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“Which is…?”
“We get to pick which of the four spots we want—preferably one of the end units. Then she has a boutique that’s interested and a nail salon. I think this would be such a great combination and a way to draw in clients that’s beneficial to all of us!”
For a moment, Ashlynn could only blink at her. “You keep saying us, Bill. Why?”
“Okay, I was going to talk to you about this later, but…I want to invest in the salon. Not a lot, just…enough to get you started.”
She was too stunned to say anything, which Billie obviously took as a bad sign.
“You hate it, right? You hate the idea of a partner.” She sighed. “I know I should have talked to you about it, but I thought you’d be so excited at being able to have your own place that you wouldn’t mind me horning in a bit.”
“It’s just…I’m a little stunned, that’s all. I wasn’t expecting…”
Her words were cut off when a massive fire truck turned onto the block and came to a stop along the sidewalk right where she and her sister were standing. They stood there silently as Bob Banks and a couple of younger guys climbed out of the truck.
“I wonder what this is about,” Billie whispered before walking over and shaking Bob’s hand. “Hey, Bob! What brings you and the squad out today?”
“Doing an inspection here at the request of the new development team. We’re working with them to ensure the buildings are safe and to report on what’s needed to bring them up to fire code.”
“Is that normal?” Ashlynn asked as she stepped closer.
“It is,” he told her. “Plus, we’ve got a new member on the squad with us today and this is giving him a chance to check out the town with us.”
Oh, no…
And sure enough, there was Reid.
He was smiling like he didn’t have a care in the world as he strolled over and introduced himself to Billie. “Hey, I’m Reid Baylor.”
“Billie Donovan,” she replied with a smile of her own. “And this is…”
“Oh, AJ and I go way back,” he said, and Ashlynn wanted to reach out and smack him.
“AJ?” Billie repeated. “Wow! If you know her by that name, then the two of you really do go way back!” She looked over at Ash. “That was a weird phase you went through.”
“Yeah, weird. Right,” she mumbled.
“How’s it going today, AJ?” Reid asked, still grinning.
“It’s going just fine,” she said tightly. “I didn’t think you’d be back this soon.”
He shrugged. “Captain Banks called me almost as soon as I got back to Roanoke to offer me the position, and I could start immediately. My previous captain was the one who suggested me for this move, so he knew I’d take it and was okay with me leaving right away. Plus, I’m going to commute for a few weeks and crash with Leo when I have to while looking for an apartment.”
“Ash, your complex always has a sign up saying they’re renting. Why don’t you give him the number of the rental office?” her sister suggested.
“Um…”
“Is it the place over on Mountain View?” he asked. “They were on my list to reach out to today! And you live there?”
She nodded.
“Great! Now I can give them a reference.”
Kill me now…
“Boys, we need to get to the inspection,” Bob said, officially bringing an end to this conversation. “It was good to see you, Billie.”
“Likewise,” she said cheerily.
