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“Honestly, that might be kind of cool,” she said excitedly. “You could ask the locals to provide the food. It would give buyers a sense of what the area and the community are like, and it would help the locals build some trust in you that you want to include them and blend with the community, not overtake it. They will also get to meet potential buyers and could share their concerns.”
Neither Bronson nor I spoke.
But we both glanced at each other at the same time.
Bronson’s smile said all it needed to say—probably a little more than needed, actually.
“It’s just an idea…” Valen added when she didn’t get an immediate response. “You coul—”
“Oh… I think it’s a fucking amazing idea,” I cut in before raising my brow at Bronson. “Objections?”
“Not a single one here,” he agreed, already pulling his cell from his pocket. “I’m gonna make the call now so they can get started first thing in the morning.”
He got down from his stool and put his phone to his ear as he weaved toward the front door and away from the noisy bar.
Valen leaned in close. “Do you really think it’s a good idea? You can be honest.”
I leaned in too, our shoulders brushing. “Truth is, I don’t particularly like lies. So you can be sure if I say it, it’s honest.” She pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth as she smiled. “All right?”
“Mm-hmm,” she hummed softly. “All right.”
“Good. Now it’s your turn, so grab an axe.”
She rolled her eyes, the sass switching straight back on the second I made a demand. It was like she hated it, but she hopped onto her feet and did it anyway.
The confidence Valen often showed was admirable and sexy.
She was a strong woman, determined not to be told what to do and how to live her life, even by people like her mom, who had so much influence and power in the world. I had so much fucking respect for that, given it was something at one point I’d been too scared to do myself.
But when she looked at me so shy and unsure of herself, fucking hell, it did something else.
It tugged on a part of me I didn’t recognize.
But that had me wanting to keep her close to me.
God help me if Bronson is right.
Chapter Ten
REED
“You going somewhere?”
Valen looked up from the purse she was furiously shoving her phone and the house keys inside. I’d given them to her yesterday morning since I’d had to attend several meetings and didn’t want her to think she was trapped inside the house without me.
The sharp pinch of her brow relaxed the moment she saw me, and she exhaled a hard breath. “Yeah,” she answered, her shoulders slumping. “I need to go and get my things from Chad’s apartment. I’ve been putting it off, but I left the keys there to the storage unit with my stuff in it, and at some point, I’m going to need them. He was planning on returning to work today, so I thought it’s probably the best time to do it.”
“All right,” I said, pulling at my tie as I headed for the staircase. “Wait a minute, and I’ll get Karl to drive us.”
“Reed, it’s fine,” she protested, but I was already halfway up the stairs. “Reed!”
“I’m coming with you,” I called back, not about to let her go there on her own in case the bastard was there. I’d seen his face that day she left him at the altar, how he’d stood in the corner silently stewing instead of chasing after her. To me, that was the sign of a man who was far more furious about how Valen had bruised his ego than he was about how he’d actually hurt her.
And a man like that was unpredictable.
My fingers worked on my button-down as I made my way past the kitchen and down the hall to my bedroom. The shirt came off the second I entered my bedroom, and I tossed it onto my bed before stepping into my walk-in wardrobe.
“Reed, seriously, you don’t… have… to…” Her speech began to slow, and I could feel her behind me.
