘You’re getting out here?’
Levi looked at the woman. ‘This is my floor.’
‘I know that,’ she said as if speaking to a toddler. ‘But what about my stuff?’
‘What about it?’ Levi was far too drunk to deal with this conversation. Family dinner had gone from bad to worse, and Levi had ingested far too much alcohol. Without it, he might have said something he’d regret.
‘I need you to hold the elevator for me so I can unload it.’
He stared at her. Her lips were moving, and words were coming out, but he couldn’t comprehend their meaning. Deciding not to engage with her, he stepped forward, fully intending to leave the elevator but instead smacking right into the closed door.
She sniggered, and he turned to glare at her. The lift was already moving again.
Up.
She was going up.
To the floor above his.
Levi scanned her slowly. A messy tangle of hair piled on top of her head, not unlike his vague memory of her. No headphones this time. She wore an over-sized T-shirt that slid off one shoulder and exposed the strap of her sports bra beneath. He didn’t like that he knew that, but he worked on skin, women’s skin, and he’d seen a lot of sports bras, as well as other bras, in the course of his job. That’s all it was. Nothing else.
He forced his eyes down. Under the T-shirt she wore leggings. From the looks of them, they were one of those popular brands—Lorna Jane or Lululemon or something—but they were well worn.
‘You’re moving into the penthouse?’
She smirked. ‘Does it offend your fragile masculinity to know that I’m above you?’
He opened his mouth to retort, but the doors opened, and she was moving. He watched her, feeling unsteady on his feet, and not just because of the alcohol.
‘Uh, the door?’
‘What?’
The woman put down the box she was carrying and bodily moved him so he was standing in front of the door to stop it from closing.
‘Won’t be a sec,’ she said picking up the box and moving it into the hall.
Levi couldn’t stop looking at her. He knew he should probably help her but… he was already helping her by keeping the door open, right? What was it about her that had him so off kilter?
Nope.
It wasn’t her.
He’d had a shit night, and coming home to find the lobby full of crap had only made his evening worse. He shook his head to clear it and sighed, crossing his arms as she moved another box into the hall.
‘Last one,’ she said before stepping back into the elevator.
Levi frowned. ‘You’re just going to leave them there?’
She shrugged, her T-shirt slipping further down and exposing more of her smooth skin. He looked away.
‘No one else on this floor,’ she said, mirroring him as she crossed her arms and leaned against the elevator wall. ‘And wouldn’t you prefer I get rid of the stuff in the lobby as soon as possible? Wouldn’t want to annoy the other residents.’ She lifted her eyebrows at him in challenge.
‘Whatever,’ he said, stepping into the car and hitting the button for his floor.
She hummed to herself as they descended. He ignored her and the familiar waft of perfume that teased his nose.
‘See ya, neighbour,’ she said as he stepped out of the elevator.
Levi didn’t bother to reply. Once he was sure the elevator had departed, he tipped his head back and groaned. She was real. The woman he’d imagined was actually a real person, which meant she had been in his apartment, and it hadn’t been a dream or a hallucination or a fantasy… no, it was never a fantasy, even if he had imagined her on top of him. And now she would be living in his building. He was glad she was on one of the other floors because he did not want to run into her ever again.
Liar.
His subconscious was a bitch sometimes. But no. Just because he wanted to have an actual conversation with her when he wasn’t sick and feverish or drunk off his arse didn’t mean he wanted to see her again. That was just his weird need for people to see him as perfect. So far, this woman had only seen him at his absolute worst, and it grated on him. He hated showing weakness to anyone, especially her.
Why? Why especially her? What did it matter if she saw him like that? They would never see each other again. It shouldn’t matter to him. There were enough people in this building that he wouldn’t run into her again. Tonight was just a fluke.
Still. Levi hated leaving a bad impression on anyone. Sure, he could be an arsehole, but usually that was a deliberate choice on his part. This woman—and he didn’t even know her name—had seen him weak. There was a certain strength in being an arsehole, but being helplessly sick or inebriated was definitely not strength.
That’s why he wanted to see her again. He wanted to prove that he wasn’t always a mess. He wanted to show her he was a responsible adult who had his life under control.
He stumbled through his door and locked it behind him. Closing his eyes and taking a long breath, he let the tension in his shoulders slide off. Her face appeared before him. Those brown eyes that reminded him of melted chocolate, the pink flush of her cheeks, and her plump dusky lips. The tension was back in his shoulders.
Levi groaned. No. Just no. It must be the alcohol. She wasn’t his type. He was not attracted to her. He’d sleep it off, and in the morning, he’d have forgotten all about her.
Liar.
His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he grasped at the distraction but then swore when he saw the text message.
Theo:
Hey loser! I’m back. Let’s grab a drink.
Fucking Theo.
Levi didn’t even really know why they kept in touch. They’d competed all through high school, and when Levi did pre-med and then med school, Theo had gone abroad, living off his trust fund. Some famous designer had seen him on the street, and now he was a model. Everything came easy for him. Levi had studied until his nose bled, but Theo spent his life partying and would then ace a test. Levi hated him. Kind of. Not really. That was the thing about Theo, everybody loved him.
Levi:
Fuck off. Why would I want to be seen with your ugly mug?
Theo:
Careful, your jealousy’s showing.
Levi:
Whatever
Theo:
Tomorrow then?
Levi:
Tomorrow’s my day off.
Theo:
Perfect
Levi:
That wasn’t an invitation.
Theo:
I need to check on Mother dearest and her fur baby earlier in the day, but I’ll swing by yours in the evening. How’s 8?
Levi:
No
Theo:
Great. See ya then.
Levi groaned and smacked the phone against his forehead a couple of times. There was no saying no to Theo. He never listened.
‘Whatever,’ Levi said out loud in the empty apartment.
He shuffled across the space to flop onto his couch. Levi rarely sat in it, and he never flopped, but tonight had been just too much for him. Flopping was called for. He picked up the remote and turned on the television. Theo’s face smiled back at him.
‘For fuck’s sake.’
It was an ad for Tag Heuer.
He flicked the channels until he found an old Western and settled in to watch.
If that woman could afford a penthouse in his building, why had she been cleaning his apartment?
‘I don’t want to know,’ he said to himself, refocusing on The Duke.
But even the great John Wayne couldn’t stop his brain from wandering back to the woman in the elevator. Who was she? Why was she here? Was she stalking him?
He dismissed the thought as soon as he had it. Stalkers didn’t live in penthouses. Besides, why would she stalk him? If she was going to stalk anyone, it would be Theo.
Bloody Theo. As much as he made Levi feel inferior, it would be great to catch up with him. Levi didn’t have friends. He had acquaintances and people he networked with, but not friends. They were too much hard work. He was usually so consumed with his job that he lost contact with them. Theo was the only one who didn’t get offended when Levi ghosted him. Hell, Levi had tried to shake Theo off, and the guy just wouldn’t get the hint. For some reason, Theo took Levi’s indifference as a challenge. It was a pity some of Levi’s girlfriends hadn’t done the same.
That wasn’t fair. He knew he was to blame for the breakups, not that he cared much. The women in question had tried, but he just hadn’t been interested. Or maybe it was that he was far more interested in his work than in them. It was the reason he was single and had been for a while now.
Levi turned off the television and got to his feet. The movie had done nothing to distract him. He may as well shower and crawl into bed. He could overthink everything just as well there, and he might even get some sleep in the process.