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“I love these maple bars,” Sage yelled into the house, and Bea found her with frosting in the corner of her mouth and a big old bite taken out of one of the maple doughnuts. Several people laughed, and that seemed to break the tension.
“I guess she’s going for dessert first,” Ty said with another chuckle. “Maybe I should do that. Excuse me.” He moved over to Sage, and both Bea and Cass stood side-by-side and watched as he slid his arm around her waist and leaned into her.
“Mm, yeah, I see how it’s going for them,” Cass murmured.
“Yeah,” Bea whispered. “I see it too.”
11
Ty sat back from his computer, his irritation starting to get to him. The air conditioning had been firing almost all day lately, and he still felt too hot. “I can’t believe there isn’t anything on the market for her.”
It had been almost three weeks since Sage had told him about the type of property she wanted. Two or three bedrooms shouldn’t be that hard to find. Two bathrooms. A yard big enough for a giant, shaggy dog and a handful of chickens. “And a shed,” he said with plenty of disdain in his voice.
True, she wasn’t going to get that in one of the newer plantation neighborhoods, but those communities were the opposite of what Sage would like. He knew her well enough to know that. She also wouldn’t get beachfront property with land and animal rights either, and she’d been okay with that.
She’d even leaned into his chest and said, “I’ll have to come stand on your balcony to hear the waves talking at night.”
That had caused quite the fantasies to spring into his mind.
He got up from his desk, because all Ty had at this point were fantasies. He still hadn’t kissed Sage, and he honestly wasn’t sure what he was waiting for. Since he’d told her at Nightingale’s that he’d like to ask her out, she’d let him dictate every move of their relationship.
She wanted the fairy tale type of happily-ever-after. He wanted to give it to her, and that meant he had to figure out how to be a prince first. The more time he spent with her, the more he spoke with her, the more he wanted adventure in his life too.
The more he saw the nuanced colors of the sunset, which he’d never seen before. The more he saw how much he worked and how little he got from it. The more he saw the loneliness in his life—and how Sage erased it.
He paced over to his office window, which had water stains from the sprinkling system. He could focus past them, past the greening grass, and out past the parking lot too. He didn’t entertain many people in his office. Usually only clients who came to fill out his Perfect Property Survey. After that, he met them in houses, restaurants, and at the lender’s office to sign paperwork.
“What about Thelma?” he wondered. There seemed to be far more smaller houses available for sale right now, and he returned to his computer, a new goal in mind.
He just needed to find one house to show the sisters. He’d like it to be for Sage, but if he couldn’t do that, he’d have to take the win in another way. Thelma’s file sat near the top of the stack of folders on his desk, and he plucked it out.
“Two bedrooms,” he muttered. “Two baths.” She had cats, and they didn’t need a yard. Thelma was more reserved than Sage, and she’d looked to her older sister for a lot of the answers on the survey. Ty sensed something…scared in her, but he didn’t know what, and he hadn’t asked.
She’d like an attached garage, and sometimes that was hard to come by. Still, Ty should be able to find a dozen properties for Thelma, and his fingers flew over the keyboard as he typed in the requirements.
Sure enough, option upon option bloomed on the screen, and he started sorting through them by price and neighborhood. Ten minutes later, he had a list of eight homes that would be perfect for Thelma.
She’d put her number on the survey, and Ty tapped in the digits to call her. Perhaps they could go house hunting soon. Thelma didn’t answer, and Ty honestly spent a lot of time talking to voicemail inboxes.
“Hey, Thelma,” he said as cheerfully as he could. “It’s Ty Parker. I’ve just gone over the system, and I’ve found quite a few options for you that I think will be perfect. When do you think you might be able to go look at them? If you let me know, I can start contacting listing agents and setting up showings.”
He rattled off his number and ended the call. While still at his desk—he had to get out of here—he texted Sage.Still nothing that I think is good for you, but I know something is going to come up that you’ll love.
Sage responded immediately, which was a little odd for her. She didn’t carry her phone around with her at the salon, and she worked there every day except Sunday and Thursday.
I’m sure it will, she said.People list their houses closer to summer. I think someone very smart told me that once.
Ty grinned at her message, at the flirty quality of it, at the way she always made him feel so good about himself.
Dinner tonight?he asked.I’m meeting a broker friend for lunch, and then I only have paperwork to do today.
I’ve seen the mountains of paperwork on your desk, she said.But if you can get away for dinner, then yes.
There’s a luau at The Heartwood Inn tonight, he said.I know the owners, and I have tickets. It’s a drive and a ferry ride away…
I’m in, she said, and Ty leaned back in his chair, thrilled he’d get to see Sage in person that night. Sometimes she had something with Thelma. Sometimes she went to Supper Club or something else with her friends. Sometimes she just wanted to stay in.
Ty had started attending some of the dinners and parties with her friends, and he couldn’t say he hated them. In fact, it felt good to be social with people who didn’t talk about interest rates, the newest listing in Royal Farms, or how many houses they’d sold last month.
