“Gill’s rich? But he drives around in a rusty old Toyota pickup. He wears old clothes.”
“That’s Gill. He doesn’t need to show off.”
“So, he’s rich? I don’t think Lauren knows about that.”
“Probably not. I’m sure he wants to wait until he knows it’s the real deal. He’s had some bad experiences with clingers.”
“Lauren’s loaded. She’s not going to care about his money.”
“Lauren’s got money but not Tillman Oil money or even Gill Tillman money. Gill owns this building. Over the years, he’s sold off some of the apartments but he still owns the majority as well as the structure itself.”
I let out a gasp. “He does?” I smile, thinking about my best friend. She’s finally met her equal, at least as relates to money. I have yet to decide if Gill is her equal as a person. She’s always been better than anyone else as far as I’m concerned.
“He does. He’s invested in a lot of things around the city. I’m afraid you hooked up with the poor one. Are you sad about that?”
I slap him on the chest. “Sam, don’t be ridiculous. I couldn’t care less about your money. If we were poor and had to live at my place, I’d be okay as long as you were with me.”
He must like that answer because he pats my bottom affectionately. “That reminds me: what are you gonna do with your place?”
“I’m not sure. I can’t give it up. Not yet anyway.” I roll back to my back. “Maybe I could use it as a studio to make jewelry. I could get a kiln and some other equipment. I could?—”
“Mac?” he whines. “I hate the idea of you even going back there. Why don’t you just rent it to someone you know?”
“It’s my home, Sam. I grew up there.”
“You could workhere. There are three bedrooms. We could set it up exactly like you want. Hell, we could set up the other condo up as your studio. Then you’d only have to go next door. Surely there’s someone you know who needs a nice rental apartment?”
“Is it even in any shape to rent? Is my place completely destroyed?” The medicine cabinet, the drawers, the built-in shelves, and some of the parquet flooring are all here now.
“No. They replaced everything as they went along. I thought you might want to sell it, so they did a great job putting it back together. They painted, too. The colors are all the same, by the way—just a fresh coat over the top. I also had the carpeting replaced, a larger shower installed, and an apartment-size stove and dishwasher added to the kitchen.”
“Sam?”
“What? It wasn’t expensive, and it adds value. I was thinking of it as an investment.”
“God, I owe you like a million dollars, don’t I?”
“No. You don’t owe me a cent. All I want is you and your beautiful heart as payment. Oh, and your sexy body, too.” Sam leans over and gives me one of his signature kisses—soft and sweet to start and then deeper and more passionate to end. I kiss him back with everything I’ve got.
“How did I get so lucky?” I sigh.
“I’m the lucky one, sweetheart. Never doubt that for a second. I truly can’t believe my good luck.”
“All right. I’ll ask around. I think Diane’s brother was looking for a place to live.”
“Thank God,” he mumbles.
“I’m not promising anything. I said I’d ask.”
He leans over and wraps his arms around me tightly. “I have every confidence we can find someone suitable to rent your place. Every confidence.”
“Mm-hmm. I bet you do. Bossy.”
He chuckles and then kisses me. I’m sure he’ll get his way. He always does.
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
FOUR MONTHS LATER
