Chapter 15
Willow
Vie was being very secretive about where we were going and why. We’d picked Jina up from her hotel, and now I was following Vie’s directions without knowing our destination.
“Come on, Vie-man, give me a hint,” Jina said, throwing herself into the game of trying to get information out of Vie. She was doing much better today, but I knew she was probably pretending, like I was.
I hadn’t told her about the shop yet. I wasn’t ready. I’d probably never be ready. How long could I say I was taking the day off before she noticed?
“I know! You’re a mad scientist, and you're taking us to your hidden laboratory,” Jina said.
“I’m not a scientist,” Vie said. His tone was neutral, but I could feel his amusement at Jina’s crazy guesses.
“I noticed you didn’t dispute the mad part,” Jina said with a laugh. She was buckled in but still bounced around in her seat like a toddler. This was manic Jina. It happened sometimes when she was trying hard not to get sucked into sadness. “Maybe you’re taking us to an abandoned amusement park.”
“Why would I do that?” he asked, sounding genuinely puzzled.
“So we could scream and break things without getting in trouble?” Jina guessed. “Or maybe you’ve got a bag of spray cans in the trunk so we can tag some shit. I’ve always wanted to do that.”
“If you want to break things or spray paint walls, I’ll arrange something for you,” he said. “But no, we aren’t going to any abandoned places.”
Jina rhythmically tapped her fingers on the window. “Then we’re going to your yacht, right? We’re going to sail to Catalina Island for the day.”
“We can do that tomorrow,” Vie said. “But that’s not the plan for today.”
Jina kept throwing guesses at Vie, but he didn’t reveal anything. Their banter was making me feel like things were almost normal.
I was looking forward to spending the day with my best friend and my soulmate. It felt important that I keep eyes on both of them, as if they could be taken away from me like my apartment and shop.
Finally we pulled into a business plaza. He guided me to a building, and Jina had fun with all the businesses listed on the wall near the front door.
“Are we getting our taxes done at Don Wins, CPA?” she asked as I parked. “Adventure Consultants? What do they do? Are we buying a trip down the ? Or are we getting something done at The Law Offices of Brown, Caplian, and Troy? ”
“None of those,” Vie said. “Let’s go.”
I was dying from curiosity now. I rushed out of the car, Jina right with me. We hurried to flank Vie as he walked us into the building and to an office in the back. The sign on the door said Gardner Realty.
I felt a little disappointed. Why were we visiting a realtor?
“This isn’t Tiffany's or Cartier,” Jina grumbled. “Is this really where we’re going?”
Vie ignored Jina and took my hands. “Jennifer is an excellent real estate agent. She’s helped me with multiple buildings. She’s going to help you find a place for your next shop.”
“Next shop?” Jina said with a laugh. “Is Unique Finds going to become a chain store?”
I winced and debated about going along with Jina’s assumption. I could tell Vie was shocked that Jina didn’t know, but come on, when was I supposed to tell her? When I was at the scene trying to take it all in? Or later when Vie was taking care of me while I fell apart?
“There was a fire at the store yesterday,” Vie explained before I could say anything. “Nothing can be recovered, but I’m going to finance a new store and a house.”
Jina’s face went slack with surprise, and I waited for the explosion. She had every right to be angry that I didn’t tell her about it.
She didn’t say anything. Turning to face me, she pushed past Vie and grabbed me in a fierce hug.
“I know you were trying to protect me,” she whispered, her voice thick. “I really needed the rest. I can deal with this now, but I couldn’t yesterday.”
“I love—” she interrupted me before I could finish.
“But if you ever do that again, I’ll draw dicks on your face when you’re asleep.”
I snorted. “I’m really hoping all the destruction was a one-time thing.”
“Same,” she said, then pushed me away and held me at arm’s length. “We’re alive, though. That’s what matters, right?”
I nodded. “Aye, aye.”
She rolled her eyes and let go of my shoulders. She turned to face Vie. “So you plan to shell out even more money for us? A store and a house? What’s in it for you?”
“Willow’s happiness,” Vie said simply.
“What happens if you decide she’s not worth all the effort later?” Jina said. “Are you going to withdraw everything, and suddenly we’ve got nothing again?”
“Vie wouldn’t do that,” I said. I wanted to tell her about him being a wraith and our connection, but I didn’t think it was wise to pile that on top of everything else.
Jina didn’t take her eyes off Vie. “I need to hear it from him.”
“I can’t convince you of my sincerity outside of seeing my devotion over time,” Vie said with quiet confidence.
“But everything we do will be in your names. The car is in Willow’s name already.
The home will be in your name, and the shop lease will be in her name.
Before I’m done, there will be a bank account and credit cards as well.
I can even have a lawyer draw up a contract.
I’ll hire a second lawyer of your choosing to negotiate with my lawyer over the contract to make sure I’m not doing anything underhanded. Would that help?”
I could tell that Jina was shocked by his offer. I was a little surprised too. Besides telling her the truth, it was the best way he could’ve made her feel better about trusting him.
“Any lawyer I want?” she pressed.
“Certainly,” he agreed.
“Hello?” While we’d been talking, someone had opened the door to the office in front of us.
Vie faced her. “Jennifer, this is Willow and Jina.”
Jennifer was a tall, thin woman, probably in her early fifties, with a stylish bob cut and adorable red glasses. She extended her hand to me and then Jina. “It’s so nice to meet you both. I have a bunch of potential properties. We can look at them here, then visit the ones you liked the best.”
As she spoke, she moved us into the office. It was one large room with a desk at one end and two tables against the back wall separated by a credenza covered in leafy green plants. She sat us down at the larger of the two tables where two stacks of glossy papers were waiting.
“Before we start looking at places, does anyone want anything?” she asked, handing out folded paper menus. “The coffee shop across the street makes amazing lattes, and its scones and muffins are super tasty.”
“I’ll never say no to mocha lattes!” Jina said, reaching for the glossy papers.
Jennifer nodded and looked at me. I ordered the same so it would be an easy order, and Jennifer stepped away to make a call.
“This is nice,” Jina said, shoving a sheet of paper in my face. I grabbed it and looked at a gorgeous storefront on the corner of a building with giant windows taking up most of two walls.
“It’s nice,” I said, then saw the rental price and shook my head. “Maybe something a little smaller.”
“Vie’s paying,” Jina reminded me with a smug look on her face as if challenging Vie to get upset.
“That’s true,” Vie said, missing her attempt to poke at him. “If you want something smaller so it’s more of an intimate shopping experience, then that’s fine. But the price shouldn’t be part of the conversation.”
“And that’s what I like to hear,” Jennifer said with a cheerful chuckle as she sat down across from us.
We spent about an hour going over both commercial properties and houses for sale. Jina kept viewing the houses as if both of us would be living there, but I knew I’d be spending my nights with Vie from now on.
I’d break it to her gently later because we wouldn’t be buying anything today. Even if Vie had the money, this type of thing took time.
We were starting to narrow down our selections when a phone buzzed. All the women checked their cells, but none of us had incoming calls. We all looked around and our gazes landed on Vie.
He looked confused for a moment, then realized what was going on. Sheepishly, he pulled a phone out of his hoodie pouch and answered it.
“Inola?” He nodded as he listened. “Remain inside, I’ll be there as quickly as I can. Don’t call the authorities.”
He shoved the phone back into his hoodie and stood up. “Inola needs…uh, my help.”
I nodded and stood up too. “Call me when you're done.”
I grabbed his head and pulled him down for a quick kiss.
“I don’t want to leave you,” he said when I pulled away.
“I know, but you’ll get to Inola faster without me,” I said, then flashed him a cheeky grin. “And any woman that gave you all that great advice is worth saving.”
He chuckled, then looked at Jennifer. “They get anything they want. Price isn’t an issue.” Then he looked at me one more time before striding out.
I watched until he disappeared out the door, then sat back down. I missed him already.
Jina got my attention. “Who’s Inola?”
“She’s a friend of his,” I said.
“You’re not worried or anything?" Jina asked.
I gave her my most confident smile. “Not even a little.”
We stepped out of Jennifer's building into the bright sunlight about twenty minutes after Vie left. I was glad we weren’t viewing anything today because I was feeling a little overwhelmed.
“That was intense,” Jina said as we paused outside. “Want to get some lunch?”
“Sure. How about at that—”
I couldn’t finish my suggestion because someone grabbed my hair from behind and shoved something hard against my back.
“I finally have you alone,” a horribly familiar voice said. “That fucker you replaced me with isn’t here to defend you.”
At the same time I heard the words, I saw Jina’s expression turn to one of pure rage. “Alex, what the hell are you doing here? Let go of her!”
Jina reached to pull me away from him but backed up quickly. I knew the thing jabbed into my back was a gun.
“Jina, run,” I whispered.