Page 11

Chapter 11

Brodie

Though I didn’t expect him to be out front when I walked out the door the next morning, my eyes searched for him anyway. Because I was lovesick and stupid. Last night he’d been a temptation, just not enough to get past my hurt feelings. I had to admit, though, the deceased wife thing kind of made sense.

When I met Liam, it wasn’t like he was actively sad. There were no tears or frowns, or faraway gazes. But he seemed lost and empty. Like he’d given it all to something and had nothing left. He gave the impression of a man whose light had gone out.

The pleasure of watching that light come back to him was addicting. Every laugh I coaxed out of him warmed my chest. Day by day, little by little, I watched Liam come alive. I loved knowing I was the one who’d done that for him. I was convinced that I could do anything.

And then Liam got that stupid phone call and all the lights in him shut off. He closed himself up like Fort Knox and pushed me away. It had felt like jumping off a cliff and getting smashed against the rocks. But he’d come after me. That counted for something.

Last night, despite my better judgement, I’d googled him and his late wife. I knew Liam came from money, but his wife had come from even more money. They were the kind of rich people who were so rich you’d never guess how rich they were. The uber wealthy could be a lot more stealth about their money.

All the money in the world hadn’t saved his wife from an aggressive cancer. She was a beautiful woman. She had that classic look about her, like a woman who came straight from a red carpet event.

The Uber I’d hired pulled up to the curb and I got in. “Bennett’s, please,” I told the driver of the Honda Civic as I buckled my seatbelt. I laid my laptop bag across my legs and the car started moving.

“You got it,” my driver, Toni, said. Toni was a girl, probably no more than twenty, whose car smelled of vanilla body spray and bubble gum.

I spent the ride over looking out the window of the car, secretly hoping to see a sleek black sedan chase us down. Alas, there was not, and I arrived at Bennett’s a few minutes later. I gave Toni a nice tip, despite the fact that the scent of vanilla and bubble gum was burned into my brain.

Bennett’s was a family diner run by Ethan Bennett. My brother Shane was friends with Ethan and I’d heard all about Ethan’s fiancé, Mickey. He was a bartender at Shane’s bar, The Anchor.

Because I’d woken up late, again, the morning rush was over and I found a table easily enough. I slid into the booth and took my laptop out of my bag. Unless I wanted to live in Kieran’s spare room forever and subject myself to an eternity wearing noise canceling headphones, I needed my own place.

Ethan came over and greeted me with a bright smile. A coffee pot in one hand and a clean cup in the other. “The prodigal son returns. Shane said you were back. How was… where were you again?”

“I was everywhere, and it was amazing. But I think home is nice too. I could murder a stack of Taylor’s waffles. I’ll take some bacon on the side, extra crispy. And I’d love a coffee.”

“Coming right up.” Ethan put the cup down and poured me a coffee. His gaze slid to my laptop. “If you need a place to plug in, there’s an outlet under the table. I also offer free WiFi now.”

“Really? That’s great, thank you.”

“No problem. If you need anything, just shout. I’ll be back soon with your order. Welcome home.” Ethan gave me a friendly clap on the shoulder, then went to put my order in.

I added a couple of sugars to my coffee and took a tentative sip. Restaurant coffee was always a gamble. For such a seemingly simple beverage, there were a million ways to fuck it up. Thankfully, Ethan avoided all of them and I took a second, larger sip before sliding my laptop out of the bag and getting set up.

Rentals were scarce, as it turned out, but if I wanted to buy something, there was a complex of townhouses that were freshly built and ready to go. Several units were still available to purchase.

Back when Shane first won the money, we’d gone a few rounds about it. It was his money. He had no right to spend so much on me or other people. It was his. And then he’d reminded me that yes, it was his, and he could spend it how he saw fit. And he saw fit to take care of the people who were important to him. Even annoying little brothers.

He’d funded my travel and I’d tried not to think of where the money came from at first. But after a while, it became easier. Every time I talked to Shane and he’d ask about where I’d been and what I saw, he did so with an enthusiasm that rivaled a kid on Christmas morning.

But could I ask him to buy me a house? He probably would because it meant I’d be staying. I’d be putting down roots. Not that I didn’t already have roots here. My family was here and I had no good reason to be anywhere else.

There had been a brief period of madness after the first sum of money Shane dropped in my account when cold sweat climbed my back and pushed me down into a spiral of doom. I’d genuinely worried about how I was going to pay him back. Shane had looked at me like I’d grown a second head.

He’d been incredulous, but kind. He reassured me that he had more money than he could reasonably spend on himself. My scalp tingled with the memory of the noogie he’d given me. I’d always hated that and Shane knew it. But at that moment, I’d secretly liked it. It felt like a promise that everything was okay.

By the time my breakfast arrived, I’d sent Shane a text asking him how many noogies it would cost me to ask for a townhouse. I had no interest in staying in another hotel for a while, and I desperately wanted to get out of Kieran’s place. He and Clay acted like moony-eyed newlyweds. Not only did I not want to hear my brother and his boyfriend, my broken heart needed a breather from their love-filled happiness fest.

Ethan brought me a stack of fluffy waffles with all the fixings. I set my computer aside and drowned them in maple syrup before digging in. I devoured the waffles and then snacked on the bacon while I checked out other listings.

A townhouse appealed to me because I’d still have a yard if I got a dog, an idea that I hadn’t totally dismissed yet. But I wouldn’t have much of one and it would be easy to maintain.

Shane, as predicted, texted back as soon as he woke up and told me to get whatever I wanted and that it wouldn’t cost me any noogies. I chose not to believe the second half of that while I made arrangements to go look at one of the empty units later that day.

Going back to Kieran’s held no appeal and I could track Liam down at his hotel, but I wasn’t sure I was ready for that either. That left me sitting at a table at Bennett’s, drinking coffee and plunking away at my secret side project.

Did I know the first thing about writing a book? Absolutely not, but there was only one way to learn how to do something and that was by doing it. I didn’t have a theme to bind all my stories together, and maybe I needed one, but I wanted to write about my travels. About the places I’d been and the things I’d done. For what purpose, I hadn’t decided. Maybe just for my family to read. I’d have to edit out the time I spent in Ibiza and any other X-rated shenanigans, but it wasn’t that kind of book anyway.

The townhouses were a short jaunt from the diner so when it was time to meet the agent, I left money on the table, including a hefty tip, and I walked the few blocks to the complex.

The row of townhomes was on a quiet street lined with trees. I never could tell one tree from another, but the leaves had just started to turn at the tops of the trees. When fall was in full swing, the whole street was going to look stunning.

The building looked to be a few stories tall with a faux brick facade and lots of freshly planted landscaping. I wondered if the paint had even dried in the units yet.

An agent waited for me at the door of unit seven. I wasn’t superstitious, but the idea of owning lucky number seven tickled me. The agent was a man about my age and was almost alarmingly tall. The sleeves of his button-down were rolled up and I wondered if it was because they didn’t make shirts with arms long enough to fit him properly.

“You must be Mister Taggart.”

My face scrunched involuntarily at the greeting. “Brodie is fine, please.”

“Brodie, then. I’m Neil Chambers.”

Neil turned and stepped into the house. “This complex is a new build. You’ll have a monthly fee for upkeep of the exterior of the building and services like trash and snow removal. The unit has been outfitted with all energy efficient windows, and appliances.”

Like most modern places, everything was decorated in white and gray. That wasn’t anything a few coats of paint couldn’t fix.

“I’ll give you space to wander around and have a look, but it’s a three bedroom, two and half bath with a flex space.” Neil rambled on for another minute or so about some of the other amenities before letting me loose to explore and get a feel for the place.

It was nice. Clean. Modern. Everything was white, or gray, or black, though. And what would I need with three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms? I’d never wanted to start a family. My brothers had their own places. I didn’t even have a dog yet.

The idea of rattling around in a place this big all alone didn’t appeal to me and it wasn’t long before I went downstairs and joined Neil in the kitchen. I almost felt bad for him. He looked at me with such hope in his eyes.

“It’s nice, right? Plenty of room, sleek design. Move in ready.”

“Oh, it gorgeous. It’s just not for me.”

Neil’s smile didn’t fade and it made me wonder if he was part robot.

“It’s too big and too… modern, I guess. I think something smaller with a bit of character would be more to my liking.” Swear to God I saw Neil’s ears perk like a puppy when he heard the word smaller.

“How small would you be willing to go?”

“Honestly, it’s just me. I don’t need a lot of room. One bedroom. One bathroom, some living space. I’ve lived in hotel rooms for a while now. The idea of rattling around in a two thousand square foot townhouse is a bit daunting.”

“I have a place I think you might like. The location isn’t bad, but a lot of people have passed on it because it’s small and though I say that decor can be changed, the paint colors have put many people off. I can pull up the listing if you want to see it.”

“Is it available for a viewing?”

“Now?”

“Yeah. I have time if you do.”

Neil smiled so bright the International Space Station probably saw the glare. “Definitely. I’ll text you the address.”

“Uh, I actually walked here.”

“Then I’ll take you there myself. Come on.”

I followed Neil outside and waited for him to lock up. “You seem very excited to show me this place.”

“I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but the owner of this property won’t move on price. They want a very specific number. That, plus the unique appearance and the different aesthetic, it’s been a challenge to sell. There’s a friendly competition at the office to see who will be the lucky agent to finally sell it.” Neil fiddled with his phone and a moment later mine buzzed with a notification. “I sent you the listing so you can have a look on the way over if you want. Unless you want to be surprised.”

I left my phone in my pocket. “Surprise me.”