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He smiled at me as I walked up to him, double-checking the address Jimmy had given me. Logan had parked his mother’s van down the street a ways because there wasn’t parking anywhere closer. I had headed out first as a scout to see how I could get my things up to the apartment, orcondo, I guess. Lucky for me, I was at least going to get some answers right away without having to pull teeth trying to find someone to ask.
“Good morning, miss. Welcome to The Astrapia.”
“Good morning! Ummm… hopefully you can help me with something?” I started, and his smile turned genuine. I held out my hand to shake. “First, I’m Natalia. Natalia Segr… Morelli. What’s your name?”
He seemed taken aback, and I couldn’t figure out if it was because of my name or the fact that I asked him for his. He gave me a questioning look but put his hand in mine anyway.
“My name is Nathan Aberdale. I am sorry, are you related to someone who lives here?”
“Umm… yes. I married Jimmy Morelli recently… Actually, that’s why I’m here. He wants me to move in with him… I have the address, but I’m afraid I have never actually been here before… How do I…?”
His eyes went as round as saucers, and he looked down at my hand. My very bare hand. I would have to consider getting us rings if I were to be acting as his wife. It would be easier if people just saw a ring and assumed. He let go of my hand and cleared his throat.
“Well, Mrs. Morelli, I can assist you with that. I just need to have you speak to the on-site manager.”
“Oh, absolutely,” I said and waited for him to talk into the walkie-talkie that he had pulled out of his inside jacket pocket. When he was done talking, he smiled at me again and hid his walkie-talkie.
“Thank you for being so understanding. If you’ll follow me into the manager’s office, we can get things settled for you.”
“Thank you so much. I was worried I was going to have to wander around like a lost puppy trying to figure things out!” I laughed and started following the doorman. I sent Kiwi a quick text to let her know where I was going and to hang tight. “I don’t know what I would do without you, Nate.”
“I think the last person to call me Nate was my late wife,” he looked over his shoulder at me, and I smiled a big smile at him.
“I hope that’s a good thing. You just look more like a Nate than a Nathan to me.”
“Mrs. Morelli, you can call me whatever you like,” he said and led me through the front door.
The lobby was huge and looked like the entrance to a hotel rather than an apartment complex. The concierge desk was off to the right and had a full-blown waterfall backdrop sheltered behind glass, so you could softly hear the water, but it wasn’t loud and distracting. There were orchids in gorgeous hand-painted pots—one on the concierge desk, one on the huge glass table in the center of the lobby, and a few lining the wall to the left on a shelf that ran the entire wall. Straight ahead there was a gorgeous floating staircase and to the left, a set of elevators.
There was a sitting area near the floor-to-ceiling windows to the left of the front door furnished with a television and two couches that looked big and plush, even though they were leather. Everything was white and steel, giving the place a look of industrial chic. The one thing that topped off the ambiance of luxury, though, was the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. I gazed up at it, forgetting to keep my mouth closed as I did so. It was gape-worthy, though. So I was unashamed.
Nate led me past the concierge desk and down a little hall on the right. The hall was so small compared to everything else that it looked like it had been an afterthought when they built the place. There were three doors—one straight ahead and one on either side. Nate led me to the one on the left, knocking twice before opening the door and stepping in.
“Mrs. Natalia Morelli, ma'am,” Nate announced and stood aside so I could enter the room from behind him.
The luxury of the lobby didn’t travel into the office here, but it was still nice. Everything followed the white and steel theme except for the black chair the woman sat at. She was tall with tanned skin, perfectly done makeup, and slicked-back short black hair. She had a simple chain around her neck and wore a suit that matched Nate’s. It looked good on her, and I was happy to see she wasn’t wearing heels. I hated when women paired suits with heels.
She stood up and put out her hand to shake, so I took it. Her grip was firm, and instantly I could tell she meant business. I liked her.
“Hello, I am Sarah Shea, the on-site manager on duty. Mr. Aberdale tells me you are looking to move in here?”
Nate bowed his head and left the room as if he had been dismissed. I watched him close the door behind him, and I made a mental note that I would have to thank him later.
“Well… umm, yes. You see, I recently married Jimmy Morelli and—”
“Mr. Morelli? You married Mr. Morelli?” she repeated, her professional demeanor slipping. I raised an eyebrow at her.
“Yes. Is that so surprising?”
“Not at all,” she replied, pulling herself together quickly. “It’s just that Mr. Morelli never mentioned he would be getting married or that he would be having someone move in with him. We have a policy here that insists management is notified in advance. We do background checks on all occupants to make sure our establishment is safe for all who live and work here. It is just odd because Mr. Morelli is usually the first one to abide by our rules.”
“I’m sure he just overlooked it,” I assured her. I could see the hesitation on her face. She wanted to be accommodating, but she also had rules she had to follow. I understood that, and I wasn’t trying to get anyone in trouble. If I couldn’t move in that day, I couldn’t move in. It would suck moving all my stuff back into my father’s house, but it was what it had to be. “Maybe you could give him a call to clear everything up?”
Her face went so pale I thought she might faint.
“Management is not allowed to call Mr. Morelli unless it is a case of emergency,” she explained. “I will send him an email explaining the situation and check in with him. If all is well, we can send you an email letting you know when your background check comes back.”
Was she afraid of him or something? She looked more scared than anything, and even though I respected their policies, I didn’t think what she was telling me was exactly legal. I wasn’t a lawyer, so I could have been wrong, but there was definitely something not right about the situation.
