I smile and shake his hand. I don’t invite him in. Of course, I don’t. He’s a complete stranger. Although, I know where he lives, which is a plus.
“I just wanted to come over and introduce myself,” he says. He’s tall and has an amazing dirty blond mop of hair. He reminds me of Daniel, but younger and cuter.
“Uh… that’s nice,” I mutter, still caught off guard. “I’m Abigail.” My eyes scan the length of his torso. “But you can call me Abby.” He’s wearing a black vintage Led Zeppelin t-shirt, and—
Shit, his fly is undone.
My gaze snaps back to his face, so fast I almost get whiplash. “Uh… it’s nice to meet you,” I manage to say. Should I tell him about his fly? Really, I should.
“This is a great building,” he goes on, “and I’m looking forward to meeting everyone.”
“Yeah, Orchard Heights is great. Everyone is really friendly,” I tell him. “Well, except for the guy in the penthouse upstairs. He’s kind of a snob.” Should I tell him about the fly? Or should I just pretend I didn’t notice? What if he did it on purpose? What if he’s some weird creep with exhibitionist tendencies?
He cocks a brow and eyes me dubiously. “Well, anyway… I should get going. I’ve got lots of unpacking to do. It was nice to meet you.”
I nod and wince a little when I finally summon up the courage to tell him, “Your… um… your fly is open.”
I stare down at the floor, not able to face him. This is so horrible.
“Uh… fuck.” He fumbles and quickly does himself up. “I’m sorry… I didn’t know. Uh… and sorry about the cursing.”
This could not be more awkward. I want to crawl behind the fake potted plant in the hall corner. “No worries, it’s okay,” I say, finally managing to look up at him again. “It’s fucking okay, buddy.”
He grins widely, and I get caught up in his smile again. There’s something about it, something so damn sweet. How old is this man? Twenty-five maybe? Too young.
“Well, I was hoping for a slightly less embarrassing first meeting, but I’m glad I met you, Abigail.”
My heart skips a beat at the sound of my name on his lips. “Me too… it was nice to meet you, Noah.”
With a final smile and a nod, he turns back to his apartment, and what do I do? I stare at his ass. Of course I do. And those dark jeans are doing him all kinds of favors.
As I hopin my Rav4, I’m still thinking about my weird encounter with Noah. He definitely left an impression. My pumps are already hurting my feet, perhaps because I rarely wear heels these days. I’m most often seen in sweats and sneakers. And slippers. Always slippers at home. Truth be told, I’ve been getting a little too comfortable with unemployment. It’s been fun being able to have coffee and lunch with my friends at my leisure. Gretchen is a homemaker at the moment, and Claudia works nights and weekends mostly. Mischa works from home and makes her own hours. If I get a day job, they’ll never see me.
Traffic is a pain just as it used to be. Why did I agree on a nine o’clock interview? Thankfully, the drive to the Warden Social Services offices is not too far. Yes, it’s been nice being unemployed, but it’s also been miserable. I’ve been bored and unfortunately, I just don’t have enough imagination to entertain myself. And I miss helping people. It always gave me purpose.
My nerves get a strong hold of me when I finally reach my destination and find a parking spot. I smooth down my skirt and check my face in the rearview mirror. “Here goes nothing.”
