Page 53 of Power Play

“We have one more building to see so we’ll be in touch. Thank you.” Mom smiled and we all turned and hurried to the elevator while the manager locked up.

Once we were back in my car, Joey burst out laughing first followed by me, my dad, and finally my mom.

“That was awful. It felt like somewhere you would slaughter animals.” Joey shuddered.

“Either that or run a lab for an evil genius,” Dad offered.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Mom said before laughing again. “Oh man. The rest of it was so nice. Why did they allow them to destroy that one? Could you imagine living in a glass box? There was no privacy at all. I’m sure even the bathroom had glass doors.”

“It would take a very special person to live there.” Dad shook his head. “Well, on to the next.”

Hopefully, this one would work. I didn’t want to have to go through all those brochures again for something I’d already passed on. Settling on where I lived didn’t feel right.

I wasn’t aware of anyone I knew living in this building, but it was close to where Wyatt and Noah lived. Just down the street from the café Kendall worked at, with several restaurants close by. I had to keep my hope in check. I didn't want to get too excited just in case it turned out to be a complete letdown.

“Ready?” Dad asked before we entered. I nodded and the door swung open. A smiling man stepped out and held the door for us.

“Good afternoon.” He smiled as we passed.

Mom raised her brows and gave me a pointed look.

“Welcome, Mr. Dumoulin.” A woman walked out and greeted us from a back door. I shook her hand before introducing her to my entourage.

“Lovely to meet you all. We only have two available units, and one is currently being looked at, so I’ll show you the last one.”

I nodded and followed her while Mom tried to rush us along as if the apartment would suddenly vanish if we didn’t hurry. I wasn’t sure if this was a sales tactic, but I didn’t like the added pressure.

We got off on the ninth floor, and she led us to one of the four doors. “Are there only four units on each floor?”

“Yes.” She nodded and unlocked the door before stepping back so we could enter. That was a plus. Not too many neighbors.

“Wow,” Dad gushed as he stepped inside. If he was impressed, that must be a good sign. I followed him in and smiled.

The walls were a light gray with dark hardwood floors. The kitchen was bright with white cabinets and overlooked the city with wide windows that ran into the living room as well. The view was just as nice as the last one, without feeling like your entire life was on display.

The living space was nearly twice what I had right now. Room to entertain and have more than three or four people over at a time. That would be nice.

“This unit is three bedrooms.” The manager walked us through, pointing out upgraded features. It was bigger than I needed, but more space wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Joey would have a room when he came rather than the couch. I could even let new guys from the team crash here if they didn’t have time to find a place. That wasn’t uncommon with trades or guys from the farm team. I would have appreciated a chance to breathe and figure things out before having to find a place when I first got here.

“I really like it.” I went back to the kitchen and waited for Mom’s approval. It really wasn’t up to her, but I wanted her to feel like she had a say. It seemed important to her.

“I do too. This is the right one.” She squeezed my arm.

Dad winked, and I shook my head.

The manager looked between all of us before meeting my eyes. “Would you like to fill out an application?”

I nodded. “Yeah, thank you.”

We went back down to the first floor, and she pointed out the ground-level entrance to the private parking garage. Her office was in the back corner, and as I walked by, I glanced into the next room where long brown hair caught my eye.

Taylor?

I paused and stared at the back of her. What was she doing here?

“Hi, Jason.” Sydney walked toward me.

“Hey.” I narrowed my eyes. “What are you guys doing here?”