“Thirty-one years.”
“What’s taking you back to Savannah?” This bloke fires endless questions.
Staring at my fingers drumming on my leg, I twist my lips. “Hmm… good question. I suppose the easiest answer is that one day I realized my life was not going in the direction I thought it was. Not to sound cliché, but it was a crossroad and I had to make a decision. West. I chose west.”
“Intriguing. Is this trip temporary or permanent?”
After contemplating the meaning of each word, I reply, “Both.” At some point, the fact that I sold most of my belongings and decided to leave homeforevermay very well hit me; if I were leaving a large family, friends, even so much as a gold fish, I think I’d feel the impact of this life-altering moment. Daniel is gone, living the life he was meant to live, and Oscar could die of some flesh-eating disease from his communal underwear before his time is served.
Nolan chuckles. “Fair enough. I’m a stranger on a plane. We don’t have to get personal. Eleven hours of small talk works for me.”
Of course it does. “Fabulous.” My lips pull into a tight grin.
His expectant gaze makes me shift in my seat.
I let out a controlled breath that doesn’t sound too exasperated, then I smile. “Tell me what you do in Savannah, Mr. Moore.”
“Well, Miss Stone, I flip homes and of recent, I’ve started dabbling in commercial real estate development. My father has had his hand in real estate for years, but he’s getting bored with it so I’ve inherited his ‘hobby.’”
“Do you have any houses to rent?”
“No… well, one. Why?”
“I haven’t secured a place to stay, yet.”
“I could give you some names, other property owners. The one I have is on Tybee Island, a beachfront house with a single room and shared kitchen. The other room is already rented. Probably not what you’re looking for.”
I shake my head. “I don’t need more than a room.”
His nose wrinkles. “Yeah, but it’s only available for six months. That’s when the other renter is moving out and then the place will go on the market. It will likely sell within a day of listing it.”
Six months. I can’t believe he said six months.
“I’m interested. Six months is perfect.”
“Really?”
I nod.
Nolan bites his lips together. “I forgot to mention… the other renter is a guy, an old friend of mine.”
“Rapist? Murderer? Weird fetishes? Smelly? Loud snorer?”
He laughs. “I can’t say for sure on the snoring. We haven’t slept in the same room since we were in our late teens. It’s possible he has a weird fetish that I don’t know about, but I’m going out on a limb and saying ‘no’ to the rapist or murderer. However, he does most of the construction and remodeling for me with the homes I flip, so occasionally he might smell like sweat and sawdust, but I imagine the smell washes off when he showers.”
Adjusting my neck pillow, I close my eyes. “I’ll take it.”
“I haven’t told you the price. You haven’t filled out an application. I’ll need references.”
I smile, keeping my eyes closed. “What’s the price?”
“A grand a month.”
After giving it no more than ten seconds of consideration, I reply, “Done.”
“What about references?”
“We have eleven hours to get personal, Mr. Moore.”Mr. Chatty.“Let me know if you still need references once we land.”
