“Mmm, what are we having?”
“Pancakes and scrambled eggs.”
“Yum!”
They ate at the quartz island and cleaned up the kitchen together. Then it was a race to the master bath, and Sully let her beat him into the shower. Charley turned on the water and pulled him into the hot spray with her. The shower took longer than usual. Damn, it was a pleasure to wash Charley’s sensational body from head to toe and have her wash his. Her hands found his hard length, and Sully closed his eyes in sweet ecstasy before turning off the water.
“Ready to go?” Sully called in the foyer. Charley’s appointment with her realtor was more than an hour and a half away. But he was allowing extra time to get there due to the worsening weather conditions. Snow now blanketed the ranch.
“Coming,” Charley replied, and from the master bedroom came hopping into the hallway on one foot. Stopping to tug on her other red boot she then jogged to him. She pulled on red gloves that matched her red toboggan-style hat decorated with snowmen and a white pompom on top. The set had been a Christmas gift to her from Sully, and he thought she looked adorable. On the same page, as usual, she’d given him black leather gloves and a wool scarf to match his black cowboy hat and black leather jacket. “Ready to go.”
Grinning at the gorgeous girl whose trademark long, loose brain hung down her back, Sully stood with his hand on the doorknob as his cell rang. He answered the call and frowned. “No, problem, Dad. I’ll be right there.”
“What’s wrong?” Charley asked when he’d put his phone in his pocket.
“Dad slipped on a patch of ice and thinks he may have broken his right ankle.” Sully rubbed his forehead. “He can’t put weight on it to get to his car and needs to go to the ER.”
“Sully, go see about him,” Charley urged as Sully glanced at his new smart watch. “I can drive myself to Old Colorado City and sign the paperwork.”
“I don’t want you alone in Old Colorado City.”
“I won’t be alone. I’ll be with Margo, my realtor.”
“Yes, but the realtor’s office is right up the street from your property.” Sully knew that’s why Charley had chosen the woman, as the realtor had often purchased flowers or plants as thank you gifts for her buyers and sellers from Charley’s shop before it had closed. “Tell you what, let’s go get Dad. We’ll drop you off at the realtor’s office, and I will take him to the ER. You call me the second you’re done, and I’ll come back for you. By that time, Dad might be done too. If not, it won’t matter because you’ll be safely back with me, and we can pick Dad up from the hospital together.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Charley gave him a sharp nod of her head. “Let’s go.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
“Hi, Margo,” Charley said to the woman who greeted her in the lobby of the real estate office.
“Hi, Charley,” Margo said, shortly after four o’clock. About a decade older than Charley, Margo had short hair and a trim figure. She wore black glasses over her smiling brown eyes.
“I’m so sorry I’m late.” Standing on a wide doormat just inside the office, Charley tugged off her gloves and toboggan. She gave her head a shake and brushed snowflakes off her shoulders. “Like I texted to you, my friend, Sully, and I had to stop by his father’s place and pick him up. His dad slipped on a patch of ice and thinks he may have broken his ankle.”
“I hope his ankle’s not broken,” Margo replied, with a frown of concern. “No problem as to being late. I’ve lived in Colorado Springs all my life and I’m used to dealing with the occasional blizzard. The Chinook winds won’t be able to melt the ice until the snow stops.”
“Blizzard is the right word,” Charley agreed. “The snow steadily increased as we made our way into town. Sully dropped me off here and is on his way to the ER with his dad. I’ll call Sully to pick me up when we’re done.”
“Great.” Margo waved Charley into her private office. With cups of coffee, they settled into comfortable chairs on either side of Margo’s desk and the realtor said, “My car slid a couple of times on my way into the office.”
“I can imagine,” Charley acknowledged with a nod. “Sully is an excellent driver, but because of the weather, we came into town in his four-wheel-drive Jeep. After picking up his dad, it took almost a half hour longer than usual to reach Old Colorado City.”
They sipped their coffee, and while enjoying a few minutes of catching up with each other, Margo printed out the paperwork regarding the offer on Charley’s shop and duplex. She explained it all line-by-line, ending with, “This is a good offer, Charley, and as you know, they’re paying cash. So, it will be a fairly fast transaction if you do in fact accept their offer.”
Charley nodded her agreement. “Yes, it is a good offer, and I am accepting it.”
“Great.” Margo handed her a pen, and Charley signed in all the appropriate seller spots. “I will let the buyers know they have purchased the property for their tattoo shop and duplex.”
“Thank you for everything, Margo,” Charley said with a smile and glanced out of the window. It was five thirty p.m., and being the last week in December, it was already dark.
“It’s been my pleasure,” Margo replied with a tilt of her head. “My only regret is not having you as my Old Colorado City neighbor anymore. I will miss you.”
“I will miss you too,” Charley said. “I hope you’ll come see Pretty Petals soon.”
“Oh, absolutely. I promise I will. I’ll still order all my flowers from you too.”
“Wonderful,” Charley said. “If we’re done, I’ll text Sully and he’ll come pick me up.”
