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“Really ...? No …!”
“Me.”
“Tell me it ain't so?!”
Nodding, I just said, “I've been kickboxing since I was twelve.”
So funny, the faces he made! He pretended to be all nervous in my company now. Then burst out laughing, “Is it accurate to say that I am very safe in your company? Or should I hire a bodyguard right away instead?”
I folded my hands in prayer on the table, looked up at the ceiling a moment, and just grinned.
Leighton got serious again, though. He wanted to know, “What happened with the whole vandalism investigation?”
So I told him that story. I was pretty sure no one else had informed him of what had happened, “My burger-boy? He was the vandal. He’s been stalking me since I kicked him.”
I was right. No one had told him that, and he hadn’t put it together.
I told him the rest. About going to the precinct again. All the insurance hubbub. The clean-up. The back door repair. All the lost inventory. That my landlord didn’t care or want to hear about it.
“The burger-boy stalker-vandal is in jail? For sure?”
I nodded.
“Well,” he stated firmly, “I’m still walking youall that long wayto work later tonight.”
It was nearly six o’clock when we walked into his building.
He explained, “We occupy the whole building. The company owns it. I live on the whole top floor. On the next floor down,there are two guest apartments. The other three floors are the company offices and my workshop.”
But then, we were no longer interested in Italian food, stalkers, or architecture. It wasn’t important who worked where.
He stepped us into a key-controlled elevator and up we went, stepping directly out into his living room. I’d never seen anything like it.
But that would only occur to me the next afternoon. All my attention was on Leighton.
Leighton
Nerves. Oh, boy. How long has it been since I did this? Well, never in this house. So, years.
I had my arms around her before the elevator door closed.
“Welcome to my home, beautiful lady.”
“Leighton, I’m a little …”
“Nervous? Me, too. It’s been …”
“A while since …”
“Same …”
“I’ve only had one …”
“Well, I’m pretty close to that. Don’t let’s worry, okay?”
“I’m not on any …”
“I’ve got condoms. I promised. You’re safe.”
