Page 30 of Tempting Eden

Eden’s face brightened at her daughter’s words, love written in the curve of her lips, the attentiveness of her posture. Maybe Adele was the missing piece of the Eden puzzle. But there was another piece as well—Mason.

Rosa doled out small chickens on each of our plates, or maybe they were some other sort of bird? I draped my napkin in my lap and waited for Eden and Adele to eat. I’d gotten pretty good at following others’ leads when it came to social situations I was unfamiliar with. They started cutting into the meat, and I followed suit, mimicking their movements with an air of confidence that implied I’d eaten these little birds several times before and there was absolutely nothing to see here.Move along.

Eden took a bite as Rosa placed serving plates of potatoes and green beans along the center of the highly-polished table. “What book is it?”

“The Bluest Eyeby Toni Morrison.”

Eden coughed a little and took a sip of water before getting her breath back. “Oh?”

Adele continued, unruffled. “Yeah. Jack’s read it. He was helping me take a different approach to the Eurocentric beauty notions that permeate our culture.”

Eden stopped chewing, mouth hanging slightly open. I smiled down at my plate.

“I’m gone for a couple days, you talk to Jack for all of five minutes, and now you’re using phrases like ‘Eurocentric beauty notions’ and ‘permeate our culture.’ Harvard, here she comes.” Eden beamed with pride.

“Aw, Mom.” The girl blushed and plopped a spoonful of mashed potatoes into her mouth.

Eden shot me a glance and nodded slightly in thanks.

The food was delicious, and we quickly fell into a steady conversation about the Belle Mar development and what sort of work schedule Eden would have over the next month or so. Adele was remarkably self-sufficient for her age, and with Rosa’s help she managed her busy school and extracurricular activities like a champ. She’d clearly gotten her drive from Eden.

Despite the enjoyable company and conversation, I found my thoughts straying to Mason, wondering about the story behind the man who’d threatened Eden. I hated to think of him as Adele’s father, but she had the same blonde hair. More than that, Eden seemed genuinely afraid of him.

I looked around the table at Eden and Adele, both chatting excitedly about plans and futures. This was a family, arealone, full of love and open affection. I’d had no experience in this realm, but I knew this was the way it should be—dreams shared and lives lived fully together. Though the family wasn’t mine, I knew I’d do anything I could to protect it, including dealing with Mason.

CHAPTER EIGHT

EDEN

WE WORKED STRAIGHT THROUGHthe following week, making good on contracts, getting the condos sold. I fielded call after call on the remaining units and pushed hard to get the pricier upper floors sold as quickly as possible. I was making progress, but I still hadn’t had any luck on the crème de la crème penthouse that topped the entire building. It was over five thousand square feet of breathtaking views and amazing luxury, and with a price tag to match. It was turning into my white whale.

Still, the buzz was building for the grand opening sales party. The guest list had ballooned to triple digits. We had to hire additional catering staff, and even needed additional doormen and servers before all was said and done.

Gray’s construction foreman was on my speed dial. I hounded him constantly, making sure the lobby and pool would be ready for the party. He assured me every time that it would be and further assured me that if I’d just leave him the hell alone, he’d likely be able to finish ahead of schedule.

Jack treated me the same as he always had. He was respectful, polite, efficient…except he called me Eden now. The only one who noticed the change was Fairfax.

“Looks like Jack’s going to beat the month time frame.” Fairfax leaned against my desk and surveyed the damage. Contracts and sales data sheets thrown to and fro, a list of phone calls I needed to return, and it was already five o’clock. I had a long night ahead of me. Opening weekend was only a week away.

I put my head on my desk and just let it rest there for a moment.

“You’re going to get it sold. Don’t worry.”

I wobbled my head back and forth.

“Surely Gray isn’t serious about that deadline.”

“Oh, he is.”

“Why’s he being such a hard-ass all of a sudden?”

Pretty Emily down the hall.“I don’t know.”

Fairfax had been around long enough to know the game. Sometimes it took more—a lot more—to get deals closed than it should. I had more reason than most to keep my books in order and my properties selling. Mason made sure of it. I would do whatever was necessary to keep him away from Adele, to keep him silent.

Fairfax, like everyone else, didn’t realize that losing the game wasn’t an option for me; it never had been. Scraping together enough money for Mason on Tuesday had depleted what little savings I had. I didn’t want to think about what would happen if I didn’t get the complex sold according to Gray’s wishes.

“Seems to me like he’s shooting himself in the foot with all this pressure and deadline and such, but what do I know?”

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