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“Take me home and leave me there,” I assure him. “I can manage until you come back. Just don’t forget me.”
“Like I’d ever do that,” he mutters, unmuting the call. “Matteo? I’ll be there in about thirty minutes. Make sure that idiot builder is ready to explain how he plans to fix this.” He ends the call without waiting for a response, and I wiggle my eyebrows.
“You’re so sexy when you’re demanding and forceful.”
He’s still frowning at his phone, and it seems to take him a second to absorb what I said. “What?”
“Never mind. We can role-play later. You can be the dynamic, impatient architect, and I’ll be the incompetent builder you need to fuck into compliance.”
He blinks in bemusement but doesn’t object. “Whatever you want. Are you ready?”
I wave my phone with the list at him. “Yep!”
Micah puts his arm around me like he always does, and the world spins away, reforming into my entry hall. I guess this is the only part of my house he’s seen. I’ll give him the grand tour later, but for now, he has a builder to intimidate.
“I shouldn’t be long,” he assures me. “And I’ll bring lunch when I come back. Anything in particular that you’re in the mood for?”
“Mm, a sandwich from that place in Zurich Garrett was talking about would be good.” I’ve wanted one ever since he told me how amazing they are.
Micah cracks a smile. “How do you know it would be good when you’ve never had one?” he teases.
I pout. “Garrett made it sound like the best sandwich ever. Isn’t it?”
“No, it is. I just like messing with you.” He leans down to kiss me. “Get started, and I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He teleports out.
With a little sigh—we’ve barely ever been apart for weeks now, and I miss him already—I turn and look down the hallway. The house is a little musty from being closed up, and the first thing I do is open the front door. I probably shouldn’t—even though the neighbors look out for me, a wide-open door in a neighborhood like this is an invitation to be robbed—but I want some cross flow of air. And it’s a gorgeous early spring day outside. A month ago, I might have thought it was on the chilly side, but given that we’re still getting regular snowfall in Hortplatz and will be for a couple more months, my assessment of “chilly” has changed.
I go into the living room and open the blinds and windows there, flooding the room with light and fresh air. Then I move steadily through the small house, doing the same in every room. I’m not sure yet what I’ll do with the house—my instinct is to put it on the market now, but the sensible part of me thinks it would be wise to wait for six months and see if I’m still happy in Hortplatz. (I will be, of course. Micah’s amazing. Duh.) It can’t hurt to wait, and I guess I can rent it or something in the meantime?
I make a mental note to look into that later. Maybe call a realtor over lunch.
Next, I head for the kitchen and grab a water bottle. Micah gets upset whenever I mention that before him, I’d forget about things like food and water, so I’m going to impress him with how hydrated I am when he gets back. Or at the very least, he’ll see the still-full water bottle and know I tried.
In my workroom, I turn a full circle, taking in the organized chaos. It looks wrong, probably because most of my everyday tools are in Hortplatz and there are gaping spaces where they usually live. Maybe I should start in the bedroom. I definitely could do with some more clothes—I never thought I’d care about what I wear, but after washing and re-wearing the same two sets of clothes for over a month, I’m ready for a change.
Abandoning the workroom for now, I devote myself to going through my dresser and wardrobe for warm, comfortable clothes. And not-so-warm ones. The weather in Hortplatz will improve eventually.
I’m interrupted by a shout from the front of the house, and I go to see who it is. Lenny, my neighbor across the street who does sketchy things, is hovering in the doorway.
“Hi,” I say brightly. “How’ve you been?”
“Can’t complain.” He’s frowning at me, but frowns don’t bother me anymore, after over a month of living in the frowniest place on Earth. “You just get in?”
“Yep! But I’m not staying. My boyfriend’s coming soon to help me pack some stuff.”
An eyebrow shoots up. “That where you’ve been? We wondered. What’s this boyfriend like? He good to you?”
“The best,” I assure him happily. “Treats me like a god.Andhe’s got crazy good reflexes. I hardly ever knock into things or trip when he’s around.”
Lenny’s face softens. “Good. You need someone to fuss over you. Listen, there’s this dude been hanging around your place. Was coming by a coupla times a week until me and the boys had a chat with him. I haven’t seen him for a while, but it might be good if you’re somewhere else for a bit. I didn’t like his vibe.”
This sounds like something I should worry about, but I’m not. With my tools in Hortplatz, there’s nothing in the house really worth stealing. “Did he try to break in or something?”
“Nah.” Lenny shakes his head. “Just stared at the house. Pounded on the door a few times, but when I asked if he wanted me to pass a message, he said no.”
I don’t blame the stranger. I’m pretty sure Lenny wasn’t wearing a welcoming smile when he offered.
“Okay, well, me and my favorite stuff will be somewhere else for a while. If he does break in, call me so I can come and do all the… stuff.” Whatdoyou do when someone breaks in? I guess some people would call the authorities, but around here, that’s just a waste of time. Insurance people? Only my tools are insured. If a window or door is broken, I’ll have to fix that to stop animals and squatters from wandering in.
