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His back teeth ground together. This was one subject he didn’t discuss with anyone. “There’s no deal. I haven’t seen her in a long time.”
“She said she tried to call you, but you were dodging her calls.”
“I was not.” The denial came out a little too quickly. He swallowed. “I didn’t even know she wanted to speak to me.” He could see the disbelief reflected in Sara’s eyes. “It’s true.” He regretted those last two words as soon as he’d uttered them. They just made it sound like he wasn’t telling the truth.
What was it about being around Sara that rattled him? Yes, she was pretty, but he’d been around other pretty women, and they hadn’t gotten him tripping over his own tongue. But then again none were as good-looking as Sara. Not that he was interested in her or anything.
He slowed the cart to a stop. “If all you want to do is talk about the past, you might as well get out here.”
“It’s not.” Her answer was uttered too quickly.
“Then what did you need? You’re running out of time.”
“It made it through the grapevine that you have an apartment over the store that’s going to be available soon.”
Above the furniture store were six apartments. Renting them out fell under his responsibilities at the store. It wasn’t hard because it was rare for any of the units to be vacant. Basically, he collected the rent and issued lease renewals. Easy-peasy.
He pressed on the accelerator again. “You want to rent an apartment?”
She shrugged. “Do you have one available?”
“I will at the end of the month.”
“That’s great!” The smile returned to her face.
He felt as though she was up to something. He just had no idea what it was. “But don’t you already have an apartment?”
She nodded. “I…I do.”
“Then why do you want a two-bedroom apartment?”
She glanced away. Silence engulfed them as they made their way through town. People waved, and they both waved back. A couple of people did a double-take at seeing the two of them together. He inwardly groaned. Just what he needed was for the town to gossip about a blooming romance between him and Sara. That was never going to happen.
“Maybe I want to move.” Sara avoided meeting his gaze.
He sensed she was holding something back. Why would a single woman want a two-bedroom apartment that costs a lot more than a single or studio? He thought about it as the cart moved north of the town.
Was it possible she was being evicted from her current place? Sara a troublemaker?Nah. It didn’t seem right to him.
Sure, there had been that one embarrassing incident when she’d accused him of something he hadn’t done, but there were extenuating circumstances. Sara had been protecting her sister. And he’d never heard one bad word about Sara. In fact, the people on the island loved her.
Perhaps she was getting a roommate. Or maybe she was in a serious relationship. A sour feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. Kent yanked his rambling thoughts to a halt. His body jerked forward, jarring him back to the present.
“What’s the matter?” The worry in Sara’s voice had him glancing at her.
It was only then he realized that not only had he halted his thoughts, but he’d also slammed the break on the cart. Feeling utterly flustered, he turned away and pressed the accelerator. “I thought I saw something in the road.”
“Oh.” Thankfully, she left the conversation there. “So what do you say? Will you rent me the apartment?”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Listen, I know we haven’t exactly gotten along in the past, but that was a long time ago.”
The more she pushed the subject, the more concerned he became about her. It wasn’t like they were friends, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be concerned, especially with her sister so far away.
“So will you rent it to me?”
“No, I won’t.” He wasn’t desperate to rent the place. The supply of available units was never adequate enough to meet the demand, especially in the summer months. He could afford to be picky.
