Chapter 10 #2
“It is if she thinks that you’re sick when all you’re doing is making people sick of you.
Now run along. Or better yet, get back in your car and leave our town.
We’ve got enough going on without you causing more trouble around here.
I will arrest you if I have to come back out to someone’s home and talk to you again.
” He said he was just trying to buy up land.
“Oh, so now you’re buying it up, are you?
Last I heard, you were going to evict people like Mrs. Warner because you said you owned the land.
Did they get too smart for you and turn you down?
Sounds to me like you’ve worn out your welcome around here.
Move on before I have to move you on, sir. I’ve had about enough of you.”
“I don’t understand what the issue is with people around here.
My money is just as good as theirs is. Why can’t I do a little negotiating while I’m in town?
” He said because he was going about things all wrong.
“I’m just a man who sees something here and will do what’s necessary to get it taken care of.
There is prime land around here, and I mean to have most of it. ”
“Not if people don’t want to sell, you won’t.
” The police were finally able to get the man to get moving and then asked if he wanted to press charges.
All he’d done was knock his phone out of his hand and had entered his house.
For now, he was satisfied that the man was gone.
“But if he returns, then all bets are off, and I’m going to not just press charges against him but make sure he understands the meaning of the word no. He doesn’t seem to get that.”
“I’ve been keeping an eye on him for the last several days.
I’ll do better now that he’s come out here.
The man isn’t going to go away easily, I don’t think.
He has it in his head that he will own the property that he wants and damn what anyone else has to say about it.
Yesterday, Mrs. Warner beat him out of her house with her broom.
Did my heart good to see her taking care of business like that.
She’s old, but she’s feisty.” Rance remembered her when she was just a little girl, when he’d come to visit Brew.
She’d been a handful then. “I’ll be on my way, Rance.
If he comes back, try not to kill him. The amount of paperwork would take me most of the day to fill out, and I want to get off early tonight to see my kids playing ball at the new field. ”
“You have fun. But I’m not going to be making any promises.
” After he left him, Rance had to shake himself several times before he could shed his anger.
The man needed to have his head knocked off, and if he kept up with what he was doing, it would be sooner rather than later.
Getting back to work, he was nearly finished with the water lines when he realized how late it was getting.
Making sure that he locked up his house this time, he made his way to the place he’d been staying for a while now.
The condos in town were the perfect place for him to get what he needed and not have to mess with anyone while he was getting it.
From the end of town where he lived, there was little foot traffic and even fewer neighbors.
The condos were getting into ill repair, and he’d have to do something about that soon, as he owned them as well, but not today.
He wanted his house finished up before he took on any more projects.
~*~
It took him all of an hour to talk to the man about his couch.
He’d forgotten that they had changed up the material that it was made from and had to change it back before they’d take it back.
He’d not realized that the couch had been broken while they had been on it, and thought that a little roughhousing like they’d done shouldn’t have broken two of the legs off.
They’d been rough on them, but not that bad.
It had been cleaned up by the sunshine that he’d let into the house, and he was happy that it wasn’t as ruined as they thought it had been.
After finally getting the man to replace the one that they had, he was going to remember not to recommend the store to any of the others.
The man had been rude from the first time he’d picked up the phone and got worse as they spoke.
Even if he didn’t replace the couch, he should have been nicer about the call.
Just as he was hanging up the line, he saw Tabitha.
She looked as frustrated as he felt. He asked her what was wrong.
“I just got off the phone with the police department. They’re telling me that my mother wants me to bring her some things, and I’m not willing to do it.
Not to mention, she wants to talk to me again.
I’ve told them before that I’m not going down there to talk to her about what she wants from me.
I guess she has it in her head that she can get what she wants because the judge told her she could.
He didn’t say any such thing.” He held her while she ranted.
“Did you know that there’s a man in town trying to buy up property?
I guess he went out to Rance’s place to bother him, and he called the police. ”
“I’m surprised that he didn’t just take care of the man if he’s bothering him.
Rance isn’t one to suffer fools lightly.
And he dislikes humans a great deal.” She asked about her and Calla.
“You’ve not been human since we met. But no, I believe that he loves the two of you very much. Like a sister to him.”
“Good, because I love him as well as the others. They’re protective of me, too, and I like that as well.” She sat down on the couch that was still in good shape. “Did you have any trouble with the salesman? I could feel your tension all the way home. I hope they’ll be able to get us a replacement.”
“They’re taking care of it tomorrow. We’ll just have to remember that we changed out the color and material again so that it matches.
He nearly had a cow when I gave him the wrong description of the couch that is broken.
” He told her how he’d had a little bit of a fit when he said that he’d tried to warn them of the daintiness of the legs.
“I don’t remember him saying anything like that, and I told him so.
We’ll have to reinforce them when they get here so that when we have a little fun on them, they don’t send us to the floor. ”
They’d both left the house earlier this morning and hadn’t been together at all today.
It was the first time that he had not spent the day with her, and he found that he got a great deal done.
Not that he didn’t miss her, because he had a great deal, but he needed to spend less time with her so that he could keep up on the things that would keep them in money, like his investments.
While spending less time with her had been good for things other than them making love all the time, he didn’t like leaving her to herself because he missed her.
That sounded harsh even to his ears. Like he’d not wanted to spend any time with her because he was getting nothing done.
Well, he wasn’t, but he didn’t think that was all on her.
He’d been the one who wanted to stay home with her.
He was going to have to figure out a way to balance out the need to work and the need to be around his mate.
It should be easy, as they had the rest of their lives together to figure it out.
As Tabitha ate her dinner, he thought of all the things that needed to be taken care of.
He needed an office that he could use that wouldn’t be around the house.
He knew that if he had to go someplace to work, he’d be better at it, especially with Tabitha having things to do as well.
They both had things that needed to be taken care of, and he was going to make sure that they had time to get them done.
Even if he had to work from sunup to sundown to get it finished up.
“I was just thinking about having an office too.” He asked if she’d read his mind.
“No, you mumble when you’re upset about something.
Anyway, we both need someplace to go during the day so that we’re not all over one another all the time.
As much as I enjoy having sex with you, we’re going to wear each other out before much longer then what will we do?
I think that we have just enough sex as it is, but I’m worn out all the time.
If we keep this up, we’ll need all new furniture again, and that will not make us look good to the salespeople around town. ”
She had a point. “What do you say we have sex when it’s bedtime and nothing more?” She said that she didn’t like that, but could see the reason for it. She really needed her sleep. “I’m sorry that I’m keeping you up at night. But I so love the way you make me come when we’re playing around.”
“I love it too, but seriously, I don’t know how much longer I can do this.” She looked ready to cry, and he pulled her into his arms. She looked up at him. “Are you mad at me because I want us to slow down a bit? I’m sorry, but I really don’t know how much longer I can go without proper sleep.”
“I should have thought of that, and that’s on me.
I didn’t think about you not being as strong as I am.
We’ll be good from now on, so that I don’t break you.
” She smacked him on the chest and laid her head there.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had anyone to love.
Perhaps I’m just afraid to lose you or something.
I know that you won’t leave me, but I have gone so long without anyone meaningful in my life that I’ve gone a little overboard. ”