Playing Evelyn

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

It was the second time I’d ever skipped school but I figured it was necessary. I stared up at the condominium in front of me and double checked the address to make sure I was at the right place.

As I was standing on the sidewalk, a guy in a bellboy uniform came strolling out. He looked me up and down, taking in my jean skirt and combat boots which went nicely with my long sleeved Rolling Stones shirt. His eyes ended up on my face and I could feel him examining the huge bags under my eyes in disapproval. “Can I help you with something, miss?” he asked in a haughty tone.

“I’m here to visit my grandfather. He’s not expecting me until later but I was hoping he could see me now.”

The guy looked at me, disbelief evident in his eyes. “What is his name?”

My eyes narrowed at his condescending tone. Did I look like a pan handler or something? “Henry Rollins,” I ground out.

Immediately his back straightened and his expression moved comically from disbelief to shock to fear. “I’m so sorry Miss. I didn’t realize. I’ll call him right away.”

“Okay,” I said, my lips quirking up as he scurried to the door of the building, holding it open for me as I walked in.

“Just one moment,” he said as he bustled over to the front desk and picked up a phone. Even the front lobby was impressive. Everything was made of marble and there was a huge chandelier hanging from the ceiling. There were comfy looking couches in the waiting area and the paintings on the walls reeked of money. “He’ll see you now, Miss Taylor,” he said, his voice sugary sweet and fake.

“I won’t tell him,” I said as he guided me to the elevator.

“Pardon me?”

“I won’t tell him that you were rude to me,” I said as the elevator door slid closed, blocking out the image of his shocked face.

The elevator had a bench in it and a table with fresh flowers in a fancy vase. “That’s going a little overboard,” I mumbled, taking a deep breath, letting the floral smell invade my senses. “Nice touch though.”

The elevator doors slid open and my grandfather stood there in a suit that was most likely tailored to fit him. “So you’re loaded,” I said, ignoring the jumble of nerves I was feeling at seeing him again.

He chuckled, his blue eyes lit with good humour. “I suppose you could say that, yes.” I followed him down the hallway to his apartment door. He tapped in the combination on the lock and it made an electronic noise before it clicked open. “Come in.” He gestured to the inside of the condo.

I took my boots off before stepping inside. The floors were all white linoleum and the place was done totally in black and white with a few splashes of red. It looked like it was from a magazine. There was a bank of windows on the far side of the apartment that looked out over the city and the furniture was all big and comfortable looking. There was a fireplace that was currently on and a big screen TV that took up almost an entire wall.

“I’m guessing you didn’t get this furniture at IKEA,” I muttered as I continued to look around the place.

“What’s IKEA?” he asked. My eyes widened in shock as I looked at him. “I’m kidding,” he said.

“Oh,” I replied, feeling a smile tug at my lips.

He stood in the centre of the apartment watching me as I snooped around. The kitchen was very modern with stainless steel appliances and black and white cupboards. I didn’t go down the hallway that must have led to the bedrooms, not wanting to overstep any boundaries. I’d already shown up about seven hours early so I didn’t want to push my luck.