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“See that for sale sign?” She continued nodding over at a rusty, old and barely visible sign. “That never comes down. I see so much potential here. I’m glad to finally see someone interested in more than flipping the property for a profit.”
“That’s funny you mention that,” I said, turning to Taylor whose wheels were spinning. “I’ve gotten a few offers on this land in the last few days.”
“Oh, well maybe I spoke out of turn,” Violet said quickly.
“No, no, I think you’re absolutely right. There is something great about his place.” She smiled as we walked around briefly. She technically had no property to show aside from the shed no one was interested in.
I asked Violet to lunch with the two of us in a gesture of thank you for rescheduling her day around our impromptu visit. She insisted it wasn’t a problem, but agreed to join us. I liked her instantly. Like Taylor, she seemed to have thick skin and a tell-it-like-it-is air about her.
A lunch with the two of them might have been exactly what I
needed.
§§
Four hours later, we were laughing hysterically as we emptied our fifth bottle of wine. We sat, relaxed on couches on the patio at Opal, a Greek restaurant I frequented when I visited Savannah. A glass chandelier hung between us as we sampled the wine list, filling up on rich dishes. Even Taylor’s demeanor had completely relaxed as we wasted the day away.
“Excuse me, ladies, it’s my husband.” Violet excused herself, lifting her finger up, indicated she would only be a moment.
“Well, this was fun,” I said, beaming as I turned to Taylor who sipped her wine while nodding in agreement.
“I like her,” Taylor said. “She’s real.”
I nodded as she made her way back to the table. “I’ve misbehaved. My husband is coming to pick me up,” she said with a wicked smile and a wink.
“We could’ve dropped you off,” I offered, noting it was time to head back to Charleston.
“Oh, I’ll be fine,” she said with a smirk. I looked over at Taylor who had a brow raised at Violet. I excused myself to the restroom and checked my phone after washing my hands, finding several missed calls from Devin.
Not a chance.
He never called me this often. Maybe this time I had actually convinced him I was done. Because, for the first time, it was the truth.
When I got back to the table, Taylor and Violet were talking in whispers and stopped abruptly when I approached. I was about to inquire as to what was being withheld from me when a drop dead gorgeous man approached our table.
“Ladies,” he said, his eyes fixed on Violet. She beamed up at him as Taylor caught her gaping mouth.
“This is Rhys, my husband,” Violet proclaimed proudly.
“Taylor Ellison,” she cooed as he smiled at her before turning to me. The man was beautiful but had absolutely no effect on me. At that very moment, I craved Aiden for the first time.
“Nice to meet you,” I said, briefly shaking his hand.
“If you ladies don’t mind, I will be relieving you of my wife.” Violet turned to us, and we said our goodbyes. I promised I would be in contact regarding some future investments in real estate in the area. Taylor watched with piqued interest as they walked away.
“Taylor,” I admonished, “as many beautiful suits as you have seen coming in and out of our office, your reaction to this one surprises me.” Waving our waiter over, I gave him my card and compliments on his service, remembering all too well the nightmare of serving people for a living.
“It’s not him, I mean, it is him, but…” She stood suddenly and excused herself, her phone in hand as if she was taking a call. I narrowed my eyes but let her have her leave.
Taylor insisted on spending the night in Savannah, stating she would be able to find her way back. Hesitantly, I left her there after she claimed she was meeting an old acquaintance. I suddenly wished we had socialized a bit more. I felt very protective of her. I just couldn’t demand answers, though.
I rode back to Charleston, thinking about the property and what I could possibly do with it. It was much too picturesque to do anything rash and too far away from civilization to industrialize it in any way, though I wouldn’t want to. A camp, maybe?
I smiled as I picked up my phone. “Hi.”
“I’ve never thought myself a perverted man until today. I can’t stop thinking about coming on those beautiful tits,” he rasped out.
I felt the heat radiate through me and immediately put up the partition as if Carson could hear.
