The weather was perfect for portraits. The art trail had an entrance with wide, curving stone steps covered in flowering vines, which was where we stopped first.
In the dappled light, Meg looked ethereal in her dress. After Grace had enough photos on the steps, we moved down the trail a ways to the arbor.
“How’s life in Manhattan?” Meg asked me while we were waiting for Grace to frame the shot and adjust the lighting. She was very particular, and it took a while. “Is it glamorous and fantastic?”
I rolled my eyes. “Maybe for some people but not me. Try dodging trash on the sidewalk, getting stuck in a subway tunnel, and being screamed at by the crazy person who lives on the corner. Oh, and my landlord is trying to throw everyone out of the building because he wants to sell the property and turn it into a high-end condo development.”
“He can’t just evict people.” Meg frowned. “There are laws about that sort of thing. Now, I used to do family law when I just got out of law school and was working at a white-shoe law firm. However, after being in the Harrogate government, I’ve become a lot more familiar with real-estate laws. And no, selling the property to develop it is not a legal reason to evict people. New York City is about to pass a new ordinance to provide more protections to renters to avoid these types of conversions.”
“I’m not sure what I can do about it. There will be twenty apartments available that he’s going to let some tenants keep and rent to own. He pitted us all against each other.” I grimaced.
“You could help organize the tenants to demand that they all be allowed to purchase at market rate or that the development company buy out,” Meg suggested. “They would need at least fifty-one percent, I believe.”
I felt slightly guilty that I was assured an apartment.
“That sounds like a lot, and I’m not sure the tenants would go for it. Next door is getting nasty. The developer’s proposal was that twenty people would be given a bigger luxury unit for the same price. I doubt the tenants want to just keep their existing ones.”
“You should stay out of the development industry,” Sebastian told me, coming over to set down one of Grace’s heavy lights. “Greg Svensson has tried to convince me to go in on one of these deals before. The developers perform a squeeze on existing tenants who buy or who stay and rent. They let the building conditions grow worse and worse, until it makes more sense for the tenant to accept a small payout and leave or just sell their unit. The goal is to buy the units for as little as possible to deflate the market rent. Once enough people have sold, you can start construction, and it makes it unlivable for the remaining tenants. You can clear a building in eight months to a year and flip it to a luxury development, according to Svensson Investment.”
Meg shook her head, her mouth an angry line. “Those Svenssons and their shady development deals,” she said sharply. “Even though Hunter is marrying me, I still have to stay on him about letting his brother Greg squeeze through whatever deal he wants in town.”
Sebastian was suspiciously silent. Meg turned on him
“They have something else in the works, don’t they?”
“They don’t give me specifics,” he demurred.
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I know why you and Hunter were in the flower contest,” she said. “You all are trying to swing all those horny old women to Hunter’s side.”
“No comment?”
* * *
“Those photos are goingto look amazing,” I said happily to Sebastian as he helped me cart the props and other items back into the farmhouse.
Meg had quickly changed out of the dress because she had another meeting in town to attend.
“You all have quite the operation,” he remarked.
I made a face as I held the door to the flower storage room open for him. I was planning on donating the bouquets to the hospital later.
“We are usually more organized,” I said.
“Speaking of,” he added, “what are you planning for the bachelorette party?”
“I have no idea,” I said, throwing up my hands. “Two of Meg’s sisters are underage. Plus, we have the other random citizens who are bridesmaids. It’s not like we can throw a destination bachelorette party. Ugh, this is stressing me out. I need a snack. I made chocolate chip bread pudding yesterday. You want any?”
“I think I have something else in mind,” he replied, setting down the flowers, and giving me a steamy kiss.
Thankfully the old farmhouse had been empty when we went in. I would have died of embarrassment if my grandfather had been there, even though I was a grown woman who, sure, had multiple maxed-out credit cards and was late on rent, but fuck it. I had a hot guy in my life, and I would do with him what I wanted. Bad decisions for everyone.
Sebastian burst into laughter when he saw my room. “You weren’t joking about the horse theme.”
I posed against one of the giant horse posters I had on the wall. “I am fully committed to being a horse girl,” I said, taking a cowgirl hat off a hook on the wall and putting it on. “And I’m going for a ride.”
I grabbed Sebastian by the tie and pushed him down to the four-poster bed. It squeaked hilariously, and Sebastian made a face at me.
Laughing, I knelt next to him and started to undo the buttons of his shirt one by one.
