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I crank the ignition and throw the truck into reverse. "Just like that. You tell me where this Golden Meadow community is, and I’ll drop you off at your house. Then I’ll swing by and check out the property and check in with Brocker. In the morning, I’ll give him a call and sadly decline his offer and wish him and you the best."
She clicks her seat belt into place, and her frown deepens. "Sounds perfect, except let’s drive out to Golden Meadows together."
I huff out a laugh. "You’re on crack, woman, if you think I’m going to take you to a potentially dangerous situation."
She arches a brow and levels me with a hot look that tells me I just threw down the gauntlet. "Okay, first of all, I can go anywhere I want to go. Secondly, slow-moving headlights through the property don’t scream danger. And lastly, I’m set to move into the manager’s house any day now, so I’ll be out there all by myself soon enough. I was going to ask if you’d mind dropping by and giving the place a quick security assessment before you go on your merry way back to DC or wherever Owen said you drove in from."
I hit the brakes and frown. "I don’t like it. You shouldn’t be moving to any community in a rural area all by yourself. Especially a community as hotly contested as this one."
Brooke busts up laughing. "Oh, this protective thing is cute but completely unnecessary. Brocker will find a security company that will work out, and don’t worry about me. I’ll be perfectly fine. So are you going to stop at my new place and give it a look or not?" She shrugs. "If not, I can wait and ask the new guy whenever he gets here."
I growl, and she smiles prettily. "Fine, I’ll stop. I don’t know why after all of this time I expected you to start listening to reason, but clearly, some things never change."
Her sultry lips twist in a sassy smile. "No, they don’t. Okay, once we’re to the end of the resort’s main drive, turn left onto Preacher Road. Preacher is the main drag through Frost Forest. It’s long, twisty, and bumpy, but it’ll run you from Clear Creek to Bloomsbury and straight through this little mountain town and to Golden Meadow.”
Twenty minutes later, after two laps around Brocker’s community, there was no sign of whoever visited earlier. It wouldn’t surprise me if it was another guest on their way to the lodge party, wanting to take a peek at the property everyone was talking about.
Brooke rubs her hands up and down her arms, and I twist the heat to full blast. Her eyes slide over to mine, and she laughs. "I’ve been living here in Frost Forest with my Aunt Trudy for over a year now, and my blood is still thin from living in Charleston. I can’t get warm here."
The mention of Charleston catches me off guard and stings more than it should. I almost had myself convinced that I was totally at peace with our past. What a joke. Brooke’s right; things would’ve gotten awkward as hell between us if we started working together full-time. Clearly there’s a lot of history that’s left unpacked and a lot of questions that have gone unanswered. One of the most pressing questions tonight is why in the hell she’s wearing her old engagement ring.
I spotted it on her finger as soon as she walked up to Brocker and me at the party. I’m still weirded out by seeing her wear it. Did her douchebag ex never buy her another ring? Please tell me she didn’t use my ring to marry someone else. Jesus. I rake a hand over my face. I gotta get out of here.
"All right, let’s take a look at the manager’s cottage and then get you home."
She nods. "Sounds like a plan. The manager’s cottage is right off the first street that’s paved and branches out from the main thoroughfare."
I’m pleased to see a decent amount of landscape lighting ring the entire cottage, providing light in what otherwise is pitch black. The cottage is a small one-story stone house made from all new materials but designed to look old. I hop down from the truck and snatch a sweatshirt from the back before closing the door.
"Here." I extend the sweatshirt to Brooke. "In case the heat isn’t on yet inside."
She flashes me a grateful grin. "Thanks, Mack. You saved the day."
I smile over how she seems to trip over the name Mack. Drake always seems to be resting on the tip of her tongue. "That’s what I do."
Brooke tilts her head and rewards me with a playful, teasing twist of her lips. "What, offer women your clothes?"
I shrug, and her eyes flash with amusement. "That and save the day, of course."
"Of course."
The cottage is more modern inside than it is made to look outside. I’m pleased to see a built-in security system, but there’s a lack of cameras; only one positioned at the front door and the back. I do a quick sweep, noting the major weak points. The worst being three sets of sliding glass doors on the back half of the house, the largest being off the dining area, with two smaller panel doors located in each of the two bedrooms. All the doors lead out onto a patio that spans the width of the house and overlooks the wooded backyard.
It’s a beautiful place to live, no doubt about it. But some extra precautions need to be put into effect, first being extra locks on all the sliding glass doors.
I smile when I stroll into the kitchen. Brooke, still wearing my old sweatshirt with her fancy blue silk skirt falling from her waist, is leaning over the kitchen island, elbows on the granite, furiously texting with her sweet, rounded rump beckoning me. If I were a man given to flights of fancy, I’d slide up behind her, nestle my bulge against the tantalizing swell of her ass, and find her favorite spot on her back where she likes to be kissed.
"Is something wrong?" Her voice softens. "You look upset."
Oh, something’s wrong all right. I’ve got to shift my thickening cock in my jeans before you realize how much seeing bent over while wearing my sweatshirt makes me want to naughty, bad things to you from top of your sweet head to the tip of your painted toes.
"I’ve got a few security concerns, but I’ll give Brocker my full assessment before I roll out of town tomorrow morning."
She straightens, hands resting on her hips. Her puckered brow line makes me smile. "What are you talking about? They just installed new security cameras in the front and back of the house."
My widening grin only seems to agitate her more.
"Why are you smiling like that?"
