Grayson drove Kaitlyn to a ten-story luxury apartment building that hadn’t been built when they left New Canton fifteen years ago. In large, curling, silver lettering, the name Atlantia was spelled out down the side of the building
“Not apartments,” he corrected. “They’re condos.”
“What’s the difference?”
He shrugged, “Not much. Buying versus renting.” Slinging her duffle bag over one shoulder, he fished out a black key fob from his back pocket. It had two red buttons on the flat surface and a silver key dangling from the ring. When he pressed it against the black pad beside the double glass doors, there was an audible click, and Kaitlyn found she was able to push it open.
“Normally there’s a doorman behind the desk if you forget your fob, but he’s off duty on Sunday, so if you’re going to forget your fob—”
“Do it on a weekday, got it.” Kaitlyn looked around the elegantly appointed lobby. It looked like an open concept living space in a house far nicer than any she’d ever been in. A long, glass-enclosed fireplace with flames leaping from translucent blue stones loosely divided the room into living and dining. On one side of the fireplace, the space was filled with sleek gray couches and pale blue armchairs that clustered in several separate sitting areas. A pool table took up one nook, while an alcove of bookshelves and board games took up the other. On the other side of the fireplace was a gourmet kitchen with a stove as nice as any Kaitlyn had seen in the New York restaurants she frequented. A long, rectangular island with a dazzling quartz countertop sat eight barstools, and in the room beyond, Kaitlyn saw a dining room table set for twenty. Somehow, each separate living space was uniquely lit with chandeliers or wall sconces in a way that made them seem both intimate and connected.
Suddenly, what Grayson had said clicked in Kaitlyn’s mind, and she turned abruptly to face him. “Grayson, did you buy a condo? Wait—did you buy two condos? What’s going on?”
He laughed and motioned her to the elevator, “Of course I didn’t buy a condo. Do you know how much a unit in this building would cost?”
“I think it would give even New York City prices a run for their money,” Kaitlyn said, stepping into the most elegant elevator she’d ever seen in her life. The floor was expensive marble tiles and the walls looked like brushed gold.
“You’d be right,” Grayson said, pressing the six button. “The monthly condo fees alone are almost a thousand. A unit like the one you’re staying in just sold for a million.”
Kaitlyn shuddered involuntarily. “A million dollars? Who can afford that?”
“You’ve been away from New Canton too long, Kait. Half the population can.”
Or not nearly long enough, Kaitlyn thought, following Grayson off the elevator and to the end of the hallway. The unit he unlocked was surprisingly spacious for a condo and yet didn’t seem nearly big enough to cost one million. It was beautiful, of course. Already furnished and decorated by a master hand. And was that a ZLine Professional Range in the kitchen? To think she’d worried they’d be stuck with electric. She wandered into the bedroom, unsurprised to see that both it and the attached bathroom looked ripped from the pages of an interior design catalog. Clearly, nothing in this building was allowed to be less than perfectly appointed. There were probably daily checks to make sure you hadn’t left a dish in the sink or your bed unmade. But even with the stove, was it really worth—
“Oh,” Kaitlyn said involuntarily and followed the magnetic pull of the floor-to-ceiling windows that framed the Atlantic Ocean. She realized now that there was no artwork hanging on the walls, and this must be why. Even if they’d brought in original Monets—and she wouldn’t have put it past the owner of the building—the watercolors would have paled in comparison to the work of art nature provided.
“Yeah,” Grayson said, coming to stand beside her. “I know. It beats my view by a mile.”
“Are you staying here, too?”
“No, he could only free up one unit. I’m in the place I originally rented for us.” Grayson smiled crookedly. “It’s got a nice view of a brick wall, but it’s practically within walking distance of the restaurant.”
Kaitlyn let herself gape out the window for another moment before turning to her brother. “Grayson, you have to tell me. How are we affording this? And who is he?”
Looking down into her serious face, Grayson’s smile faded and his blue-gray eyes sobered. “Come on, let’s go to dinner. I think this is a dish best served with a strong drink.”
Chapter Three
Landon felt his lip curl involuntarily as he pulled into the parking lot of Rathskeller. He supposed it said something that the place was crowded on a Sunday night, but he wasn’t sure that something was a compliment to the establishment. Seeing that the fountain in the courtyard had run dry and was badly in need of repair didn’t soften his opinion as he approached the front entrance.
“Good evening, sir!” A girl who couldn’t have been more than sixteen chirped at him from behind the host stand.
“Who the hell are you?” Landon asked, and looked around for the distinguished older man who had greeted patrons for as long as he could remember. Gilles always knew them by name, how many were in their party, where they preferred to sit, and he always squired them to that beautifully set table with discrete inquiries as to their families and well being.
If confronted with such a rude question, Gilles would have raised his thick, white brows and then answered with such grave courtesy that the speaker felt reproved
