Page 8 of The Plan
After giving myself a good talking to, I pull the door open and turn towards where he was. I’m hoping I look confident this time; being clothed should at least help with that.
He’s not there.
I turn and look around the garage but I see no sign of him or that he ever existed.
Weird.
I walk back into the kitchen wondering if it was all a hungover illusion and the sexy man in the ripped jeans was all in my head. I make my cup of tea and realise that the electric must be back on because the water boiled. I have no idea about electrics but that seemed pretty quick to change a fuse board.
I try to put thoughts of him on the back burner as I search for some local letting agents and find a number for a taxi firm to get me there.
* * *
An hour later, I’m sat at an estate agents desk. The guy helping me, Luke, must be about my age. He’s pretty good-looking but definitely doesn’t have the same effect on me as the guy with the jeans from earlier.
“Okay, what about this one?” he asks, turning his screen around for me to see.
My list of requirements for a place to live is pretty small, it turns out. I want a decent kitchen, that’s the most important thing. Other than that, I’m pretty flexible as I’m hoping renting will be temporary. I’d ideally like to buy a place of my own, but that’s going to have to wait until the divorce is settled and the money is split.
“You couldn’t swing a cat in that kitchen,” I mutter as he flicks through the images. This makes Luke laugh way too much, and I wonder if this is him flirting. I look up from the screen to find him looking directly at me and it pretty much answers my question. “Is there anything else?” I ask, sounding bored, hoping to show that I’m not interested in anything other than somewhere to live.
“There’s this one, but it’s a flat and you said you wanted a house, ideally.”
I did say that but the houses I’ve looked at aren’t thrilling me. I know I could up my budget but wasting money on rent isn’t what I want to do.
He flicks through pictures of a tight hallway and a small living room before stopping on the kitchen.
“Now that’s more like it,” I say, a little more excitedly. This kitchen is still small compared to what I left behind, but it has some work space and a handful of cupboards, unlike the last place he showed me.
“There’s only one bedroom, and this is the bathroom,” he says, continuing to flick.
“What’s the area like?”
“Up and coming.” And we all know what that means.
“I think I’m going to need to see it.”
“Yes, of course. I have the keys,” he says excitedly, “and I don’t have another client due until this afternoon. We could go now.”
“That’s perfect,” I reply but my voice lacks the excitement of his. I really don’t want this guy to get the idea that I might be interested.
* * *
I really hope he’s right about the area being up and coming. Because right now, it’s pretty down and out. That being said, the ground floor flat has its own parking space right by the entrance. The building itself looks to be well maintained and the flat is…well…it’s fine. It’s just a run of the mill one bed ground floor flat. The paintwork all needs redoing and everything needs a good scrub, but it’ll do. It’s certainly not my dream home but living here wouldn’t be forever; it’s just for now. It’s somewhere for me to call home while I find my feet over here again and get my life up and running.
Plus, the kitchen is the best I’ve seen for what I’m willing to pay each month.
“I’ll take it,” I say, sounding less than enthusiastic.
“Really? Brilliant,” Luke beams—I would imagine because I just secured him some commission. “Let’s head back to the office and we’ll get all the paperwork done.
* * *
“So…do you…uh…fancy going for a drink to celebrate?” Luke asks sheepishly once everything is sorted.
“Thank you for the offer but I’m sorry, now’s not the right time for me.”
“Okay, no worries,” he says quietly. I don’t miss the redness of his cheeks as he starts faffing with the paperwork on his desk. “Here’s my card, just in case you have any questions about the flat. We’ll be in touch once everything has gone through.”
