Page 78 of Bountiful
I marched right over to him.No hitting this time. “Are youkiddingme?” I squeaked. “You told me to take my time? And five minutes later, you just pick anyway? Whatthehell?”
Heads turned, and I knew I was shouting. But seriously! This man andhisego!
“Beautiful, look.” He actually caught my chin in his big, callused palm and turned it a few degrees. That made me even angrier, because he’d used those bossy, macho moves in bed, and it had driven me crazy. He’d overpower me and then thrust so slowlyuntilI—
GAH!
Now I wanted to kick him in the shinsand then strip him naked. So irritating! Finally, though, my eyes focused on the other sign—the one in front of theTudor.
It too had an “Under Contract” labelonit.
“Wait,” I said stupidly. “Bothof them? Why?” I shook off his hand and gave it a shove, while he chuckled as if he could hear my dirtythoughts.
“Yeah, I’m buying both houses. Your brothers think this town is a good investment, right? I’m getting in on the ground floor. We’ll rent the one you don’t pick. And if you’re hell bent on making a contribution, you can take charge of renting out the spare house and acting as superintendent. That way I won’t have to hire a property manager. And also, you can choose your ownneighbor.”
I looked up at the Tudor, picturing Nicole looking out the front window on an autumn day, as the leaves began to turn red and yellow. Then I swung my chin in the other direction, toward the white Colonial, which could be fixed up andrentedout.
Dave-freaking-Beringer. He was still in charge. And we weren’t evennaked.
He lifted his hand a final time and gently nudged my chin upward, closing my gaping jaw. “Catching flies there, beautiful. Now didn’t you say you needed to go backtowork?”
ChapterTwenty-Four
Dave
“When I toldyou to buy a house for Zara, I meant that you shouldask, first.” My sister delivered this bit of advice while we sat on the front porch of the cabin eating waffle cones after a latelunch.
“The real estate agent had me all spun up. ‘Act now. They could both be gonetomorrow.’”
Bess rolled her eyes. “It’s good to remember that there’s a reason I negotiate on yourbehalf.”
“You weren’t around,” I said, defending myself. “And the houses here just aren’t very expensive. You could buy eight or ten of them for the price of my two-bedroom condo inBrooklyn.”
“Be that as it may,” my sister complained, “since you went all Tarzan on Zara, she isn’t returning your calls. So I don’t get to see myniece?”
“I don’t remember Tarzan investing in realestate.”
Bess giggled in spite of herself. “Still. You could have eased her into the house idea. Not everybody shops the way you do. How many apartments did you look at in Brooklyn before you bought yourcondo?”
“One.”
“Oneotherone?”
“No. Justtheone.”
My sister laughed. “Why can’t you be that decisive about your contractextension?”
“Why didn’t you get me a better contract extension?” Ifiredback.
“It’s better than anyone else could have gotten you.” My sister had never lacked confidence. “Text her again. I want to holdthatbaby.”
“Maybe she’s busy,” I pointed out. “Her friend is getting married today. I think it’s today.” I wasn’t going to pester Zara just because Bess was Little Miss Eager. Lately, every time Bess said Nicole’s name, she looked a littlepossessed.
“Please?”
I pulled out my phone and tapped out a message.Hey, Z. Bess is still hoping to see Nicole before tomorrow night. But if you’re busy with the wedding, we’llunderstand.
“Iwon’tunderstand,” Bessargued.
