‘Yeah,’ she finally said. ‘I really like it. I can see myself living here for a while.’
‘Yes!’ Quaddra cheered, leaping to his feet. He did nothing to hide his happiness. ‘Here.’ He handed Mary the apartment keys. ‘It’s yours.’
Mary looked at him sideways. ‘I haven’t signed the contract yet. And there’s no rush, remember?’
‘Sure, I understand that, but like I told you – I’m flying to New York tomorrow and I’m not exactly sure when I’ll be back. The apartment is unoccupied anyway. If you take the keys now, then you can move your stuff in whenever you like and at your own pace. No rush.’
Mary still looked unsure.
‘Seriously,’ Quaddra pushed, reaching for her hand and placing the keys in it. ‘Just take the keys. It’s easier this way… and since you mentioned the contract, have you thought about which name you’d like me to put on it?’
Mary paused for a second.
‘Anything will do,’ Quaddra pushed. ‘For example – give me a name that starts with the letter…’
“W”.’
‘?“W”?’
‘Um-hum.’
‘I don’t know… umm… Wendy?’
‘Wendy is a great name. She’s even got her own burger place.’
Mary smiled.
‘Now pick a last name… anything will do.’
‘I don’t know,’ Mary looked flustered.
‘Give me a teacher’s name from when you were a child… quick… don’t think… just say it.’
Mary shrugged. ‘I don’t know… Mr. Crowley?’
‘Wendy Crowley,’ Quaddra looked pensive for a moment. ‘It works. What do you think?’
‘Wendy Crowley.’ Mary said the name to herself. ‘Yeah… it does work.’
‘Wendy Crowley it is,’ Quaddra confirmed before stepping closer to Mary to kiss her. ‘And just like that…’ He snapped his thumb and forefinger. ‘… your name is off any property leasing agreement. Good luck to anyone trying to find you from now on.’
They kissed again.
‘Thank you,’ Mary said. ‘I really mean it.’
‘One hundred percent my pleasure,’ Quaddra replied. ‘I’m just so glad you’re staying in San Francisco.’
‘Yeah, me too,’ Mary admitted before turning to look at the view from the window one more time. ‘I like this city… a lot.’
‘Well, this calls for a celebration, don’t you think?’ Quaddra asked. ‘Are you hungry? How about we go get some early dinner somewhere around here? I don’t know this area too well, but I know that Bayview is famous for its diversity in restaurants – especially smaller, street-food kind of places.’
Mary smiled. ‘Yeah, I could eat. But I have a better idea.’ She reached for Quaddra’s hand. ‘How about we christen this place first?’ She gestured towards the hallway that led deeper into the flat and into the bedrooms. ‘Those beds look really comfortable.’
Quaddra smiled, as he followed Mary into the hallway. ‘I really like the way your mind works.’
Fifty-One
It took Mary just a single cab trip to move all of her stuff from her old apartment in the Dogpatch, to the new one, in Bayview. Despite still having about a week left on her contract, she chose to make the move on Thursday morning, just five days after Quaddra had shown her the converted warehouse flat.
