He let her go. “Dance with me later?”
In answer she simply smiled. She felt him looking at her as she walked away.
The scent of lavender followed her.
Damn, she’s gorgeous. So much for seeing Savannah again, and holding her in his arms, not being a big deal.
Harlan had come back to Whiskey River for a number of reasons. His career in Dallas had been both rewarding and successful. But after years of building high-end houses and little else, he was ready for a change. He wanted to build a variety of things, not just homes. He’d considered moving back to Whiskey River before. So when he heard that Bill Griffith wanted to sell Whiskey River Construction, he began thinking seriously about buying it.
Then his friends Logan Calloway and Elijah Lane decided Whiskey River was the perfect place for a winery and they wanted Harlan as their builder. The three of them had been friends from way back and while they rarely saw each other until recently, they’d kept in touch.
Along with that, his brother Travis and a couple of his friends were expanding Devil’s Rock, the small private airfield near Whiskey River. They’d already expanded the runway so that Devil’s Rock could accommodate a small jet, but Travis, Zack Bannister and Levi Chapman wanted to put in a new terminal and add hangar space, among other improvements. They planned to create an honest-to-God small to midsized, private airport, not just a couple of landing strips in the middle of nowhere, which was basically what they had now.
Finally, Harlan wanted to spend some time with his family—his brother Travis, his sister Laurel, and Laurel’s kids. The one thing that hadnotbeen on his agenda was getting involved with Savannah Taylor again.
And then he saw her. In a strapless, long red dress, looking drop-dead gorgeous. Even more beautiful than he remembered. So dazzling she damn near hurt his eyes. Not that it mattered. Even if he’d wanted, he doubted Savannah would go for anything romantic between them.
Harlan and Savannah had seen each other a few times over the years, when they were both in Whiskey River. They hadn’t spoken. The last time he’d actually talked to her was ten or eleven years before. He’d literally run into her coming out of Riva’s Java shop. They’d talked then.
“How are you, Savannah?” Harlan asked.
“Drop dead,” she said.
Great conversation, that.
But hell, that was years ago. And their breakup had happened before that. There was no reason to think there could be anything between them. Of course, it would help if he hadn’t been damn near struck dumb at seeing her again. Luckily, he thought he’d covered his reaction decently.
“Harlan, what the hell is wrong with you, man? I’ve been talking for five minutes.”
Harlan looked at his friend Elijah. “Sorry. I was thinking about something.”
“Or someone,” Elijah said dryly. Harlan lifted an eyebrow. “I saw you with Savannah. Thinking of getting something going there?”
Harlan shrugged. “She’s a beautiful woman.”
“That she is. I hear she’s the office manager for Whiskey River Construction. Is she still going to work for you?”
“I hope so.”
“Wait a minute. You had the hots for her in high school. I remember now. What happened with that? One minute you were hot for her and the next you never mentioned her again.”
“Eli?”
His friend looked at him. “What?”
“Shut up.” Harlan walked away, leaving Eli laughing. That was the problem with old friends. They thought they knew more than they really did.
The scent of lavender surrounded him as someone spoke.You should ask her to dance again. You know you want to.
The voice had been distinctly feminine. Harlan looked around, wondering who was speaking, but there wasn’t a soul anywhere near him.
