Chapter 9
"You're taking me to my parent's home?" Taylor asked as she followed Oz up the stairs in his home. "Tonight? Now?”
Oz had picked her up earlier from Angel Haven. He hadn’t given her an itinerary other than he had business to take care of near her parent’s town and would be taking her home. So here she was with everything she owned, once more standing in his home unsure of her future.
“Not this minute. But that's the plan," Oz told her, moving around the desk that filled half of the room. "You can have a seat if you want. I have a couple of things to do here.”
Taylor eased onto the edge of the couch that filled the wall opposite his desk. The room was the size of the entire second floor and half the size of the main floor. Bookshelves, filling cabinets, and a small worktable screamed workspace. Real estate and literary items decorated the walls.
"You must read a lot.”
"I do. Feel free to look around and help yourself."
Taylor’s eyelids fluttered closed carrying her back to that first night she had drifted to sleep under Oz’s roof. She had thought that night how oddly different the secure silence of Oz's home felt in contrast to the safe silence of the park restroom. Being here now was still more than the safety of being off the street. It held a calmness she couldn’t quite explain, but one she knew she longed for.
She straightened and opened her eyes. Interesting place. She stood and walked to the shelves. Running a finger over the book spines, she scanned the titles. Reference books on one shelf. Real estate books on another. Basic law, computer technology. Ah. Here we are . Fantasy. Western. Romance. She paused. Romance? She cocked her head toward him.
"Yes, I've read everything there.”
"Everything?
He laughed. "Everything." He finally looked up from what he was working on. "What do you like to read?”
"I'm not picky. But no horror. And I'm not much on the too sweet to be true stories. We all know life is not a bed of roses.”
"We have a long ride ahead of us. Grab a couple of books to read if you want.”
Taylor turned back to scour the shelves. A definite variety to choose from. She had never been a big reader, but something to distract her from thoughts of dealing with her family again was welcome.
"I don’t take you as a western lover and since you're not hip to the mushy stuff, how about some fantasy? They still have a romance element, but not your norm.” Oz pulled a book from one of the shelves. "Look at this one."
She took it and flipped it over, reading the blurb. Interesting. "I'll borrow this one."
"If you like it," Oz said as he removed another book from the shelf. “You may want this one too. It's book two."
"Perfect." Taylor tucked both books into her folded arms. "Thank you."
"No problem."
"What do you do to need such an office?"
"I have rental properties around town. Have to have somewhere to keep my records and files.”
"Sounds like a lot of work."
"Not too bad."
Taylor eased around the space before settling back into one end of the couch. "My father always said that your home reflects your value. The more money you make, the larger the house. By his standards, you do very well to have an office so large that you need furniture for clients.”
"But the size of my house contradicts that fact,” Oz cut in. He leaned back in his chair and cocked his head studying her. "Is that what you believe?"
Taylor lifted her shoulders. Most of the things she grew up believing had become blurred or irrelevant lately. "We moved a few times when I was young. I recall hearing my parents discussing their finances and announcing that it was time to upgrade. We always had a large home. That was great as a kid. I could do pretty much as I pleased without them hovering over me. And I could swim anytime I wanted. As a teenager I had the privacy most kids dreamed of.”
"Are you telling me that you were a spoiled princess who got everything she wanted?"
Spoiled? She never considered herself that. She sorted through memories searching for the evidence. "No. there were plenty of times I didn't get what I wanted. Granted, they were most likely things I didn't need.”
"Such as?"
"I remember once my friends were talking about video games they got for Christmas. I asked for one and was told I should be happy with what I had. That parents bought kids toys to make up for the lack of prominence they possessed.”
"What did you get that Christmas?"
"Clothes as usual. And a pair of earrings."
"Necessities. Much like my gifts were,” Oz told her.
Taylor smiled. Maybe she was a bit spoiled to expect more if others received necessities as gifts.
"Times were tough for my parents, though. I didn't know any difference,” Oz said.
"Was there anything you ever really wanted?" Taylor asked.
"I wanted a computer. I knew they couldn't afford one, so I did odd jobs for the neighbors and saved up. My Dad added what he could to it, and we found a used one. I thought that was the greatest thing ever. My mom began babysitting at times and baking for others. I didn't realize it at the time, but it was her way of contributing to Dad's odd jobs and installing internet so I could use that computer.”
Oz threw his hands behind his head, his smile softened, and he appeared to enjoy the memory. Once again, she searched her thoughts, nothing so special came to mind.
"See that antique of a desktop in the corner?" He gave a nod behind her.
She twisted to look. A beige boxy monitor sat atop a small stand with a large computer base underneath it. "You still have it? "
"It was the beginning of all this.” Oz spread his arms indicating his home. Or maybe his livelihood. He must have noticed her confusion when he continued.
"I learned to use that for everything. It was my best friend. I searched and researched everything. Discovered my first real job on that. Saved money. Learned to invest. My first major purchase was a house in a sheriff’s auction. My Dad and I repaired what needed to be and added a fresh coat of paint and flipped it. Used that money and did it again. Then found a nice one for the times, nothing extravagant, but comfortable. Purchased it and gave it to my parents.”
"That's how you got into real estate?"
Oz nodded. "It is.”
Taylor smiled at Oz. A memory of something so amazing must be wonderful. It was inspiring for her to know someone with next to nothing who worked so hard to come out on top. She could learn from that, from him. That's where she was right now, sitting next to nothing.
“That’s it,” Oz announced. “Ready to hit the road?”
“That didn’t take long.”
“Not at all. Just needed to be done before we left. Got your books and your bags. I’ll grab mine and we’ll be on our way. Tomorrow morning you’ll be back with your family.”