Encore! (Tudor Saga Book 1) (21 page)

Though he was invited to a slew of after-parties, Danny politely declined. Instead, we went back to our hotel suite and spent one of the last, quiet nights we would have for the coming six weeks, alone.

While Daniel took a shower, I uncorked a bottle of wine and poured us each a glass. Walking over to one of the plush club chairs, I settled in. I looked out at the skyline of this huge sprawling city and wondered if this was home for us. I didn't hear him walk in the room, too mesmerized by what I saw.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked, handing me a brush and comb as he headed to get his glass of wine. He sat down on the floor in front of me. Brushing his long, flowing mane had somehow become a job he loved for me to do. It gave us some quiet "us" time. I would brush it, then comb it back and up. He seemed to relax when I did it.

"Nothing, really, I was just staring out at the view. There's nothing else like it."

"No, there isn't. Do you think you'd be happy living here?"

"With you, yes."

"Would you like to spend part of tomorrow looking at a couple of places? We don't have to make a decision now. We're coming back at the end of the tour and we can look some more then."

I giggled as I bent over his light brown hair and kissed him on the cheek. "Had this all planned, didn’t you?"

"Guilty as charged. Seriously, Mary, I thought it couldn't hurt to look. To at least see what's out there."

"I agree. Are you planning to rent or to buy?"

He took a sip of his wine, turning to face me. I was finished with his hair. "Whatever I do, we do it together. Us, sweet, always remember there is no ‘I’ - it is always ‘us’."

"Then let's see what's out there. Like you said, we're coming back in six weeks; so we can look some more, then. Perhaps if this agent is any good, he will learn what we want, our likes and dislikes, and have more to show us when we return."

Putting his glass of wine on the floor, he turned around and curled up on his knees facing me. He put his arms around my waist and nestled his head between my breasts. He stayed that way for a few seconds. When he loosened his hold, I bent over and met his lips. "Let's have another glass of wine and then call it a night."

"You sure?" I asked, pushing his hair off his shoulders, letting it cascade down his back.

"Quite. I just want to enjoy some quiet time with my favorite girl. You know, before the madness begins."

"Ah yes, but you love the madness, Daniel."

"I do; but I also know that with it all I may neglect you. So, while we have some time to ourselves, I would like to spend it lying in bed holding you."

This simple time together was deeper than Daniel would ever let be known. I was the only one who knew the real Daniel, his core. Despite the outer façade - the happy, live life to its fullest Daniel, inside was this quiet, introspective man—a man who needed a safe spot to go and turn off the rest of his world. That safe spot was me…and he was mine.

****

The first thing I learned when meeting with Brandon Collins, our real estate agent, was that condos were at a premium in Manhattan. The inventory was notoriously low, as foreign investors had been snatching up properties left and right, mainly in the newer, sleeker looking buildings. Rentals, like those Danny wanted and could now easily afford, were also a prized commodity.

Learning all this didn't deter Daniel at all. Brandon had three properties to show us, all for sale. Not knowing our tastes, he chose one in a co-op, an older Manhattan building, a unit in a newer building, which he made the point of telling us wouldn't be on the market long, and finally a newly renovated unit in another somewhat older building. I liked his choices, and more importantly, so did Danny.

The first property was in the Dakota. Brandon picked this one because it was a good sized unit, was priced right, but needed some updating. The Dakota, he reminded us, is where John and Yoko lived and Yoko still does.

We looked around while Brandon followed discreetly behind us, pointing out various architectural jewels or history of the unit. The kitchen and bathrooms were in dire need of renovation, and by renovation I mean gutting. The unit was not on the preferred side of the building, therefore the lower price.

"What do you think, sweet?" Danny asked as we stood in what was a large open living room.

"It's nice. I love the old architecture, but there's a lot of work that needs to be done before we could even move in."

"It's also dark. I want more natural light."

"Yes, it is. There's a lot of potential here, Danny, but you're right, it is dark."

Turning to Brandon, who had just walked into the room, Danny told him our likes and concerns. Brandon made some notes on his iPad as Daniel spoke.

"Very good; and I agree with your concerns. The next unit I have to show you is in a newer building. It has a lot of natural light and is quite contemporary compared to this unit."

"Lead on," Danny replied.

The second unit was just as Brandon had described: sleek, contemporary, lots of light and with a price tag that choked me. I noticed Daniel never blinked whenever price was mentioned. It was far too contemporary for my tastes, but Daniel seemed to come alive in it.

"This is more like it, Mary. I like the feel of this one."

"I do, too, but it’s way too modern for my taste. It has lots of natural light and I love that, but we'd have to have some mix as far as furniture goes."

"You wouldn't feel at home here?"

"It's too sterile, Danny."

He looked around and nodded his head. "Yes, I think I understand what you're saying."

He turned to Brandon and asked, "You said this unit could comes as is, with furnishings, or without, correct?"

"Yes. The owners are willing to sell either way."

Daniel turned to me, "What would you think of it without this furniture? Picture it with our own."

"Yes, I could see it. I like the contemporary; I just want our home to have feeling and comfort, Danny. If we decided on this one, I could see us here, with our own furnishings."

"Good, I can too, sweet. Put this one on a short list, for sure."

"Okay, one other thing, Danny. It would require a total paint job. I cannot live with these funky wall colors. It has to be more neutral."

"I agree; but I leave that sort of thing to you." He grinned as we made our way out of the unit and into the hall.

Brandon took us to the final unit. This one faced Central Park, in an older building—though not as old as the Dakota. I was in love with this one from the moment I walked in the door. Of the three units he had shown us so far, this was my choice.

Though it was older, the owners had completely renovated it. While they kept the integrity of the architectural details,, they had updated everything. The bathrooms and kitchen were brand new and there was gorgeous new flooring throughout. The paint was fresh and up-to-date in neutral colors I preferred. It's not that minded color, I just felt it needed to be done sparingly and should make a statement.

The kitchen kept calling me back. I loved it. It was almost as though I had chosen everything in it. The cabinetry reminded me of a farmhouse kitchen and had every modern appliance known to a cook. It was bright and cheerful as it had windows to welcome visitors.

"You like this, sweet?" I heard Danny ask from one side of the room. I turned and found him standing against a large granite top bar.

"Oh, yes. It's quite functional and larger than any of the others. What do you think?"

"Well," he chuckled, "the kitchen is your domain. I do like it, though. What about the rest of the unit, Mary?"

"I really like this one Danny. I could definitely see us living here. What about you? Is there enough room for your music?"

"I like this one, as well. There is plenty of room for me to work and I could see us living here for quite a long time. Plenty of room to grow here."

"The view is spectacular, too. Let's put this at the top, okay?"

He turned to Brandon, who was smiling and making notes. "You heard her, right?"

"Oh yes," Brandon replied. "What would you like to do now? If you have time we could break for lunch. I can go back to my office and see what else I can pull up."

Danny and I looked at each other. I nodded. "We might as well, Danny. We don't have anything else planned and it's going to be six weeks before we're back. I'd like to see a couple more places, if there are some available."

"I agree. We'll go have lunch, while you're doing that. I think, however, when you look, it should be for a place similar to this one."

While Brandon went back to his office, Daniel and I went in search of lunch. Rather than go into a stuffy restaurant, Daniel decided we would be brave and have hot dogs from a vendor and wait in the park.

Sitting down on a quiet bench with our lunch, we discussed the two units we really liked as we ate.

"So, out of the three, the last one is our favorite?" Daniel asked.

"I would have to say yes. I love it, Danny. We wouldn't have to do anything except move in."

"True. Whatever we decide, I'll keep my place in London so we have somewhere to stay when we visit."

"What about the more contemporary one? I know you really liked that one…"

"I do; but this is for us, sweet. I could be very happy in this last one with you. It has enough of both the old and new and it works together well."

"Then we put it at the top, with the contemporary one second. The Dakota I think we can eliminate, right?"

"Yes, quite depressing I thought."

"Me, too."

"Would you be okay if we put a contract in on this last one, provided we don't find anything else today we like better? I know we said we would look when we return in six weeks, but you heard Brandon earlier. The market has a low inventory and I'd hate for it to be gone when we return. It's up to you, Mary."

"Yes. Let's see what Brandon comes up with for this afternoon; but you're right, I'd hate for it not to be available when we come back."

An hour later, we met up with Brandon in front of another building. This one was a strangely laid out unit. Neither of us cared for it and that was likely one of the reasons the price had been drastically reduced. The floor plan was an "L" shape, narrow and no real way to renovate. Plus, there was no place for Danny's music unless a bedroom was converted. It quickly went to the bottom of our list.

The second and final unit was in the midst of renovation. It had three bedrooms, but also had a loft, which intrigued Daniel. I knew he was thinking the upper space could be used for his music. The huge wall of windows made it appealing to me, but the entire unit was in such a state of renovation, I had to turn to my imagination to picture us living here. The price tag was also the highest of any we had looked at. Over confident owners, I thought.

Daniel was already speaking with Brandon when I walked back into the living room.

"I was just telling Brandon, I feel this unit has too much left to be done. And with us being out of town, I just don't feel it's a good fit. Do you agree?"

"Yes, there is far too much left undone. Plus, we'd have to hire people to come in and finish, and we just don't have the time to fool with that right now."

I looked at Daniel and then Brandon, who seemed to be waiting on me to say something further. "Daniel, do you want to do as we discussed at lunch?"

Daniel flicked me a lopsided grin. I realized the subject was what was being discussed when I walked in. He was obviously waiting on my final approval. "Yes, why don't we? I would hate for that unit to be gone in six weeks."

"Okay. I sort of hate rushing like this; but I do understand, inventory is low. You're sure you don't want to look at rentals?" Daniel asked, looking straight at me.

"No, I would rather when we make the move it's into our home, not a temporary one. Plus, we both love that one. I know we'll be happy living there."

I looked at Brandon. "You heard the man, let's make an offer on the place."

We left Brandon in front of the last unit. He was going to get the necessary documents prepared and bring them to Daniel in a couple of hours. The offer would be made and the wait would begin.

We returned to the hotel, exhausted by our long day. I collapsed onto the sofa while Daniel fended texts and voice mails. He approached, handing me a bottle of water while listening to a voice mail. Once he was finished, he sat with me, placing my legs on his lap.

"Tired, angel-mine?"

"Yes, but a good tired. And you?"

"Same, but I'll be fine. So, we're about to embark on our first real deal, sweet. Are you okay with everything?"

"Yes, of course I am, Danny. We discussed this. You will purchase our home. I have no problem with it. There is no way I would qualify, anyway."

"Well, if the offer is accepted, Brandon is going to explore all avenues. But what's mine is yours, sweet. It is ours. It will take us some time, with this tour, to blend everything together; but you're stuck with me, now."

"I can't imagine anyone else I'd rather be stuck with, Daniel Kennedy."

Brandon arrived, documents in hand. He and Daniel sat at the table as Brandon explained everything. The owner's agent had already been notified that an offer would be coming through. Once Daniel signed off on everything, Brandon would fax the offer to them. Then the wait would be on.

As the two of them were doing that, I busied myself getting us organized and ready to leave the next morning. It never ceased to amaze me how much stuff went along on a tour. This time, however, Daniel was trying something new. He had done it in Europe, but never in the United States. He was going to travel for the most part via tour bus. There would be three, one for us, one for the band, and one for the crew.

Daniel was still in charge. The maestro was quite specific on what he would and would not do regarding his traveling requirements. He made it quite clear that he would not travel more than five hundred miles, preferring the majority of that be done at night. For any venues further than that, we would fly. Luckily, flying was quite rare.