But what was that? I wondered. Part of me wanted to remind Jimmy that touching my leg was inappropriate, but another part wanted his hand back there again. Was he just one of those touchy-feely people who think physical contact like that is perfectly normal? I wondered. Fuck, maybe it is in America. I’ll have to ChatGPT that later, I thought, placing a mental note to myself.
‘It’s the investors, you see,’ Jimmy said, noticing the quiet. ‘They deal with financing everything. So, if we ask them for money and the project doesn’t land, then I have to delve into it with Trav.’ He turned to me again, noticing my silence. Jesus, I was still trying to get over that thigh touch. ‘See, I told you it was boring!’
‘It’s interesting.’ I smiled.
The car pulled onto a busy street.
‘Is this us?’ I glanced around, ‘Are we here?’
‘Sure are, it’s that building just there.’ Jimmy leaned closer. His scent was deep, musky, like Tom Ford and Prada had had a baby. Jesus, he smelled unbelievable.
My eyes skimmed the tall, slender building; it looked more striking than the others rising above Grand Central Station. It was a sleek glass design that seemed to catch the city’s lights, illuminating the structure.
‘I saw on TikTok we enter through Grand Central,’ I replied.
‘Normally you do,’ Jimmy replied softly. ‘But we can enter through that door tonight,’ he leaned closer, pointing to a set of black doors, ‘And I thought you’d enjoy it more if it was just the two of us.’
I turned to him in shock. He lowered his head, looking almost embarrassed at this grand gesture. I was lost for words, yet full of questions. Like, how much money and power did this man have if he could shut an entire tourist attraction just for me?
‘Come on, let me show you around,’ Jimmy said. His driver had hopped out without me even noticing and opened his car door.
I opened my door, not wanting to wait for any more Princess treatment. Instantly, I felt the thick, muggy air surround me. Jimmy jogged around the side of the car, holding the door for me to get out properly. Then we headed into Summit One together, surrounded by commuters racing to the train station, taxi horns honking and the generalised chaos of the city.
As we entered, silence returned. A young woman stationed behind the reception desk immediately walked around to greet us.
‘Mr Link.’ She beamed. ‘It’s wonderful to have you here. If you’d like to follow me, I’ll escort you to the elevator.’
I followed behind, taking in the extensive winding queue system that was entirely empty. We passed through a huge foyer and headed straight towards a bank of elevators. The young woman pressed a button, and one of the elevator doors slid open. A man was standing by the controls.
‘Welcome to Summit One Vanderbilt, please come in,’ he said, inviting us into the mirrored elevator.
I stepped in and turned to Jimmy with a massive grin on my face. He seemed amused by my excitement.
‘How many floors do we go up?’ I asked.
‘We’re about to go over a thousand feet, ma’am. The observatory decks are floors ninety-one through to ninety-three,’ the young man replied.
Jimmy stepped in and joined me. ‘Are you ready, Ella?’ He nudged me jokingly.
‘Eh, yes! Let’s go!’ I laughed, completely bowled over, as the doors shut.
The elevator lights dimmed into darkness, and I turned to Jimmy, who smiled back at me. I felt pressure all over me as we soared into the sky. Brightly lit special effects played around the elevator walls as if we were flying through space. I grabbed hold of Jimmy’s arm, feeling my ears pop on the way up.
Then, within only a few seconds, the lift came to a gentle stop.
‘Enjoy your evening,’ the elevator man said.
The doors parted and bursts of orange and pink immediately greeted us. I stepped out to find that the floor was entirely wrapped in glass, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city. The sun was setting, sending streaks of deep colour across the sky. It seemed like the city went on forever.
I suddenly realised I was still grasping Jimmy’s arm and let go.
‘Remarkable, huh?’ He held back, allowing me to wander up to the enormous glass walls.
‘This is absolutely unbelievable.’ I laughed, feeling a whole intensity of emotions creep up on me. It was beautiful, calm and quiet. It was the first time I wasn’t hearing background noise ploughing through my brain since leaving Glasgow.
‘Wait. Is that the Empire State Building?’ I pointed over to a tower so tall that its needle point seemed to pierce the sky.
I felt Jimmy’s body press against me, peering over my shoulder. ‘Sure is, and the Chrysler Building is just there.’ He pointed to the beautiful, layered Art Deco spire, almost at eye level with us. ‘And Central Park, of course, is just over there.’
