7. Chapter Seven
Chapter Seven
C ody couldn’t believe how well the party turned out. Best of all, he and Kristi were having a good time together. They worked well as partners in conversations. There seemed to be a new easiness between them. She stayed by his side and smiled up at him every time an encounter with guests ended well, like she was proud of him. Proud to be with him. It stroked his ego and made him want her even more. They were like his dad and Susanne, sauntering around the party, making sure the guests were having a good time, but always aware of each other in the stolen glances and whispered comments shared only between them. Kristi had been the perfect companion as they made their way around the backyard, greeting guests. Her father had caught up to them multiple times to talk him up to one person after another.
Cody knew everyone here because of past parties, but he’d never interacted with them like a peer. That’s what he was to them now that he’d established his career.
It seemed so strange and also like the very thing he’d been working toward the last several years.
It also made him miss his dad.
Cody wondered what he’d think of all this.
He looked at Brooke, standing beside Suzanne. Not him. She didn’t even look at him.
Fuck.
He’d handled that thing—that fucking weak moment he’d had when she’d made a move—badly. He should have stepped away and ignored it like all the other times.
But this time had been different. The look in her eyes, filled with such innocent desire. He got caught up in it. No one looked at him the way she looked at him. Yes, it fucking made him feel good. Needed. Wanted. Like he was her everything.
It was too much and not enough all at the same time. He couldn’t remember another woman ever looking at him like that.
Brooke, she did it all the time. And when she did, it was just different. It hit him in some amazing way he couldn’t describe.
She wasn’t shy or coy with him. She didn’t hold back. She put it all out there.
He loved that about her.
He didn’t want to tame that or shame her for wanting something she shouldn’t.
He was too old for her.
She was too young to know that she’d eventually fall for someone less complicated and more suitable.
Did he want that?
He should.
But he loved the attention and the way she made him feel, even if he shouldn’t.
Fuck.
What was he thinking? This couldn’t happen. Especially not now.
He was with Kristi. They were looking toward the future. Sure, that was a new thing, but it was the start of something.
That’s what the board seat was about. Him stepping into a bigger life.
He’d need a partner who knew that world and could stand beside him. Kristi had proved she was that person for him today.
Brooke was headed back to school soon. She’d barely begun her life as an adult.
Yes, she’d pulled off this amazing party. She’d gotten all these folks here for him.
But she wouldn’t be here for dinner parties, charity benefits, and client dinners.
The house would go back to being too quiet. Lonely.
And after each long grueling day, he’d come home and spend the night missing her, because she wasn’t here to sit in his office and talk about everything and nothing like they did when she was home.
One more school year and she’d be here for good. They’d share the house—she owned a third of the ranch. They’d work it together.
Right?
He couldn’t imagine things going any other way.
She had to come back. This was where she belonged.
With me.
No, not like that.
Fuck.
Cody focused on the crowd and not Brooke standing away from him instead of by his side. “Thank you all for making this Fourth of July as special as the ones my father used to throw. And just like he used to do, we’ll end things with a bang. Enjoy the fireworks.” Cody hugged Susanne to his side and glanced over at Brooke just as the first explosion went off overhead in an array of red, white, and blue sparks.
Brooke gasped and stared up at the house instead of the sky, her eyes wide with shock.
“Brooke? What’s wrong?” He followed her gaze but didn’t see anything. “Brooke.” His sharp tone got her attention.
She frowned, shook her head, then barely glanced at him as she said, “Nothing,” and went to join her friends.
Susanne looked up at him. “What’s going on with you two?”
“Nothing.” The word shot out of him too fast to be believed.
Susanne’s gaze narrowed, but she didn’t push for more.
“We’re fine.” He said it to soothe her, but maybe he needed the reassurance more, because it felt like he’d hurt Brooke, even though that was never his intention.
As Kristi pulled him to her side near her parents and the governor and his wife to watch the show, he told himself it would all blow over in the morning. Everything would go back to the way it was.
But that’s not what happened.
Brooke stayed at Mindy Sue’s house for a week.
He was so busy he might not have noticed except that every night when he dragged his tired ass to bed, he saw her empty bed as he passed her room.
He hated the distance between them.
And then she was back and it felt like nothing had happened. She was her normal self, riding the horses during the day, helping the ranch hands when something needed to be done, chatting with him and Susanne at dinner when he made it home in time, and spending time texting and talking with her friends.
He got glimpses of her as he rushed to do one thing or another to keep up with work and prepare for the board member vote. Kirk invited him to several dinners to introduce him one by one to the other board members. Kristi had gone with him, talking him up just as much as her father did. He appreciated their support. And he and Kristi grew closer. He spent some of his nights in her bed, lost in her lush body, releasing all the tension he carried day to day. Within a month, it all seemed to be falling into place.
Except something still felt off with Brooke. He couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was, but it nagged at him.
The knock on his downtown office door surprised him, since he’d told his assistant an hour ago that he planned to spend his lunch break taking care of a personal matter, which basically let her know he wanted some time to himself. He’d been going nonstop for weeks. He’d like one lunch break where he wasn’t going over a case or meeting a client.
“Come in,” he reluctantly called out, knowing he was about to lose the quiet solitude he desperately needed.
The door opened and his jaw nearly dropped when he spotted Brooke, looking anything but like the girl he was used to seeing. She’d dressed up, done her hair and makeup, and carried a leather satchel in one hand and takeout from his favorite taqueria in the other. “I know you’re not expecting me, but after weeks of waiting for you to finally have a break in your schedule, your assistant took pity on me and let me know you were spending your lunch hour alone.” Before she even stepped all the way into the office, she added, “If you want to keep it that way, all you have to do is say so and I’ll go.”
“Come in,” he growled with impatience. He waited for her to close the door and walk toward him before he asked, “What are you wearing?”
She stopped short and looked down at herself. “Clothes.”
He shook his head. “That’s not your normal look.” And it threw him because she looked…lovely. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen her with her hair down. Thick and long, it hung past her shoulders and brushed the tops of her breasts over the pretty white blouse she wore to go with a pair of black slacks and a killer pair of black heels. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think she could be one of the interns working here.
“Like I said, I need to talk to you. I thought it best to dress appropriately to meet you in your office. Plus, I had a meeting in town that I wanted to be taken seriously for, so…” She held her hands out to emphasize her point.
He didn’t like the self-conscious look on her face and tried to ease her mind. “You look really beautiful, Brooke.”
Her whole body went still.
He meant what he said, but he hoped she didn’t take it to mean more than it did. Though he was still taken aback by her appearance and the strange pull it made him feel toward her on top of the feelings he’d been resisting since she came home for summer break.
“Thank you.” The sincerity in her voice surprised him. She seemed to catch herself staring at him and moved forward again and set the food bag on his desk as she dropped her satchel in one of the client chairs. “I got you your favorite carnitas fajitas with rice and beans.” She pulled out his container and set it in front of him with a plastic fork and napkin.
“How many chicken tacos did you get?”
“Just two. I’ve got a lot to talk about, so I won’t have a lot of time to eat and do that before your one o’clock meeting.”
“Brooke, you don’t need to make an appointment to talk to me. You know that.”
She tilted her head and studied him. “When’s the last time your day ended before the sun went down?”
He stared at her for a long moment, recognizing the emotion in her eyes. “You’re worried about me.”
“Yes. But that’s not what I want to talk to you about.” She handed him an orange Mexican soda.
He took the first bite of his food and groaned out his pleasure. “You want to talk about what happened between us at the picnic.” His stomach knotted. He didn’t want to say the wrong thing and hurt her again.
She shook her head. “It’s not about that. But I do owe you an apology.”
No, I owe you one.
But she continued before he could say anything. “Probably a lot of them for the stunts I’ve pulled over the years. I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
Disappointment washed over him. What the hell!
“You’re with Kristi. I need to respect your choice and the boundaries of our relationship.”
What?
“That’s so…very grown-up.” And it pissed him off. He didn’t know why. But he didn’t like any of this.
Brooke went on like he wasn’t floundering inside. “Which is why I’m here. I need some money from my trust fund.”
He smirked and shook his head. “Did you already spend your allowance going out with your friends?”
She thumped her soda bottle on his desk, her eyebrows narrowing. “Don’t do that. Don’t treat me like a child.”
He sat up straighter and stared at her. “I’m not. I was joking.”
She raised a brow. “That was very condescending. I’ll be twenty-one next May. At which time, the trust fund will be mine without restrictions.”
He didn’t know what to do with this too-serious Brooke. “Until then, I decide how you spend the money.”
“Exactly why I’m here. I’m going to graduate next June. I’ve been thinking about what I want to do next.”
What? Really? “I assumed you’d help on the ranch, like we always talked about.” Unless she’d changed her mind. If she did, she would have told him. They talked about everything. Didn’t they?
She’s here right now, talking to you. Listen!
“Yes, but with my business degree, a job as a project manager at some company seemed like the most likely thing to do aside from the ranch. But while I was planning the Fourth of July picnic and thinking about Dad and all he did for the community, I wondered if I could carry that on in some way.”
She had his full attention. He leaned against his forearms on the edge of his desk, fajitas wrap in hand. “What are you thinking?”
“I want to help revive some of the local businesses downtown, starting with the bookstore. I learned from a friend at the barbecue that the owner is interested in retiring soon.” She pulled out several folders from her bag and set them on the desk. “Mrs. Walters has run the place for thirty years. The store is cramped and the stock hasn’t kept up with times and what’s most popular, particularly when it comes to younger readers. I think I can revamp the store and make it more appealing to a wider audience of readers.” She handed him the green folder. “In there is my business plan and proposed offer for the bookstore. Mrs. Walters is happy with the price and that the sale won’t go through until March of next year.”
“Why March?”
“Because she wants to do one more holiday season here in town and I’ll need a few months for renovations before I open the store after I graduate.”
“It’s a small space, if I remember correctly. I doubt the renovation will take more than a month or so.”
She handed him her red folder. “Inside there are four bids for not only renovating the bookshop, but also the empty space beside it. I want to turn it into a café attached to the bookstore. The second-story office spaces—four to be exact—need an overhaul, plus the four apartments on the third floor.”
“Wait. You want to buy the whole building?”
“Yes. If you’ll look at my business plan, you’ll see that it makes the most sense to buy the distressed building, where the apartment tenants have long since vacated and only two of the four office spaces are in use. Their leases are up this December. I’ve had the building inspected and appraised. Mr. Scott, who has owned the building for sixty years and has no heirs and is willing to sell just to get rid of the headache of taking care of the place, has also agreed to my terms.” She handed him the yellow folder. “Now, the building does need some big repairs and upgrades. The initial three bids I got for the work were okay. One low, one slightly higher, and one astronomically high. Then I remembered Dad used to talk about his friend Danny, who could fix anything.”
Cody nodded, trying to get his bearings as she supplied him with information and awed him with her business acumen. “Danny Quinn. Quinn Construction. One of the biggest firms in the state.”
“Well, I called him. He sent a guy. That’s the fourth bid, which is much more detailed and below the highest bid I received. I assume the lower bids would have gone up as the project went on. For me, Quinn wins the bid, but you can take a look and determine that for yourself.”
He held up the folders. “You did all this on your own over the last month?”
“Yes. I did my homework, consulted the right people, and put together the information needed to attain the money to buy the property and start my own businesses. Once I’ve got this up and running, I plan to take on the pizza place in town. They used to have the best food and service, but things have gone downhill over the last ten years. I think it could use a refresh.”
He gaped. “You want to buy a restaurant?”
“Yes. Mrs. Marino has been running it since her husband died years ago of a heart attack. He ran the business. She doesn’t really have the heart for it. And her kids have grown up and the last is about to go off to college. She hasn’t had the money to invest in the business because she needed it for her kids. I think an infusion of cash, a fresh look, and an updated and more upscale menu will be welcomed downtown, especially now that there are several office buildings close by. With delivery, the restaurant could do a really nice lunch and dinner rush.”
Cody had abandoned his food and simply stared at Brooke in front of him, wondering when she’d changed into…this smart businesswoman. “You’re serious.”
She stared right back with a scowl on her face. “Yes. When Mom and I moved here, Dad took me everywhere with him. He made this place feel like home. He made me love this town and all the people he introduced me to. I want to be a part of it. I think revitalizing downtown will draw other new businesses and help keep small business as the norm instead of them dying out like they’ve been over the last decade.”
“This is what you want to do with your life? Own a bookstore and pizzeria?”
“Well, I was thinking it would be really cool to have a salad and pasta bar to go with the pizza. Italian classics like spaghetti and meatballs, ravioli, pasta Alfredo, and other dishes. Not like a buffet, more like Italian fast food. It’s already prepared, you just tell the server what you want by the bowl or plate kind of thing.”
“That’s…” He couldn’t believe it. He loved the idea and so would the hundreds of downtown workers. “It’s an amazing idea.”
She shifted in her seat, uncomfortable with his praise.
He hated that. He, better than anyone, knew Brooke was smart, kind, empathetic, surprisingly wise for her age, and enthusiastic about the people and things she loved. He had no doubt she’d make this venture a huge success, because Brooke didn’t give up. It just wasn’t in her nature.
She leaned in. “I know it’s a lot of money, but I know I can do this, Cody. It will be a fresh start for me and help the community.”
“I think so, too.”
She sat back, her eyes going soft. “Do you think Dad would have liked my plans?”
Cody choked up and tried to hold it together. “He’d love this idea. He’d want you to use the money to make you happy and also ensure your future. You’re doing both. I’m really proud of you, and touched that it’s, in part, because of him.”
Her eyes softened with grief mixed with a whole lot of affection. “I loved him, too. He was the only dad I knew.”
“Your mom is the same for me. Without her kindness…the way she changed my dad…softened him…I don’t think I would have loved him the way I did at the end. We were better for having you both at the ranch and in our lives.”
“You sure about that?” She raised a brow. “Because it feels like lately we’re growing apart.”
He knew it. He hated it. But he couldn’t tell her that and make her think there could be more between them. Not after that moment they shared in his study. The one he couldn’t stop thinking about.
How about when you pulled her away from Brad and into your lap?
So fucking stupid. He should never have touched her. Because now, all he wanted to do was reach for her. Was her skin as soft as it looked? What would it feel like to have her body pressed up against his?
Stop! Danger!
It wasn’t that he’d never touched her. They hugged. He kissed her on the head sometimes. She kissed him on the cheek as often as he let her get away with it.
Yeah, because you’re an idiot.
It didn’t used to be anything more than a friendly hello. Now…it meant something it shouldn’t.
She’s going back to school. You have Kristi.
Still didn’t stop him from thinking dirty things about the woman in front of him. He forced himself not to adjust his raging hard-on.
Fuck. I’m so screwed.
He lost his train of thought.
Brooke stood abruptly, grabbing the bag that still held her tacos and her satchel. “I’ve taken up most of your lunch. Eat. When you have time, look over the information. I need an answer by the end of the weekend before I head back to school on Monday.”
“Wait. What? You’re not supposed to go back for a couple more weeks.”
She gave him a lopsided grin. “Mindy Sue and I have plans. I’ll be back at Christmas. In the meantime, if you okay the funds I need, we’ll correspond via email and text to finalize all the paperwork and finish the deals. I really appreciate your help with this, Cody. I promise you, I’ll work really hard to make the businesses a success. For Dad.”
He shook his head. “This is all you, Brooke. I’ll look over the stuff, but I know you can do this.”
For a moment, her gaze filled with all the love and adoration he used to see in her eyes all the time. He never wanted to see anything but that and joy.
“Thank you, Cody. That means a lot.”
His words had touched her.
And then, she headed for the door, leaving him feeling desperate to call her back.
He couldn’t let her leave like this. Like it was some business meeting and not…more. “Brooke, wait.” He rushed to her and pulled her into his arms. She stood there, unmoving at first, and then it was like she gave herself permission to do what she’d never hesitated to do in the past and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight. He inhaled her roses-and-honey sweet scent, feeling drunk on it as it invaded his system and he became aware of her body pressed down the length of his.
Fuck. This feels so good. Too good.
He couldn’t keep her this close. He stepped back and held her at arm’s length. “Everything is going to be okay.”
Are you saying that to her or yourself?
Right now, he didn’t know. He couldn’t even decide if it was the truth or not.
She stepped out of his reach. “If I don’t see you before I leave, I’ll see you at Christmas.”
He felt oddly adrift without her in his arms. “Don’t leave without saying goodbye.”
“I know you’re busy. I don’t want to be a nuisance.”
He stuffed his hands in his pockets so he didn’t pull her close again. “You’re not. Ever. And I’m sorry if I’ve sometimes made you think you are.” He meant it. “We’re friends.” He reminded her as much as himself. “That will never change.”
Something warm and tender washed over her eyes and made him yearn for more. “Then you know it’s never goodbye, just I’ll see you later.”
He wanted to say, please stay . Because these last thirty minutes had been confusing and somehow life altering. Something had changed. She had. And if he let her go, he knew they might not ever go back to the way things had always been.
But the only thing that came out of his mouth was, “See you later.” He made it sound like an order, because it was.
She walked out and he watched her go, noting that one of the paralegals stared at her ass as she walked to the elevator. He glared at the guy and made him scramble away.
That’s right, asshole, stop staring at my Brooke.
What. The. Fuck?
He needed his head examined.
Brooke turned in the elevator car and gave him a wave.
Maybe it was good she was leaving, because if he gave in to what he wanted to do, he’d ruin them. And he couldn’t lose Brooke.
Not now.
Not ever.
He didn’t let himself think too hard about that dangerous and enticing thought.
He stared until the doors closed on her beautiful face and he closed his office door, went to his desk, stared at the food she’d brought him, and wondered again when she grew up to be so smart and poised and business savvy.
Don’t forget sexy.
That outfit… Fuck.
Needing a distraction, he opened the first folder and dove in, knowing he’d approve her request and be waiting like a child for Christmas to come so he could see her again.
She hadn’t even left yet and he missed her already.
I’m so fucked up.