When he smiled at her, his face rounded. Under Peter’s tutelage, the G chord began to sound heavenly. But there was only one person she hoped to impress with her newfound skills.
She thanked Peter, but not for the music lesson. Through his attention, she had realized how much Phoenix had come to mean to her.
CHAPTER14
HOMELESS HEART
Orchid
Orchid had, in fact, agreed to help Phoenix with his pitch. He hadn’t told her it would behere.
Errant moths high on psychedelics fluttered inside her chest as she stood in front of Phoenix’s apartment, hand poised to knock. His doorman had been jovial, the elevator pristine. A few scuffs marred the molding, but she mainly noticed the framed art hanging along the carpeted corridor. The impressionistic strokes felt as watery as her emotions.
“It won’t take long,” Phoenix had rumbled on the phone when she’d called. “But I’m working from home. Are you free to swing by after four?” His address texted to her cell phone felt like the key to a new kingdom.
Before she could knock, the door swung open.
Phoenix looked happy to see her. “There you are.”
“Help is here.” She felt her shoulders relax and returned his lopsided grin, trying not to stare at the gray t-shirt stretched across his broad chest and shoulders.
“Please, come in. I’ve been in back-to-back calls and am just starting to catch up on emails.” He closed the door behind them.
His apartment offered respite, the view stretching eleven stories above the sounds of street traffic. Somewhere, blocks away, was her little flat, its one bedroom just large enough for a double bed, which she had to mount while standing sideways.
His place flaunted unusually high ceilings for a newer Manhattan building. Tasteful furniture with a masculine touch of leather. The space was understated elegance, cool white tones with pops of blue. “I thought your office was you. This place…it’s not that it looks like you, but it feels like you.”
“I’ll introduce you to my designer. My mom’s the best.” He smiled with what seemed like a fond memory.
Orchid imagined the woman who’d raised two strong men. In her mind, she must be tall as an oak, with a booming voice, able to flatten a foe with one shove of her massive shoulder.
She followed him through the large living room that sported a table for four, as well as several sofas intimately arranged around an oversized ottoman doubling as a coffee table. The adjacent kitchen was at least twice the size of her narrow galley. This one showcased gleaming appliances. “I bet you don’t even cook,” she grumbled.
He paused to admire his kitchen with her. “This is wasted on a bachelor.”
“Which of these appliances can you even use?”
He accepted her joshing good-naturedly. “Listen, I can heat up a serious cup of coffee.”
She pointed at a Kitchen-Aid mixer in cobalt metal. “Do you know how much those cost? And in designer colors. Have you even turned it on?”
“I thought it was for decoration only,” he responded in mock surprise.
“I know a place that can give it a good home.” She cocked her head and framed her chin with her palms.
He laughed. “I’ll put you in my will.” And then he pulled open the fridge. “Can I offer you a drink?” The cavernous space inside the large appliance yawned near-empty, like store shelves before a winter storm.
“A six-pack, Tabasco, a dozen eggs and milk. What do you live on?” she asked.
For a moment, his mouth downturned, as if he were suddenly crestfallen. “I bought you cheese and Pellegrino. Even wine, in case my work sucks.” He waved at the extra items Orchid hadn’t mentioned, as if that could justify his double-door Sub Zero.
“Thank you, I’d love a sparkling water.” She fought the urge to cheer his expression with a spontaneous arm around his back. The muscles under his shirt warmed a spot deep in her belly. She dropped her gaze.
While he poured her beverage, she unzipped her bag and pulled out items she’d chosen at Zabar’s, all while keeping what she felt was a safe distance from him. “I brought you rugelach and REBBL.” She placed the paper pastry box next to the bottles. Her aesthetic sense had picked the turmeric variety for the metallic gold packaging.
“Ah, the perfect set-up for looking at the REBBL pitch.”
She chuckled at the memory of their evening at his agency. “It better not be boring.”
