Chapter 3
Brody
“There is nothing better than a flustered woman,” Dallas teases as we enter the archive room, rubbing his palms together with glee.
I shake my head. “I don’t know about this. Melody didn’t so much as glance at me. I’m not sure she even knew I was behind her.”
“She knew. Did you not see her body language?”
I shrug. “So what? She tensed. Maybe she was perturbed that we busted into their book club. We don’t even know for sure she remembers meeting me.”
Dallas claps me on the back. “Brody. Dude. She very specifically told Arianna to make sure you were not going to be here. She wouldn’t have said that if she didn’t remember who you were.”
I smirk. “Fine. But are you listening to yourself? She insisted she would not come if I was going to be here. And here I am, probably making a fool of myself.”
“Nope. She’s definitely interested.” He pulls a huge box toward the edge of a shelf. “Help me with this.”
“Ah, so we’re actually going to do something worthwhile in the middle of this insane mission?
” I shake off my nerves and take the other end of the box, helping Dallas set it on the table.
I’ve been here with him several times. The man is obsessed with the town’s blueprints.
They are impressive, and the fact that they exist in this forgotten room of the library is even more shocking.
They’re going to come in handy, helping me get renovations underway.
Nearly every building in town has been neglected for years, and they are all in desperate need of improvements.
Some are close to being too far gone to salvage.
A few should have been condemned years ago.
And the man at fault for all this disrepair is Old Man Wilde. A man none of us ever met. Our fathers left this town and never looked back before any of us were born. To this day, we still have no precise idea why.
But Amos Wilde is gone, and the geezer left the most bizarre will anyone’s ever heard of. Any grandchild willing to move to Wilde and keep the town running for ten years gets their share of the inheritance. Apparently, it doesn’t matter when they arrive, as long as they stay for ten years.
I’m not counting myself among those prospective inheritors.
I have a business to run in San Antonio.
I’m only in Wilde for a few months to help my cousins and siblings get things started.
They need my expertise in construction. Then I’m gone.
I have a lucrative company I love. I’d rather keep my business running than hang out in this one-horse town for a decade just to collect a paycheck. No, thank you.
There’s no reason why I can’t have a bit of a dalliance along the way, though.
Why not? Melody Thorne caught my attention before she even turned around.
That unruly strawberry-blond hair was the first thing I saw, and I’ve always had a hard-on for redheads.
Her tight little body and that filthy mouth.
My cock gets hard all over again every time I think of the cuss words coming from those pretty lips. I hadn’t even seen them yet when my body went on full alert. But when she’d turned around… Damn. Green eyes. Pale skin. Freckles all over her nose. Perfect high round tits. Just the right handful.
Melody was incensed by my threats to discipline her. She’d rolled those pretty eyes, cocked out a hip, and refused to give me her name.
Game on.
That had been my thought as she’d walked out the door and burned rubber trying to get away from me.
It had been comical. I can’t really blame her.
After all, I’m the fourth Wilde to arrive in town.
The first three found a woman, claimed her, and dragged her to the altar so fast that if rice were still something people threw at the bride and groom at weddings, it would still be floating through the air all around Wilde.
Most of it wouldn’t have had a chance to settle yet.
“Earth to Brody.”
I jerk my attention to Dallas, who’s got blueprints spread all over the table.
He’s smirking again. He does that a lot. “Better find a replacement.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Replacement for what?”
“To run your company in San Antonio. You’re never leaving here.”
I shake my head. “Not a chance. I like my job. I’m not moving to Fucking Nowhere, Arizona, for ten years, no matter how much the payout is. I make plenty of money running my business. I’m comfortable. Happy.”
“And alone. You’re forty-five years old. Don’t you want to settle down and make babies?”
I stare at him. To be honest, I’ve never thought about having kids or settling down. I’ve been working eighteen hours a day for as long as I can remember, never taking my business for granted. Being successful is all I’ve cared about for a long time.
Dating? Ha. It’s been a long time since I went on a date, let alone had a girlfriend.
However, as much as I like to rib my brother and cousins about the absurd speed at which they’ve each snatched up a woman and dragged her to the altar, I’ll admit, seeing each of them happy has made me jealous. I’m reminded that there is more to life than just working.
Watching my cousins and brother dote on their women has put things into perspective.
The excitement they all feel about starting a family is infectious.
I’ve found myself wondering if I should slow the fuck down, find someone to warm my bed, and possibly reproduce.
It’s tempting. Not tempting enough for me to move here, but there are women in San Antonio.
Why am I so enamored by one tiny redhead who shot daggers at me?
Immersing myself in the town blueprints, I take notes on which buildings need immediate attention and totally lose track of time. Before I know it, female voices are filling the main section of the library. They must have finished their book club.
Should I go out front and irritate Melody? Because I have no doubt that’s what would happen. She’s not very receptive to the idea of knowing me. That might be half the reason why I’m so enamored with her—or the idea of her. It’s the thrill of the chase.
I’m still pondering my next move as the voices cease, and Arianna steps into the small workroom. She’s beaming. “That was so fun!” she exclaims as she throws herself at Dallas.
He picks her up and tucks his hands under her bottom so she can wrap her arms and legs around him. I’m jealous and a bit nauseous watching the two of them play kissy face.
Ignoring the two lovers, I turn my attention back to the blueprint we’ve been staring at and note a few more measurements.
The bell over the door rings. Only a few people came in while the book club was going on, and Dallas checked them out. The man is so whipped that he doesn’t mind playing librarian for his new wife.
“Arianna?”
I bolt upright at the voice coming from the front. It’s her. Melody. She’s back. She sounds exasperated. I don’t like the tone of her voice. My hackles rise.
Before I can round the table, she’s in the doorway. She sets her hands on her hips and sighs.
“What’s wrong?” Dallas asks, beating me to it as he lowers his wife to her feet.
“My fucking car won’t start.”
It’s hard for me to hold in my laughter. Not because of her car, but her language. It’s the first thing I knew about her the day I half met her. She’s obviously got a potty mouth. Sweet little thing like her. It’s so incongruent when she throws out the F-bomb.
I’m not about to let Dallas speak before me yet again. This is my opportunity to get to know her better. I circle the table while saying, “I’ll take a look.”
She hesitates, narrowing her eyes at me. “You think you can do that without fucking chastising me?”
I chuckle. “No. But I can multitask,” I tease.
She hasn’t moved from the doorway, and as soon as I reach her, I instinctively lift my hand to tuck an errant lock of that gorgeous hair behind her ear.
Her breath hitches.
I have no idea what possessed me to touch her so intimately, but I’m not sorry. We stand there staring at each other for long seconds, neither of us moving. The world seems to stop spinning. There’s no sound besides our breathing.
Eventually her lips part, but she still says nothing. Finally, she licks them and breaks the spell. “Do you know anything about cars?”
I shrug. “I might.” I’m no mechanic, but I can change oil or jumpstart. I can also guess what the problem is based on what happens when she turns the key. Not saying I can replace an alternator. But I’ll probably know if that’s what it needs.
I need to touch her again. This time, I pick up a lock of that gorgeous strawberry-blond hair and finger it. She’s wearing a sundress. It’s white with multicolored flowers all over it. The contrast of the white against her pale skin makes her look darker than she is.
She has a colorful clip holding up the front of her hair, but her curls are a bit unruly and obviously don’t like to do what she tells them to. I love it. I get the feeling that she’s otherwise orderly, and her hair defies her. Though I’m not sure what gives me that idea. I could be dead wrong.
Melody’s cheeks are pink. She might be nervous from this strange encounter, but it’s possible they’re often pink.
It’s part of her complexion. She’s wearing subtle makeup, just enough mascara to give some tint to her otherwise blond lashes and some lip gloss on her heart-shaped mouth.
I’d give just about anything to find out if it’s flavored.
From my peripheral vision, I take in the rest of her because she’d probably slap me if I stared blatantly at her tits. Thin straps hold the dress up, leaving her shoulders bare. The dress has a full skirt that hits mid-thigh, and she’s wearing colorful braided sandals.
“Uhhh…” Her voice interrupts my musing.
Dallas clears his throat. “I’m going to clean up in here. Yell if you need any help.”
I smile and nod toward the front of the library. “Let’s take a look.”
Melody inhales deeply and slowly blows her breath out as she turns to walk with me. “Fuck,” she mutters.
I chuckle as I glance at her. “Is that aimed at me or the car?”
She shrugs. “Both.”
The late afternoon sun is bright as we step outside, and Melody shields her eyes.
It takes me a few seconds to realize she’s struggling to keep up with me. Her legs are about half the length of mine, so I slow down. “Sorry. I’m not used to tiny people walking alongside me.”
She growls. “I’m not tiny.”
I laugh as we reach her car. “What would you call yourself? Are you even five feet tall? You’re a little pixie. I’m more than a foot taller than you. Do you even weigh a hundred pounds?”
She rolls her eyes. “I’m five feet. And yes, I weigh more than a hundred pounds.”
I hold out my hand, palm up.
She looks at it. “What?”
“Need your keys, baby.”
Her breath hitches as she stares at me yet again. She’s so flustered. I don’t think she likes being flustered. But I sure as fuck like it. My new life goal is to keep Melody Thorne off-kilter as much as possible.
There’s definitely something odd about this town—or at least the Wilde mansion. It casts a spell on its inhabitants. I’ve been here three weeks, and suddenly I’ve fallen. I know it as well as I do any other fact.
Call it Fate or destiny or whatever, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Melody’s car won’t start. If ever there was a sign, it was this. The universe just stepped in and slapped me upside the head. This gorgeous little pixie is mine.