the fact that it didn’t really feel like a home, but it was a trade-off he would tolerate if he had a roof over his head he could afford.
The property owner had smiled the entire time during the visit. Everything had been fine until that dreaded question on the rental application.
Have you ever been convicted of a crime?
He blew out a deep breath. His mistakes had earned him a record that would haunt him for the rest of his life. Just another instance where being the nice guy to someone else hadn’t been the right decision for himself.
Julian pulled out the chair across from him and stared him down. “You don’t know that your reply to that one question was the reason they went with the other applicant. Don’t dwell on it,” Julian said. “Shit happens.”
Ben scoffed. That about summed things up, but it didn’t give him peace of mind in finding a solution. Especially not after three weeks of apartment hunting.
“C’mon, we’ve got another appointment.”
He frowned up at Julian. He could have sworn that place this morning had been the last stop on his list for the day.
Tired and resigned, he wondered if it was worth getting his hopes up to find a place just to have that hope stripped away every time that damn question came up. Julian raised a finger. “We agreed… No pity parties. Now get your ass up. You don’t want to be late.”
Reluctantly, he rose from his seat and pouted all the way to the truck.
Thirty minutes later, Julian made a left onto a road of beachside buildings. Ben straightened in the seat as he looked out every window of Julian’s truck. He grabbed on to Julian’s forearm and pointed to the side of the road, urging him to stop.
“What’s up?”
“Why are we here? These look like hotels?”
“This is the address I have.”
“I can’t afford this.” He swept his hand to point at the cluster of tall buildings but couldn’t deny his gaze wistfully strayed to the beach peeking between the structures.
“We agreed. No pity parties.” Julian pulled back out onto the road.
Ben crossed his arms and scowled. With the other listings, at least he had felt as if there had been a chance. Here, he imagined the door would hit his nose the moment it opened.
After a few more turns, they stopped in front of one of the taller buildings on a cul-de-sac. He peered out through the front window, staring up at the building that looked like a giant mirrored penis erected toward the sky.
A touch to his shoulder drew his attention. “Go up there so you’re not late.”
“You’re not coming with me?”
He stilled when Julian gave him a piece of paper with an address and room number. “You wanted to do this stuff alone. Walk in there and go to the front desk. Let them know you have an appointment. Put your game face on. You’ve got this.”
Ben unclipped his seat belt and fisted the scrap of paper in his hand. He did want to do this stuff on his own, but he wanted to have a fighting chance. He stood in front of the building and stared up. He took a deep breath, tapping into his reservoir of inner strength. Things had never been easy, but he always found a way to push through.
When one door closed, another would open. And this was no different.
Glancing over his shoulder, he gave Julian one final look before walking into the building. The lobby was bustling with people arriving and leaving. There was a large space to his left with couches and tables where people lounged. To his right, was the front desk check-in area. He absently shook his head. None of this made sense. He pulled out his phone from his back pocket and called up his note app as he walked up to the desk clerk.
“Good evening, sir. How may I help you?” The desk clerk’s lips were easy to read, or maybe he had just expected the standard greeting.
He glanced to each side, spotting the small desk with a security guard watching several monitors. Returning his attention to the clerk, he turned his phone’s display toward her, waiting for the woman to read his note. “Mr. Reynolds, it’s great to finally meet you.”
Maybe those lips weren’t so easy to read. He must have read the wrong words.
The clerk called over to one of the bellhops and exchanged a few words. “Please follow him,” the clerk directed, smiling a little more