“I’ve organized for us to go to a dealer tomorrow,” Ace says as he parks the SUV amongst other high-end cars. “Did you hear what I said, Lexi?” Ace says.
“Oh yes. Why are we going to a dealer?” I ask.
“I want to get you a good, reliable car.” Ace says.
All my warning bells go off. I feel as if I’m losing myself in this. All the things that I’m familiar with are being stripped away from me. I’ve agreed to move into his condo and now he wants me to change my car. “What else do you want to change about me?” I ask Ace in a deceivingly friendly voice.
He turns off the engine and turns to me. “What do you mean by that, Lexi?”
“I mean, first it’s my home, then my car. What else do I have to change so that I can fit into your lifestyle?” I’m angry and irrational but I can’t seem to stop myself.
“You don’t have to change your car if you don’t want to and as for residences, it was a choice, not forceful.” He turns the key and the car roars to life. “Just give me the word and I’ll drive you and Luna back home.”
I fold my hands across my chest. “We’re here, we might as well come in.”
Ace carries Luna up to the entrance of the building while I trail behind. I notice things I hadn’t noticed before. Like how high-class the people who live here look. Things that make my insecurity worse. I don’t fit in here. This is not my world.
We don’t talk all the way up to his apartment. When we enter, he carries Luna to the floor to ceiling windows that look out on the well-manicured garden below. Luna wriggles until Ace places her gently on the floor. She goes to the window and lays her palms flat against the glass.
“I’ve got something for you,” Ace says and goes in the direction of the bedrooms.
I sit down cross-legged next to Luna and look out. Tears sting my eyes. It feels wrong to think of this as home. How long will it be home for before Ace gets tired of us? I have a knack for attracting men who dread commitment. I remember the night that Luna was conceived. Ace had let me believe that there would be something more. Okay, maybe not in words, but he hadn’t disputed when I made plans for the following week.
Would he do the same thing here? Would he disappear on us and leave us in a condo where the fees alone are half of what I make a month?
“Here you go, sweetheart.”
I jump, startled. I was so lost in thought I didn’t hear Ace return. He hands Luna a big pink ball. She lets out a cry of delight. It rolls on the floor and she goes after it.
“I’ll go and get the boxes,” Ace says.
“Thanks,” I mumble.
Where is the connection that he and I had, I muse worriedly? It feels like we are strangers. I’ve made a big mistake. Thankfully, Luna distracts me and rolls the ball to me. I face her and inch back a little and then roll it back to her. Her bursts of laughter are just what I need, and my tension slowly melts away. I hear the sound of the door opening. Ace doesn’t speak to me and carries the box straight to the bedroom.
He does this four more times until everything has been put away. “Do you want me to show you around?”
“Yes, please.” I pick Luna up and we follow him to the kitchen.
I look at the big space with a new appreciation in my eyes. There’s every gadget conceived by man and lots of counter space. I love the shiny steel equipment that is the stove, oven, and huge fridge. It’s a dream kitchen to work in.
“This is your kitchen now, you can cook if you want or not,” Ace says. “I’ve ordered takeout for today and I also bought some canned food for Luna.”
He has thought of everything. Moving day is not a day when you want to be in the kitchen cooking. Even if all your belongings fit in four boxes. “Thank you.”
The next part of the tour is the bedrooms. “I’ve put everything here in the spare room. You can move them to whichever room you want to.”
My heart pounds wildly. I see what Ace has done. He has left it up to me to decide where I want to sleep. He confirms this when he shows me Luna’s room and another guest room, and then the master bedroom.
“You have choices of where you want to sleep. I won’t be offended if you want to sleep in the guest room.”
“Thank you.”
“I’ll take Luna for a walk around the complex. That should give you some time to unpack.”