Damon thought about confiding more in Tyler, but it was all too fast. He’d been too private for too long. He had to work up to sharing more.
He had a better idea. He wanted to reassure Ty that he still wanted to be on the team, and there was one good way to do that. “Are you still at the club?”
“Still in the conference room,” Ty admitted. “Cassie’s here somewhere, too. Why?”
“Because I know we were supposed to talk about the model suites for the condos in the tower, and I did get some plans done. There’s a tube of drawings behind my desk. If you grabbed it, we could talk about it now.”
“Sounds like a great plan,” Ty said, then called to Cassie. Damon heard her say that she’d get the drawings, then closed his eyes to remember the designs. He could see them clearly and wanted to be sure he pointed out the details. He heard paper being unrolled and Cassie setting weights on the corners, then Ty caught his breath. “How’d you get all this done?”
“After we discussed it the last time, I just kept at it. It’s an interesting challenge.” Damon shook his head. “I did a lot of work at night.”
There was a moment’s pause and he heard Haley starting to chop vegetables. It sounded like she was singing under her breath, too. Just knowing she was close made him feel more centered.
For the first time in a very long time, Damon thought that things might be okay.
“Have you been getting any sleep?” Ty asked. “There’s a lot of work here.”
Damon almost laughed. “I pretty much forget what sleep is.” He then explained the order of the panels, and knew that Ty was spreading them out on the conference table. “The first two are more predictable, both in palette and layout. You can see there’s a studio apartment layout, then two one-bedroom plans.”
“The decor is all in white and dark grey, neutral and elegant,” Ty said. “Stainless appliances, dark floors, white tile, lots of light in these drawings.”
Damon could hear that Ty wasn’t amazed by them.
“Touch the sky at F5F,” Cassie contributed. “Very nice.”
“But kind of boring,” Damon said. “I wondered if we wanted to make more of a statement.” He cleared his throat. “You know, there’s an axiom, that in design there are three reactions: bad, good, and wow. Aiming for wow is the way to go.”
“I agree,” Cassie said.
“So, turn to the next three illustrations,” Damon invited. “These options are more expensive but I think they take it up a notch.”
“Oh yes,” Ty said with approval. “This is striking.”
“It’s got style,” Cassie said. “And would be easy to live with.”
Damon was encouraged. “I thought we could make the design more unique than the usual neutral palette. So that first option uses a warmer neutral for the light elements, like the wall paint and the fixtures. The floors and the counters are dark but with a cool undertone. I show it with a charcoal that’s almost black. And there’s an option for the tiles, both in the kitchen and the bath to be either dark or light, with accents that are metallic.”
“That black tile in the bathroom with cream fixtures looks amazing,” Cassie said.
“The taps are polished nickel, which is a warmer silver, and we could find matches for door hardware and lighting, too. I was still sourcing some of that.”
“A warm cool,” Cassie said. “I like it. It’s not sterile or impersonal. It looks like home, but has such verve.”
“Especially the way you’ve chosen the furnishings,” Ty said. He was moving through the stack of Damon’s presentation. “This mix of traditional elements and clean design is really inviting.”
“And upmarket,” Cassie said. “I think it’s perfect for F5F. Leather couches and chandeliers.”
“Keeping it neutral puts the focus on the people,” Damon said and heard Cassie snap her fingers.
“We’ll make sure the team selling the units aren’t just attractive, but dress so that they look at home in the model suites.”
“Selling the fantasy,” Ty mused.
“Well, the building itself does create some constraints,” Damon said. “We can’t have massive windows, for example, because of the building’s frame. But we can try to make the most of what we have.”
“I think you have,” Ty said. “This second option is fabulous.”
“The mirrors are great,” Cassie said. “I can’t wait to see this one built out.”
“I like how luxurious these appear to be,” Ty said. “The look fits the F5F brand.”
“And they look spacious with the open design,” Cassie agreed. “How many units did you think you could fit in?”
They talked about the details, and Damon told Ty where to find his cost estimates for the finishing. He knew that Ty would do a better job of calculating total expenses and ensuring that they made money on selling the units.
“We’re doing these as condos, right?” he asked. “With a maintenance fee?”
“Yes, because we’ll continue to own the building,” Ty agreed. “And take care of all maintenance.”
“We’re going to have to get a doorman,” Cassie joked. “People will expect it if the places look this good.”
“I was thinking we probably should hire one,” Ty said. “Again, it fits with the image.”
“Touch the sky at F5F,” Damon reminded them, because he thought it was a good slogan.
“The problem is that I want this one,” Cassie said, tapping her finger on something before she laughed. “I could totally live in this one-bedroom design with the chandelier, Damon. It has just enough shiny for me.”
“Let me guess. You love that black bathroom,” Damon teased.
“I do! I’d look so good in there.”
“But who would ever see you?” he asked and she laughed.
“Hey, give the new tattoo some time!”
“So, we don’t have to worry about selling the model, then,” Ty teased. “It’s already sold.”
“Now, wait a minute,” Cassie protested and Damon smiled at the usual bantering tone. “I would buy it, but should I have to? You already live here, Ty.”
“Not all the time.”
“But you have an apartment here already,” Cassie corrected. “I think all five of the partners should have one. It’s only fair that we get a perk like that.”
“Do you want one, Damon?”
“I don’t know. I hadn’t thought about living downtown.” Damon wondered what Haley would think of that. It was strange to be considering her perspective, considering that he’d only just let her back into his life.
Now that he’d realized he wanted her to stay, Damon needed to make it happen.
Could he change her mind about only wanting a career?
He had to know more about Garrett first.
“Easier commute,” Cassie noted. “It should be fair.”
“But Ty put up with a lot of construction while living in his place, and paid for some of the finishing, too.”