Page 92 of Imperfect Arrangement

He smiles, a slow, devastating curve of his lips, and shrugs. “She caught me off guard. I think she’s learning that from you.”

“Me?” I squeak. “I’m not teaching your daughter anything wrong!”

“I never said you were, Wills,” he counters smoothly, his voice carrying a teasing edge that makes my pulse stumble. “But if she’s learning how to make me crazy, I’d say she’s got the perfect teacher.”

The mug freezes midway to my lips.

Crazy? I’m makinghimcrazy? That’s rich, coming from the man who’s turned my life upside down. But I bite my tongue. I won’t let him bait me. Not tonight.

I have bigger things to know from him, like what happened with Gio, something he promised me to share this afternoon. When the silence stretches too long, I finally cave. “Are you really not going to say anything?”

His smile grows, slow and infuriating. “There are a lot of things I could say right now. You’ll have to be more specific.”

“About Gio, dammit.”

He sets his mug down, his jaw flexing for a fraction of a second. I’ve spent enough time around him now to know that’s his tell—he doesn’t like where this is headed. Too bad.

“I told you he’s not a problem anymore,” Raymond says evenly.

“And you think that’s enough of an explanation?” I press, leaning forward. “You said we’re partners. Partners don’t keep secrets, Raymond.”

His sigh is soft but heavy, like he’s carrying the weight of the world, but I’m not going to cave. “I bought the land from Gio.”

My breath catches. “Youboughtit?”

“It would’ve been impossible to prove in court that it was yours. When your cousin first approached me, my legal team combed through everything. I’m sorry, Willow, but your gramps left behind a mess.”

I close my eyes, the weight of his words settling heavily on my chest. “So you’re the new owner now.”

“No.” His voice softens, drawing me back. “You are.”

My eyes snap open, locking on to his. “What?”

“Your gramps wanted you to have it. Now it’s in your name. All the paperwork has been finalized. No one can take it from you ever again.”

“You bought the land inmyname?” My voice rises with disbelief. “Were you ever planning on telling me that?”

“Yes.” He smiles nonchalantly. “Eventually.”

“Raymond, this isn’t funny.” My heart pounds as the implications hit me. I know what that land is worth. I’ve had people approach me about it before. “Do you have any idea?—”

“I told you before, Wills,” he cuts me off, “I don’t do anything halfway. We’re building something together. There was no way I was leaving that to chance.”

His words hang in the air between us, and I find myself struggling to respond. Finally, I manage, “When did you buy it?”

He doesn’t flinch. “The day you agreed to be Quill’s nanny.”

My breath catches. “The land has been mine since then?”

He nods calmly. “The paperwork took time, but yes, it hasn’t been Gio’s since that day.”

I don’t know what to say. This man—this frustrating, impossible, incredible man—keeps doing things that leave me completely breathless.

I place my mug on the table and stand, my legs shaky as I put space between us. My steps falter as I grip one of the wooden beams of the pergola for balance. My heartbeat roars in my ears. Behind me, I feel him approach, his presence as grounding as it is overwhelming.

“Are you upset?”

I close my eyes tightly, willing the tears not to fall. It’s ridiculous to feel like this, but the emotions claw their way up regardless. “I’m not upset,” I whisper, the words trembling on my tongue. “I’m just…not used to it…” The rest of my sentence dies in my throat, tangled in the knot of emotions I can’t untangle.