Touched By A Marine (Book 1)

Chapter Four: Table for two

Rain fell from the heavens as I waited in the car for Brad to pick up our order of Chinese food containing sesame chicken, fried rice and a side order of egg rolls and two fortune cookies. I looked out through the window as my breath started to fog up the interior of the windows. I reached over and turned the heater on high as I set the fan speed to three. I leaned back in my seat as I crossed my arms over my chest to myself warm until I felt the rush of hot air fill the tiny space around me. The windshield wipers swished back and forth about twenty times before Brad finally bolted from the restaurant and hopped in the car, shaking the rain from his hair as tiny droplets of water splashed against my arm.

“Sorry that took so long,” he said. “There were already two people in front of me who were still waiting on a big order that they had purchased over the phone.”

“That’s okay. There’s no need to apologize.” I sniffed the air as the sweet smell of chicken and rice hit my nose. “Mmm. Smells good.”

I caught the tail end of a smile on Brad’s lips as we pulled out of the parking lot and headed north to the Upper East Side of Manhattan. We crossed the Brooklyn Bridge within minutes and soon found ourselves cruising down the more luxury condos and apartments that New York had to offer. Brad took a quick left into a nearby parking garage that connected with a tall post-modern condominium. Made out of limestone, the tower had an open courtyard that acted as a private motor entrance with two hundred and two apartments. Each living space consisted of large casement windows, high ceilings, dining rooms, lots of moldings and plenty of natural light and vast open views of the city in all directions.

Parking on the twelfth floor proved to be smooth sailing since there weren’t that many cars lying around this late at night. Our car came to a complete stop before Brad switched off the headlights and cut off the engine. He stepped out and came around on my side as he opened the passenger door for me and took the bag from my lap which had become damp from the heat in our food. The sound of the door shutting behind me echoed throughout the parking garage as he led me to an elevator and pushed the button. Inside, the tiny space was empty if not for the soft easy listening music that was being pumped through the speakers directly above us. I leaned against the far wall facing the doors as my hands wrapped around the metal railing that was rubbing against my back.

A female automated voice came out of nowhere and announced that we had arrived on the twenty-fourth floor as the doors whooshed opened before us. Brad turned back and reached outward with his hand and asked me to take it and follow him down the long stretch of hallway that seemed to go on forever. Every single door on the floor was white with golden doorknobs and the carpet on the floor was very modern while the walls were a warm creamy color that seemed to bring the place to life. I heard the jingle of keys as Brad pulled them out of his front pocket and inserted the key into the lock, turning the handle and opening the door, gesturing for me to go inside ahead of him. I couldn’t contain the amazement on my face as I crossed the threshold.

A beautiful round wooden table stood in the middle of the foyer as a flower arrangement sat on top with a small note card attached to it. The door shut behind us as Brad walked past me into another room that looked like the kitchen with marble countertops, a Sub Zero refrigerator and Miele appliances. The floor was granite while the rest of the apartment had nice rich hardwood flooring throughout. As he placed the bag down on the counter near the glass stove, a small eat-in table had been turned into an extra holding space for a few family photos small in silver frames. I stepped closer to get a better look, but it was Brad’s hand that touched mine, as he looked down on me with a smile on his face and decided to give me a tour of his home.