Page 19 of Blame It on the Bikini
"Fair enough."
"What do you want to ask me?" she asked as they sat down on her comfortable couch.
"I just wanted to let you know that despite my residency here for the next month, I'm still planning to sell the building. However, we will have relocation packages for the tenants."
"You think money can replace the community they've built here?"
"Not replace but hopefully make their lives easier and provide an option for other opportunities."
"You sound exactly like your father." Josie tilted her head, studying him with uncomfortably perceptive eyes. "You're the spitting image of Emerson. Same eyes. Same way of walking into a room and taking charge of a conversation as if you own every room you enter. And you probably own a lot of them, don't you?"
"Some," he admitted. "How often have you talked to my father? I was under the impression that you worked with a manager in our company, Steve Robbins."
"Yes, I've worked with Steve since I first became manager, but I have had a few conversations with your father."
"He didn't mention that." He gave her a thoughtful look. "In one of those conversations, did my father mention why he wanted me to stay here for a month? It might be helpful if I could understand his reasoning."
"You should ask Emerson that question."
"He didn't want to answer."
"Well, that's between you and him."
"Okay," he said, realizing he wasn't going to get any information from her. "Can I ask you another question?"
"That depends on what it is."
"How do you feel about having to move?"
"With my fancy relocation package?" she asked with a wry but somewhat sad smile. "I'll survive if there's no other option."
"This is business; it's not personal," he said, wondering how many times he would have to tell people that.
"There are real people who live here."
"Which is why I don't usually get to know the people I'm going to force out of a building," he said bluntly. "And why I'm so confused my father felt it necessary for me to do that now. But I've known for the last several years that there is something about this building that holds value to him." He paused. "Would you disagree?"
"Like I said before, you'd have to ask him." She gave him a compassionate smile. "I'm sorry I can't be more forthcoming. You're a man who likes answers, who wants things to add up, and this doesn't add up."
"It doesn't."
"I could do a Tarot card reading for you, if you want. It might clarify things."
"I don't believe in that."
"Well, that's not surprising. But if you change your mind, let me know. Is there anything else I can help you with? If you want to go over the financial records again, Lexie and I have organized everything for you, even better than it was the last time you visited. We've also rented two more apartments since then, so we have only one vacancy at the moment."
He knew all that. And it just didn't matter. The worth of the building came from its location, from how it could be developed. It was prime real estate, and he believed they could get top dollar for it. But all he said was, "Thanks. I think Lexie and Steve already sent me the latest figures, so I have what I need."
She got to her feet as he rose. "Sometimes what you think you need isn't what you really need, Grayson. You never know when life will take an unexpected turn, and the detour becomes the main road. That's what happened to me. I had no idea where I was going to end up when I left Hollywood. But I ended up here, and I have loved every minute of it. I found the family I never had."
"But Lexie is your actual family, right? So, you do have a family."
"Lexie's mother is my half-sister," Josie admitted. "I was nine when my sister came along, and we were never close. We are as different as two people can be, and my sister, Lexie's mother, absolutely hates that Lexie chose to live and work with me. But Lexie wasn't getting what she needed in her old life, and I think she's pretty happy now."
"It kind of sounds like you both ran away from something and ended up here. I don't like to leave my life to chance. I don't like to run away; I like to run toward something and get what I know I want, not what the universe decides to show me."
She smiled. "You are your father's son. And I suspect you'll make the same decision he did."
