What the heck, I had nothing better to do on a Sunday. That’s how I found myself standing outside this luxury condo in downtown Cincinnati, greeting people as they came off the bus. The downtown residents’ council was promoting downtown living, and they had organized this bus tour for people. I was new in town, and was trying to meet some people. The promise of the after party was appealing as well.
I was in front of this high-rise luxury condo, basically doing nothing more than answering questions like, “Is this the Indian Ridge building?” as though the map and the sign were not clues enough.
This was turning out to be a little less than I thought it would be. During a lull in the action, I met my partner at Indian Ridge. She was actually describing the features and amenities of the building to the visitors. Her name was Kate, and she had, without a doubt, the best smile on anyone I had seen. Her curly brown hair, blue eyes, and freckles rounded out her attractive features. Her voice, too, was very sweet and melodic.
Kate came down and asked me how long I was planning to be there. I was there until 4:00, and that was when she was finished, too. I learned that she had just returned to “the Nati” from Colorado, where she went to college. She, too, lived downtown in a rehabbed apartment building. Unlike me, she had a roommate, a friend from childhood.
Soon, another spurt of visitors arrived, and she escorted a group upstairs. After that, they came in too quickly for her to get a break. I was mostly holding the door, greeting people, and answering inane questions.
Shortly before 4:00, someone in a red vest came by and told us we could leave. Since our stop was one of the first, we were finished before the others. My red-vested friend went to relieve Kate of her duties.
Kate came down and we made some small talk. We both decided there was one place we wanted to check out—it had the best view of the skyline. We walked a couple blocks over and toured the condo like everyone else. Kate was wearing a black skirt, white blouse with a t-shirt underneath. I guess she was thin enough to not need a bra. She wore a black blazer, too.
The tour guide escorted us through the model, and we lingered in the master bedroom, which was raised slightly and offered a breathtaking view of the city. Kate just stared out.
“Man, what a view,” I finally said, hoping to break Kate from her trance.
“I have always loved the views of the city,” she said.
“I work in the Carew Tower,” I replied. “The first two months I was there, all I could do was look out the window.”
She was excited to learn I worked there. “I’ve always wanted to go to the observation deck,” she said, “but haven’t ever made it.”
We left the building, and I offered to see if the observation deck was open at Carew. We got on the elevator, and were stopped at the top floor, not quite at the deck. Disappointed, Kate looked out of the window in the hallway.
