She inhaled sharply, a mistake since she also took in the scent of clove and something spicy.It went straight to her bloodstream like a hit of good Caribbean rum.
Even if he wasn’t the man buying the properties, which she still wasn’t sure was the case, he could still offload his father’s ranch—the longest-running ranch on their side of the Rockies—to the mystery mogul.She couldn’t let that happen.
“If you’re not going to listen to reason, then you need to leave.”
He shrugged, taking the wineglasses from her hand and walking out.His hand brushed her hip as he navigated around her.Her skin burned underneath his hand, and bolts of electricity shot out from that epicenter.She shuddered, unsure of what to make of that development.
“You didn’t invite me; Paige did.So, like it or not, I’m staying tonight.Maybe that’ll give you some time to actually conjure up some of that reason you’re on about.”
Aurelie’s jaw fell open as she stood alone in the space.The nerve.
She followed him out, confused as ever.For the life of her, she couldn’t get a read on the man.
“Welcome back, brother,” Brad said.
“Glad to be back to see you guys at least.”
“So, what brings you back to town?”Aurelie asked.
“Don’t badger him, Aury.He just got here.At one point in time, Jace was family.”
Yes, but since Aurelie had never so much as heard his name outside a movie theater, that time was in the distant past.
Owen pulled from his beer, giving the impression he was as wary of the newcomer as she was.He’d talked to her about his military training, and the sixth sense he’d garnered during his time with the Marines.Good.She’d need an ally when she confronted Jace about his plans for the ranch.
“I dunno,” Aurelie continued.“I know you’re here to settle your dad’s estate, but aren’t there people you can hire for that since, as you said, you don’t want to be here anyway?”She conveniently ignored the consternation emanating from Paige in waves.
Just wait, she wanted to tell her friend.You’ll see.
Jace raised a brow at her, frustration tugging the edge of his lips.
“I actually came to say goodbye.Yeah, I could have hired this out, but my dad’s property deserved more than a stranger offloading it.”
“Sounds like a well-rehearsed and acted speech,” she said.
Paige gave a frustrated sigh.“Aurelie, so help me—”
“No!You guys don’t understand.”She fished the papers out of the bag she’d brought and handed them over.“You may have known this guy when he was younger, but what do you know about him now?
“Hank Michaels just gave me some of his furniture last month and pretended everything was okay.Then I read this.”She pointed accusingly at Jace, her hand shaking.“There were construction supplies all over his property.Do you think your lives, your farms, are going to stay the same when he starts construction?Do you think he will stop at just the Michaels’s property?”
Jace was staring at Aurelie like he’d just learned she came from another planet.His jaw was open, his eyes wide and full of surprise.Any inclination she had that she’d hurt him earlier was nothing compared to the look he gave her now.She’d shattered his veneer, and not in the way she’d expected.Something in his eyes reached her in a way his words hadn’t.
Why did she feel like she was dead wrong all of a sudden?Like everything she thought she knew was a lie?
Paige glanced between her best friend and Jace.
The room fell into a strained silence as Paige and Sophie read over the gossip paper and the men pored over theBanberry Times; even the soft murmurs from Maddie were hushed.
Jace took both when they were done, his lips parted in what appeared to be genuine surprise.
“Is this you?”Paige asked Jace.
“No.No, it’s not.”Thebuthung in the air, unspoken.He’d already told Aurelie he’d sell to whomever he needed to in order to leave as soon as possible and get back to his life in Hollywood.
“Aurelie, is there truth to this?”Paige asked, her voice almost a whisper.The whole room held Aurelie’s gaze, expectant.She nodded.
“It seems like it.”
