“Imagine the convenience of being able to have everything you need right here,” I said. “Don’t feel like getting a cab or fighting traffic? You don’t have to. If you don’t want to be gone long, you don’t have to. It’s all right here. Our building is the future. People don’t want to brave the weather. They want to stick close to home without sacrificing the perks of what is out there.”
“Are you going to be inviting Jana to the grand opening next week?”
I kept my smile in place. “She’s welcome to check out all we have to offer here at Sky North Tower.”
“Has she shown any interest in becoming a Canadian citizen?”
I looked at the young woman that asked the stupid question. “You would need to ask her that,” I replied.
“Is that why the two of you broke up?” she asked.
I smiled at her and completely ignored her question. “Let’s go on up to the third floor to check out the two-bedroom model,” I said.
Once again, I was doing my best to sidestep the stupid questions about my love life. I hit the button for the elevator and reconsidered trapping myself in a box with the vultures.
It was too late. The doors opened and we all piled in. I tried like hell to avoid getting near the woman asking the personal questions and ignoring the real reason we were here. She was sneaky and found a way to stand right beside me.
“So, are you and Jana still talking?” she asked.
“I’m not sure why you and the rest of the media are hung up on this. We were friends. We went out a couple times while she was filming here in Vancouver.”
“You’re not the father of her unborn baby?” she pressed.
Ding!
I practically raced off the elevator. If there had been women and small children in front of me, they would have been knocked to the floor. I was that desperate. I walked across the hall and quickly entered the digital code into the lock. We weren’t using keys. It was all high tech and high-end. I was hoping we were starting a new trend. We were the future.
“Please, come in,” I said to the media filing into two-thousand square feet of luxury living. The unit had been staged by the designer who had put together eight floorplans for us to use. Even I had to admit it was pretty damn sweet. A little small for my particular tastes, but that was because I lived in a sweet little mansion.
The journalists fanned out to inspect the unit. I gave my little spiel, listing out the features that really set our apartments apart from the rest of the buildings in Vancouver. Ours were the best.
“Next week, I hope you will all come back,” I said. “Our full staff will be on hand. The coffee shop will be manned with the best baristas in Vancouver. You’ll get a chance to meet our event coordinator, and some of our personal trainers will also be on hand to provide some free fifteen-minute sessions. Of course, our chef has prepared a tasting menu to sample some of the dishes that will be served in the restaurant on the second floor. One of the restaurants on the second floor.”
“What kind of fees will people have to pay?”
“There is a standard fee that is really nominal when compared to the services available,” I explained. “The special events, restaurants, and other shops in the building will cover a lot of the overhead cost, which makes our apartments even more affordable.”
“Can we see one of the penthouses?”
I smiled and slowly shook my head. “I’m afraid not. We do have the virtual tour of the penthouses, but for security reasons, we’ve opted not to have those included in the tour. Many of them have already been purchased. Our tower is going to be one of the safest buildings in the city. Safe, as well as private. We will have onsite security with surveillance. Only residents will be allowed up to the third floor and beyond.”
I watched as they jotted down everything I was saying. This little tour was a precursor to the big event next week. We wanted to get people excited. If my father was here like he was supposed to be, he could use that natural charm he wielded. I liked to think I had been blessed with the same charm, but he’d had over sixty years to hone his skills. At thirty-eight, I was still developing mine.
“We have one other unit I’d like to show you all,” I said.
We moved on to the fourth floor to one of the units with a better view. It was only one bedroom, but it had an office and perks a single person would appreciate. After the tour, we regrouped in the lobby.
“Does anyone have any questions I can answer?” I asked the group. I caught Josh’s expression. It was one of dread. He shook his head and then covered his face.
That was when I realized what I had done. The reporters all started asking questions at once. None of them were about the tower. It was all about my personal life.
They wanted to know if I was single, dating, or knocking up other women. I didn’t know how the rumors even started. I hadn’t spoken to Jana in weeks. Suddenly, I had read I was the father of her child that she may or may not be pregnant with.
“Thank you all for coming!” Josh jumped into the fray to save me. He ushered the journalists out of the lobby and locked the doors.
“Thanks,” I said. “That was a mistake.”
“I don’t think too much damage was done,” he said.