18. Dancing With the Devil
Chapter eighteen
Dancing With the Devil
Brody
“You did what?” Mason stares at me like I’ve told him I’m giving up coffee for green tea. Pure disbelief.
I step out of the shower, towel slung low on my hips, rifling through the closet for something to wear. My go-to for big events is a tux, but let’s be real, it’s Bluepeak, not the Met Gala. Even if the Starlight Festival is the biggest event of the year, as Chloe keeps reminding me.
“You heard me.” I keep scanning the closet, hangers clanking together as I search for something less... Wall Street. “The Bluepeak project is off the table.”
Mason flops down on the bed, face buried in his hands, groaning something about me losing my mind. “I can’t believe you’re blowing up a project this size over a woman you’ve known for five minutes.”
“This isn’t about Chloe.”
He snorts, full volume, he’s acting like I said I was giving up my life’s work to start a goat farm or something.
I brace for whatever dramatic monologue is about to happen.
“Brody, I know you,” he says, jabbing a finger in my direction. “Sometimes better than you know yourself.”
“It’s not about Chloe,” I repeat, sharper this time. “It’s about Bluepeak. Preserving the land, the natural wonders…”
Mason lets out a howl, cutting me off. “Preserving the natural wonders? Oh my God, who are you?”
I roll my eyes and nudge him aside. Then I grab a crisp white button-down and dark jeans, skipping the tie.
My hand goes to the polished leather shoes, but I stop, reconsider, and swap them for the suede loafers.
Still sharp, but more relaxed. Casual, not sloppy.
Small-town chic, whatever the hell that means.
“Natural wonders,” he mutters under his breath, as if repeating it will magically make me see the error of my ways. “You’re fucking mad.”
“I wasn’t asking for your permission.” I tug on my jeans and glance at him. “Stirling Tech has other projects. We’re fine. It’s not the train wreck you’re imagining.”
“Oh, is that right?” He snaps. “Brody, I’ve watched you tear down entire neighborhoods to build tech hubs and luxury resorts. And now, suddenly, this is different?”
“Yes.” I button my shirt and face him head-on. “It is.”
“How?” He’s not letting this go. “You always say everything’s fair game if people are compensated fairly. Do you have any idea how much money we stand to lose if you pull out now? Do you know how many people have been working their asses off to make this happen?
And now you’re going to walk away?”
“We’ll be late for the festival.” I grab my phone from the nightstand, signaling that the conversation’s over.
“Hey.” He snags my arm. “We’re not done.”
“We’re finished when I say we are.”
We stand here, locked in some alpha standoff like we’re about to arm wrestle. I’d win.
“You can say this isn’t about Chloe, but I’m not buying it.” His eyes narrow. “Anyone with half a brain can see it’s your…” He gestures downward. “your dick doing the talking.”
“Get your hands off me.” I pull away. “I don’t give a damn about the money, okay? And the people? They’ve been cashing a fat paycheck since day one.”
“There are other ways to go about this. Think before pulling the plug. We’ve worked too hard.”
“If I say I’ll think about it, will it shut you up so we can go?”
He snickers. “Never thought I’d see the day you’d be hyped for a country bumpkin hoedown.”
Yeah, well, here we are, buddy.
We’re still talking shit as we head outside. The air’s thick with summer heat and that distinct smell of grass after sunset. There’s something about this place that’s taken hold of me. More than I expected.
Could it be because of Chloe?
Not that I’m telling Mason. But the truth is, today was the best day I’ve had in a long damn time. Balcony stunt, bunny rescue. She makes the ordinary feel new and exciting. Everything feels sharper. Brighter. More alive.
“Don’t look now, but she’s coming right at you,” Mason says, as we step onto the grass behind the lodge .
The area’s lit up in full festival glory. Fairy lights everywhere. There’s a little stage where the town band is warming up, a wooden makeshift dance floor, and tables packed with food.
Grammy Gillespie is parked by the lake, taking in the chaos with her patented "I’ve-seen-it-all-before" look.
Then Chloe’s voice cuts through the noise.
“You’re late.”
I damn near trip.
She giggles, the sound instantly grounding me.
Mason bails instantly, abandoning me with a wink, aiming straight for the cupcake tower with zero shame.
“Subtle.” Chloe mutters, smirking.
I glance over at her, trying not to look like the lovestruck idiot I’m quickly becoming.
“I checked on Doug this morning,” she says, her eyes sparkling beneath the lights. It’s like every star in the sky decided to show up in her eyes tonight. I’m so fucked.
“Doug?” I frown. Confused.
She lightly smacks my arm. “The rabbit. Darcy’s releasing him the day after tomorrow.”
“Oh, Doug. Right.” I grin. “Forgot that’s what he said when he introduced himself.”
She laughs, and I swear I feel it in my chest.
We pass Mayor Dawson mid-bite, cupcake frosting smeared across his face. Hazard of the job, I guess.
“I had a meeting with him today,” she says.
“Was I a topic of conversation?” I raise an eyebrow.
“It’s town business,” she says, pretending she’s guarding national secrets. “Extremely confidential.”
I can’t help but chuckle. “Oh, extremely confidential, I’m sure.”
“Extremely.” She nods with mock seriousness. “That’s the highest level of confidentiality. Experts confirmed it.”
“Experts, huh? And who are we to question them?”
Her hand slides into mine, tugging me toward the dance floor. “Time to dance.”
“Wait, what?”
Before I know it, we’re standing smack-dab in the middle of the dance floor. We’re basically the only ones out here, except for a few couples dancing awkwardly in the background. Mason laughs from somewhere near the dessert table.
“Uh, I don’t dance.”
“Everyone dances, Brody. Suck it up and give me your hand.”
We start moving, and for a second, I forget how to breathe.
“Knowing your left from right is half the battle,” she says, smiling wide. “One step, then another, that’s it.”
I’m completely taken. Enamored. Bowled over by this beauty of a woman who has me eating out of the palm of her hand.
We move to the music and it’s like everyone else disappears. No Mason, no mayor, and no one to witness me fumbling through a two-step like a jackass. It’s us, alone on this dance floor, with only a breathtaking canopy of stars to witness.
“You’re doing great,” she says, voice soft.
I gaze down at her, smiling. “That’s because you’re a great teacher. ”
The music swells, and our bodies press closer together. I'm fully aware of how my pulse kicks up with every beat.
“Can I tell you something?” I ask, painfully aware of the hesitation in my voice. “You can’t laugh.”
“Well, if it’s one of your bad jokes, that’ll be easy.” She shoots back quickly. “Nobody laughs at those anyway.”
I want to kiss her.
“Touché,” I say, gripping her waist a little tighter. “But seriously…”
Her body relaxes in my arms. “Okay, okay, seriously, you can tell me anything.”
She knows. I know she does.
“I don’t have a great track record,” I say. “I’ve never met someone who…”
Words fail me. She’s right here, and I can’t string a thought together.
“Forget it,” I say, resting her head on my shoulder. “Shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Too late.” Her voice is muffled against my shirt. “It scares me too. Feeling this much, this fast. You have me questioning everything.”
“That’s exactly it.” I pull back to see her face. “You’re in my head. All the time . When I think about work, this town, my life...”
“What matters?” She finishes. “It’s the same for me. The more time we spend together, the more I think about…”
“What’s actually important,” we say at the same time, and laugh.
Finally, the tension breaks. My shoulders drop, and the words stop tripping over each other.
She lets go of my hand and wraps her arms around my neck, fingers locking behind it.
“I know I must seem like some small-town hick to you,” she says then. “But I have goals. Maybe not a global resort, but they matter to me.”
“First of all, I don’t think you’re a hick,” I say, holding her close, my hands poised above her ass. And with incredible restraint, I might add. “Second, tell me. I want to hear everything.”
A flush creeps up her neck, and her gaze drops like she’s trying to talk herself out of saying it. I give her a little nudge. “Come on, I can’t be the only one laying it all out.”
“Okay, okay.” Her eyes flick back up to mine, and damn if she doesn’t look like she’s about to hand me a piece of her soul. “I want to open a bookstore. Right here in Bluepeak. I’ve had the name picked out for years.”
“What’s the name?”
She bites the inside of her lip, weighing whether to divulge one of the world’s biggest secrets.
Eventually, she replies with, “Words of Whimsy.”
I hold my palm to her cheek, forgetting for a moment that we’re not alone. She’s more than I ever expected. “That’s a beautiful dream, and a perfect name for it. You should absolutely do it.”
Her lids drop, and she leans into my touch, her breathing slowing, deepening. And I don’t know if it’s the brisk night air, the stars, or the music, but I’m suddenly swept up in everything I feel for her. I want to kiss her. I want to kiss her and never stop.
I tilt her chin and kiss her, brushing her lips once, then again, slower this time.
She steps closer, eyes never leaving mine. “Let’s go somewhere I can kiss you properly.”
Holy shit. She’s serious.
She laces her fingers through mine and leads me toward the lodge, pulling us through the same sliding doors I stood at with the realtor not that long ago.
The rec room is empty, dimly lit, with a soft glow flickering from the fireplace.
She doesn’t stop. Just crosses the floor in quick, determined steps, still holding on to me like I might disappear.
“Chloe—”
“Over here…”
We slip into the shadowy space between the rec room and the hall, a narrow little pocket of nowhere with just enough room to breathe. No one around. No light. Only the press of her hand in mine and the thud of my heart in my ears.
“What if someone comes in here?” I ask, my back hitting the wall.
“Then you’ll have to be quiet.” She slides her hands up my chest, cups my face, and kisses me.