CHAPTER 11
Benito
I walked into Ben's penthouse for the second time. The first time had been to attempt to strike a bargain with him. And now, the second time I was walking into this incredibly impressive private lobby, it was to move in and live here. To say that this was a surreal moment was to be putting it way too mildly.
I was trailing two suitcases behind me, the wheels humming in a low tune as they rolled over the gleaming polished marble floor, while behind me Tino followed, also pulling along a few suitcases.
Ben came out of the front doors and hurried over to me, taking the suitcases from me.
“I'll take those,” he said. “A lady should never have to carry heavy weights around. You should have called me when the car pulled in, and I would have come down to get the suitcases from the parking lot.”
“It's uh, it's okay,” I said, still feeling weird. “I'm used to hauling heavy boxes of food products around the diner. Pulling a few suitcases on wheels isn't a big deal.”
Ben was insistent about this though.
“Well from now on, there won't be any more hauling of heavy items, not by you. Whatever you need done, you tell me, and I'll make sure it gets done by someone suitable. You got it?”
I nodded; what else could I say.
“Come, let me show you to your room,” he said, pulling the suitcases through the massive penthouse.
“Alright, thanks,” I said, trailing somewhat awkwardly behind him.
I stared all around me as I followed him through the penthouse. Everything in here was so luxurious, all the fittings and trimmings of such high quality, all the décor so beautifully done, and I couldn't help but marvel at the opulence – and again, I felt so incredibly out of place here. I didn't know when – or if ever – I would get used to living in a place like this, where I was too scared to touch anything for fear of breaking it.
We soon reached my room, and when Ben opened the door I let out a gasp of surprise. The room was huge – almost as big as my whole apartment above the diner. It was a corner room, and two walls consisted entirely of floor to ceiling windows which looked out over the expanse of the glittering lights of night-time Detroit, which were just starting to come on now that the sun had almost set.
“Wow . . .” I murmured.
“Quite a view, huh?” said Ben with a grin. “I knew you'd like it.”
He set the bags down on the floor and Tino followed us in and did the same.
“I'm gonna go back down to the car and get the other bags,” he said.
“Sure thing, Tino, see you in a minute,” replied Ben.
Tino left, and now Ben and I were alone. Things felt a little weird and awkward between us to say the least. I could see him looking at me with desire in his eyes, and to be honest I felt some of that desire myself. The more I looked at him the more physically attracted I felt toward him, but at the same time I knew that I couldn't let him get any closer to me, not now, not yet. It would take time to get to know each other, and I needed a lot more than mere physical attraction before I could allow a man to get close to me.
“You must be hungry,” said Ben, “seeing as it's almost dinner time.”
“I guess I am,” I replied.
“Well come, let me show you how to order food.”
“Order food? You don't cook here?”
“I do sometimes,” he replied. “In fact, I'm a big fan of cooking. I love it, really . . . I can make a mean pasta, one that you'll never forget. My grandma's recipe. The problem is, I'm so busy, I rarely have the time to cook. And I refuse to do a half-assed job when it comes to cooking. No microwave dinners for me, nope. If I cook, it has to be the real deal, and that usually takes upward of two hours.”
“So, you just order takeout every night? That can't be healthy, can it?”
He chuckled.
“I don't order takeout. Well, you might technically call it takeout, but it sure ain't no McDonalds or Burger King or any of that junk.”
“Well what is it then?”
“Did you see the gourmet restaurant downstairs? All organic ingredients, free range, all that stuff?”
“I did, yeah.”
“I helped the chef set up the business there, and I helped him get a really good price on rent in this building too. In return, he makes me whatever I want from the menu – and he can pretty much whip up anything you might want that isn't on the menu too. All you gotta do is turn on your smart TV with this remote.”
He picked up a remote control and turned on the gigantic smart TV that was mounted on the wall opposite my bed – which was also humongous.
“Alright, so you just navigate to here,” he said, pointing with the remote, “and you go to the Earth's Bounty page, and there's the menu. You just click on whatever you want, choose the quantity, and hit the order button. It'll be sent up here as soon as it's made, and because I'm a priority client, that usually takes half an hour or less.”
“And what about payment?”
He laughed.
“It's all taken care of, Bethany. You don't need to worry about that at all. Now that you're my girlfriend, you don't gotta worry about a thing. I'm gonna look after you, and when I say that . . . I mean that I'm gonna look after you very well. You won't want for a thing. Now, since we're already looking at the menu, what would you like to order?”
I browsed through the menu on the gigantic screen, and again I felt a sense of being overwhelmed. All of this exotic sounding fare with its strange ingredients from all across the world was so vastly different to the simple all-American fare I was used to selling and eating at my diner. Still, I was hungry, so I eventually chose a pizza with familiar-sounding ingredients.
“And that's all you'll be having?” asked Ben. “No drinks? No wine, or maybe a cappuccino?”
“I guess a glass of red wine would be good with it,” I replied. A glass of red would definitely go a long way toward helping me relax, I figured. “And what will you be having?”
“I won't be eating here. There's some urgent business that I must go attend to. I'll be having dinner with another prominent, er, business family shortly to discuss some important matters regarding turf and territories.”
Business family huh? I guess that sounded a lot better than simply saying “crime family” straight up.
“Oh,” I replied. “So, I'll be eating here alone?”
He nodded.
“You can eat in the dining room. There's a big screen TV in there as well if you feel like watching a series or a movie while you eat. But first let me show you your bathroom.”
We walked up to one of the built-in closets and he opened the doors, revealing a small passage that opened into a bathroom. The bathroom was, like everything in this place, oversized, opulent and impressive. There was a huge hit tub, a rain shower, and a big mirror. The fittings all seemed to be of genuine gold, and it was most certainly the most luxurious bathroom I had ever been in.
Ben showed me how to turn the hot tub on properly, how to program the ideal water temperature into the rain shower (it was all digitally controlled) and a few other things, and then we headed out to the dining room, where he showed me how to operate the TV there.
“So, you're leaving now?” I asked.
He nodded.
“Like I said, I have very important business to attend to. I've had your own set of keys made, which I'm going to give you now,” he said, handing me a set of keys. “The digital chip is to allow the elevator to access the penthouse floor, and the other keys are for the front doors. If there are any problems just call me – or speak to Tino. He'll be staying in one of the guest rooms.”
“Alright,” I said, still feeling a little awkward and uneasy. I wondered if I should hug him goodbye.
“Well you enjoy your dinner now. I might see you later, but I'm guessing not. You'll probably have gone to bed by the time I get back. I know you have to wake up early to go open up your diner.”
“Yeah, I do.”
“Tino will drive you there, and he'll hang around to make sure that the CM thugs don't come within sight of the place. Don't worry about a thing now Bethany – you're under my protection, and that means that nobody, and I mean nobody, can even lay a finger on you. You're safe, you're totally safe. You don't have to worry about a thing anymore.”
“Thank you, Ben.”
He nodded and smiled, and I felt a rush of attraction surging through me; he really did have a very handsome smile.
“I hope your meeting goes well,” I said to him.
He picked up his briefcase, which had been set down next to the table, and walked over to the door.
“Thank you, Bethany. I hope you enjoy your dinner, and the rest of your first night in my home. I'm sorry that I'm not able to spend this time with you, but you must understand that I'm a very busy man with very important concerns to attend to.”
“I do understand that. Thank you.”
He left, closing the door quietly behind him, and that was that – I was alone in this huge apartment. Well, alone except for Tino. I looked up and saw him standing by the door, typing out a message on his cellphone. When he was done, he looked up at me.
“I'm going to chill out in my room,” he grunted. “If you need anything, come knock on the door.”
From the tone of his voice, though, I could tell that he was tired and annoyed, and was only saying this because Ben had told him to, and that he didn't actually want to have to do anything else to help me.
“Alright, I'll uh, I'll get hold of you if I need anything,” I said.
He grunted and trudged off to the guest room at the end of the hall, and then shut himself in it. Now I was truly alone in this big place.
I looked around me and let out a long sigh. Even though Ben had tried to make me feel like I was welcome here, and that this place was as much my hone as his, I didn't feel like it was at all. I felt almost like an intruder here, like I was trespassing or something. It wasn't a pleasant feeling at all.
I had to unpack my bags, but I wasn't feeling up to that at the moment, so instead I turned on the massive TV and leaned back in the dining room chair and started flipping through channels. After some time, the doorbell sounded. I walked up to the front door, where a display screen showed security camera footage of the inside of the elevator and the private lobby. I saw a smartly-dressed waiter standing in the lobby, holding my order of food and a glass of red wine.
I opened the front doors and let him in, and he walked in with a smile and set the food and the wine down on the table.
“Let me get you a tip for that at least,” I said, reaching for my purse.
He held up his hands to refuse me.
“No, no need for that, miss, Ben Sciotti already gives us waiters very generous monthly tips for bringing his meals up here. It's all taken care of! Enjoy the meal.”
“Thanks,” I said, still feeling very out of place here.
He walked out and I locked the door behind him, and then there I was, alone again. Well, at least I wasn't alone and hungry. I sat down at the dining table and opened the pizza box. I had to admit that the smell alone was delectable, and when I bit into that first slice it was pure heaven. It was no exaggeration to state that this was the best pizza I'd ever had in my life.
I was only able to eat about three slices, because it was so rich and filling. No matter, I could have the rest as leftovers the next day. I took the box to the fridge, which like everything in this place was brand new, ultra-modern and very big, and opened it. I was surprised to see that it was almost empty. I shrugged; at least that meant that there was plenty of space for my pizza.
I put it in and then walked over to my room. I looked out of the huge windows at the city lights, and wondered if I could see my little diner from here. Probably not; I was too high up, and it was too far away. And besides, the lights there were all out now, now that the place was entirely empty.
That thought almost made me want to cry. The place I'd grown up in and lived my whole life in, the only place I had ever called home – it was no longer my home. Now I had to call this place home – this huge, almost scary penthouse, with its luxury and expensive items, none of which I was comfortable with.
Still, I had to simply accept this new reality. This was the hand that fate had dealt me – well, fate and that bastard Sal – and it would be better if I simply came to terms with it and didn't feel too sad or regretful over things that couldn't be changed. At least I had still gotten to keep the diner.
With one last sigh, I looked out over the city, and then pressed the button on the wall that closed the long drapes, shutting off this view. After that I headed into the bathroom and started running a bath in the hot tub, doing my best to settle in and relax on this, my first night living as Ben Sciotti's girlfriend.
TWO WEEKS LATER
I walked into the penthouse and set my shopping bags down, and Tino ambled in behind me and locked the door behind us.
“I'm going to my room,” he grunted. “If you need anything-”
“I'll knock,” I said with a sigh. Those words were about the only words I ever heard from him. Tino was with me most of the time, but he wasn't really “with” me. When I was at the diner he was parked outside in his SUV, watching the street, and when I was at home he shut himself in the guest room. In the car, when he was driving me to and from the diner, or any other place I needed to go, we didn't talk. He simply turned his music up loud – probably to stifle conversation before I could even get it going.
As usual, the house was empty. Ben was out, as it seemed he almost always was. In two weeks’ time, I don't think I had managed to spend a total of more than two or three hours with him. I'd gotten to know him a little better, but I had to put emphasis on the word “little”. We really hadn't had the time to have any in-depth conversations, no real heart-to-heart talks. Now, what little we had interacted had been great. There was an undeniable chemistry between us, and I could feel my physical attraction toward him intensifying, and I knew for sure that he was even more physically attracted to me now than ever.
Still, despite this fiery attraction, he had kept his word, and had not laid a finger on me, nor tried to push me to take the relationship to the next level. He had respected my wishes to take this thing slowly and to be patient.
I just wished that we could talk more. While there was a significant age gap between us, with him being in his mid-thirties and me in my mid-twenties, we did find a surprising amount of common ground and shared interests, some of which surprised me, given our very different backgrounds and lives and social circles. And it was this stuff that I wanted to find out more about, but there just didn't ever seem to be time for that.
And the truth was, in this gigantic place, with all its luxury and technology and gadgets and gigantic TVs, I was feeling not only lonely and isolated but bored as well. I'd complained about this, so Ben had simply gotten me a credit card, on which he said I could spend as much as I liked. And that was what I had just done – Tino had taken me to a few high-end clothing stores, and I had bought some new and stylish clothes, clothes of the type I never would have been able to afford before.
But the novelty of that soon wore off. I knew that buying clothes to cover up these feelings simply wouldn't work. After all, I'd never been hugely into clothes or shopping anyway; I'd never really been one of those girls.
So now I had these bags of brand new clothes with the tags till on them that I had been so excited about buying – and now all I wanted to do was to take them back. I sighed. What was I gonna do? I really didn't want to spend another night in this place all by myself.
I recalled seeing a book store downstairs, so I decided that I'd go down there and buy a book, and maybe get a coffee afterwards. I wasn't gonna tell Tino about it; he would just want to come down and follow me around, and I just wanted (and needed) some alone time.
I quietly opened the door and then shut it carefully behind me, taking care not to make any noise. Then I headed down to the mall in the elevator and headed straight to the book store. I spent some time browsing, which was enjoyable, and finally picked out a Paul Coelho novel. I paid for it with my new credit card, courtesy of Ben, and then wandered over to a coffee shop.
I sat down and ordered a coffee and a slice of sun-dried tomato and goat cheese quiche, and then started to get into the book.
It wasn't long, however, before I was interrupted.
“You, I've seen you around here a lot over the last couple of weeks.”
I looked up and saw two attractive young women standing at my table. Both were dressed impeccably in designer dresses and high heels, and both had perfectly-done hair. Each had perfect makeup, which was a little on the heavy side really, and both sported very expensive gold and diamond jewelry. These two were definitely very wealthy, or at least had very wealthy boyfriends. I felt under-dressed next to them, in my casual jeans and t-shirt.
“Um yeah, hi. I live upstairs, actually,” I replied.
“Yeah, we figured. Who do you know in this building?”
They were being a little rude, I thought; the expressions on their faces were certainly not friendly, and they were being very blunt and direct with their questions. They hadn't even bothered to introduce themselves.
“I know Ben Sciotti.”
“You know Ben?” one asked, seeming incredibly surprised. “How do you know Ben?”
“I'm his girlfriend, actually. I live in his penthouse with him.”
I may as well have told them that I had just come out of a UFO from Mars from the look they gave me. They simply stared at me, their jaws hanging open with shock. Eventually one of them spoke.
“Good Lord,” she exclaimed staring at her friend with shock, “Ben's taste in women certainly has declined! He must be on drugs or something! Look at this one! Which gutter did he find you in, sweetie?!”
“What?!” I exclaimed. I couldn't believe what she had just said.
“You heard me,” she sneered. “Your kind doesn't belong in this building. You should do us all a favor and go back to whatever trailer park you crawled out of.”
I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and certainly didn't want to hear any more of it. I got up, strode over to the counter and paid my bill, abandoning the half-eaten quiche and half-drunk coffee, and then stormed out.
It was unbelievable! How dare they speak to me like that? Who did that sort of thing?
This whole situation had just been getting worse and worse from the day I had moved in, and now I felt as if I had finally reached the point where I couldn't take it anymore. I went straight back up to the penthouse to wait for Ben. I didn't care how late he came back tonight, I was going to stay up and confront him. I had put up with enough now, and I was deeply unhappy. I just couldn't do this anymore. Now I was not only having to deal with loneliness and boredom, but being insulted and humiliated by the snobs who lived here too.
This was it; I had reached the end of my tether. I was going to sell the diner and leave this town. It was the only choice I had left. What else could I do?
With these thoughts burning in my mind, I sat down at the table to wait for Ben . . .