Page 42 of Mine This Time
Filling our glasses, I kept my eyes studiously focused on my task. I didn’t need to keep ogling her. “Go ahead. You can set it to run after midnight, so we don’t need to listen to it.”
I mentally dodged the implications of having Mari here at my house. I’d only built this house a few years back and hadn’t had a single woman spend the night here. That wasn’t really something I did. I worked. All the damned time.
“Do you trust me to handle setting it?” she teased as she reached for the dishwasher soap on the counter by the sink.
I held both glasses of wine in my hands when I looked back at her. “I trust you completely, Mari.”
Her question had been simple, and my answer felt weighted. Mentally brushing away that implication, I turned to walk into the living room with the wine. I heard the click of Star’s claws on the wooden floor as she followed me into the living room.
Star curled up on her bed beside the fireplace. Considering I rarely used the fireplace, it amused me that was where she preferred to sleep. The day’s heat was dissipating, so after I set the wine glasses on the coffee table, I crossed the room to turn off the air conditioning and open a few windows.
Mari’s voice reached me just as I was opening the last window. “I do love the sound of crickets at night.”
Turning, I gestured towards the sofa. “Have a seat. That’s why I like to open the windows after the heat cools a bit.”
Mari sat near the corner of the sectional, tucking her foot under her knee. Much as I wanted to sit immediately beside her, I kept a full cushion between us as I sat near the other end of the coffee table and reached for my wine. I nudged my chin toward the other glass. “Help yourself.”
Mari lifted it and took a swallow. My eyes were immediately drawn to where she slid her tongue over the rim of the glass before lowering it. “Oh, that’s delicious. What kind of wine is it? I freely admit to not being a wine connoisseur.”
“I’m not either. I get whatever the place right down the street from my office building recommends. This is a Pinot Grigio. Tom, the owner, promised me it was delicious,” I said with a shrug and a grin.
“I’d say Tom was right.” Mari’s eyes scanned the room. “This is a gorgeous space. Very mellow and not ostentatious at all.”
“Did you expect it to be ostentatious?” I teased.
“Well, maybe. You are quite wealthy, so the rumors say.”
“Money doesn’t change who I am. Sure, I wanted a nice place and a good piece of property. But more than anything, I wanted it to be comfortable.”
Mari smoothed her hand over the sofa cushion between us, her mouth curling in a slow smile. “It’s definitely comfortable.”
“So, tell me about today.”
Mari updated me on her meeting with Hannah and her other stops. When I asked what other stories she did, she commented, “I do a bit of everything. Like I explained, I kind of ended up with this job by happenstance. I do enjoy it. It’s flexible. The pay isn’t the best, but at least I’m not freelancing, and I have benefits. Max would love it if I worked for him.” Mari paused to sip her wine, holding it up to the light and spinning the glass between her fingers. “I don’t really want to work for Max. I love him, but he can be overbearing.”
“He’s your older brother. I’m sure he doesn’t mean to be overbearing, although I can imagine it feels that way to you.”
Mari laughed softly.
“Do you think you’ll keep doing what you’re doing?”
Mari sipped her wine as she regarded me before lowering her glass. “For now, but not forever. At the moment, as you well know, I’ve got more than enough going on. Maybe once I can resolve this mess and figure out where I want to be, I’ll consider other options. Meanwhile, I’ll stick with it. Did you ever consider leaving New Orleans?” she asked, shifting the focus to me.
I shook my head. “No. I enjoy traveling, but this is home for me.”
“It’s certainly lovely. Where Max and I grew up is gorgeous too. Totally different, of course. In western Pennsylvania, it’s mountains, rolling hills, and the like. My parents don’t intend to stay there much longer, so there was never a draw for me to move back after college. Maybe because our hometown was so small? I don’t know.”
I wanted to ask Mari to consider staying here in Louisiana, which was fucking insane.
There was a sudden motion outside one of the windows. Mari jumped like a startled doe. The doorbell rang, and I stood to cross the room to the front door. One of the security guys stepped through. “What is it, Darrell?”
“Nothing to be concerned about. Just some motion in the back. I’m guessing it’s a deer. If you don’t mind, I think it would be best to keep the windows closed once you go to bed,” he suggested.
“Of course. Makes sense. Thanks.”
Darrell stepped back outside, and I returned to the living room. Mari was perched on the edge of the sofa.
“Nothing to worry about. Just a deer out back,” I said. Star had stood and was pacing back and forth in front of the windows. “She might bark, but only if the deer lingers in the yard.”
