Love Is Overdue by Natalie Myrie Page B

kitchen and living room that had a balcony off the
eating area. I noticed the camera equipment already set up in the
kitchen, which was ultra-modern. Granite counter-tops with an
under-mounted double sink, stainless steel appliances, a state of
the art cooking range and an island with a few bar stools. It
definitely served as the perfect set up for a cooking
show.
    I was floored. He actually
fucking lived here?
    Lena seemed to notice the
look on my face as I took in my surroundings. “Nice, huh?” She
seemed to read my mind. “Ben bought this place through a
foreclosure about...six months ago? I still can’t believe his luck,
I tell him all the time...”
    “ Yeah...” I
caught my breath as I stopped to take in the view from the harbour.
The Vancouver sky-line was always one of the most breathtaking
vistas, in my mind.
    “ Check out the
herb garden,” she said, leading me onto the balcony.
    It was surprisingly large.
Not only did Ben have enough room for a modest herb garden, but he
also had a monstrously large stainless steel BBQ grill and beside
it an ancient-looking charcoal smoker, and enough room for a decent
sized patio table and chairs.
    “ Fuck. Ben...” I
was beyond impressed, and Lena laughed along with me.
    “ You’re telling
me...lucky bastard,” she muttered under her breath, collapsing down
onto one of the patio chairs and lighting up a
cigarette.
    It was all the temptation I
could handle, so I decided to sit down and join her, gazing out
over the water. “So where is everybody?” I wondered.
    “ Well...Adam and
Patrick went on a beer run and Ben had to go pick up some stuff
from the market and check on things at the restaurant. This shit
never runs on schedule, just so you know...”
    I kind of laughed. “That’s
okay. I was told I’m only observing.”
    Her phone went off all of a
sudden. She glanced at the screen and then picked up. “Hey, what’s
up?” Slight pause. “No, it’s all good, everything ready to
go...yeah, they’ll probably be back in a few minutes...I don’t
know, I was gonna ask you the same thing...” Another slight pause
and then she laughed. “Yeah, she’s right here, you wanna talk to
her?” My ears perked up. “Oh, okay...cool, see you soon.” She
clicked off her phone and turned to me. “That was Ben...apparently
he’s on his way.”
    I smiled, taking another
drag of my cigarette. “You guys known each other a while,
huh?”
    She nodded. “Yeah, like ten
years or something. I used to date his cousin and we all used to
hang out back in the day...”
    “ Ben told me
you’re the one responsible for the whole youtube sensation he’s
become,” I joked.
    “ I know,” she
said dryly. “Ben owes me fifty percent of all his success. Half
this shit you see should rightfully be mine.”
    I laughed at that. I was
starting to enjoy her wacky personality and dry humour. She was my
kinda chick...
    “ So you two have
gotten kinda tight,” she said, putting me on the spot. “What’s up
with that?”
    My eyes popped open.
“Uhhh...not sure yet,” I said quickly, playing it safe.
    She smiled. “It’s all
good... All his faults aside, Ben’s a good guy. But am sure you
know that.”
    I raised my eyebrows.
“Faults, huh?”
    She shook her head. “No, am
just messin’ wit you. I’m actually kind of surprised he allowed me
to be alone with you. It’s a good sign, though. It means he trusts
you.”
    I laughed again. “That’s
good to know...”
     
    Ω
     
    A few minutes
later I excused myself and headed back through the kitchen and up
the stairs, in search of the toilet. I resisted the urge to peek
inside the two closed bedroom doors but I was impressed enough with
his pimped out bathroom. His tub/shower had a jet spa. This really
was fucking unbelievable. I was starting to second Lena’s
sentiment. He really was a lucky bastard...
    I peeked inside the medicine
cabinet, needing to satisfy my urge to snoop just a little. I
smiled to myself when I