The elevator didn’t move us up or down after he inserted the card. Instead, the doors slid apart on the opposite side.
We entered and passed through the quiet, well-decorated mezzanine area that overlooked the huge, bustling lobby area below. Front desk attendants plastered ready smiles on their faces, and a male attendant tipped an invisible hat at a couple that passed him. More security officers were visible inside the lobby.
Ansel and I strolled past the main set of elevators and turned into a short hallway decorated with a large fake plant and two large lithographs of splashed paints. When we reached a set of secure double doors, Ansel used his key card to enter the closed-off area located on the opposite side of where the main elevators were situated. Behind the secure doors were three additional elevators.
Using his keycard once more, Ansel punched in a six-digit pin to get the elevator to open. With a hand gesture, he insisted that I enter the middle elevator when it dinged open. I didn’t know what to expect, but my tension had long been eaten away by excitement.
Once we were inside, he inserted the key card and entered another pin. My crooked smirk remained, and I pretended I didn’t notice his eyes on me as we were lifted to the twenty-first floor.
The doors parted, and I enjoyed my first view of Ansel’s penthouse. My jaw dropped, and I couldn’t pick it back up. Ansel gave a quick wink before he stepped out of the elevator. I reveled in my stunned state for a minute before I forced my body to move.
The scent of spring and fresh linens welcomed me as a wall of glass opening the living room to the city captured my attention and held it. My gaze was drawn to high ceilings and a balcony bedroom that sat above the living room. The front wall of the elevated bedroom was all glass, the type of glass that fogged with the flip of a switch.
My gaze fell and settled on the floor. Part of the sparkling blue waters of the pool on the large balcony transitioned into the living room floor. Atop the wavy obsidian water below the floor sat a large, snow-white chaise that pointed towards the view.
The sun’s rays rained into the space, bursting with the revitalizing energy I thought the garage had stolen. I could already picture myself, lying on the chaise, hypnotized by the city’s iridescent landscape.
The living room was dressed in designer furniture from Restoration Hardware. Like his house in the hills, a professional decorator had graced this space. The penthouse was a three-bedroom, twenty-five hundred square foot, two-story dream apartment.
Each piece, from the large white-leather couch to the wooden end tables had been timelessly and classically updated to warm the space with a modern appeal. I admired every beautiful part of his apartment as it captured my full attention. It was love at first sight.
The splendor. The elegance. It led me to ponder Ansel’s net worth. What type of work did he do besides sell guns for his motorcycle club? Was gun running that lucrative a business? He lived a millionaire’s life, and he wasn’t new to it either. Living this way was normal for him.
He handed me my bag and gestured his hand towards the balcony bedroom. A wide grin brightened my face, and I didn’t walk; I ran up the stairs, my worn-out flats slapping against each step.
A winded sigh escaped as I surveyed my new room. Not only was the front wall that looked over the living room all glass, but the opposite side opened to the city. From the bedside table, I picked up the smaller of the two remotes and stood in anxious anticipation as the thick white floor-to-ceiling drapes slid apart. The sun’s magic opened the space, making it bloom with new life as a different angle of the city view presented itself.
The loving embrace of hope tightened around me, chipping away a few more of my anxieties. In this beautiful space, I allowed myself to believe I was safe and protected from my family.
A smile bent my lips when a recurring thought surfaced. Who’s going to protect me from Ansel? The penthouse, although more secure, was smaller than Ansel’s house in the hills, meaning it left me less space to avoid him. This was going to be an interesting arrangement for the next few weeks.