Page 12 of Just a Number (Magnolia Row #2)

MICAH

I t’s early Thursday morning, and though the weather is cooler thanks to the overnight rain, it left a thick, suffocating veil of humidity in the air.

Nana and I are busy taking inventory of how much space we have for new things.

And by new, I mean new to us. We’re going to the estate sale tomorrow, to which Julian is giving us early access.

He sent us photos of the house already, and to say it’s a goldmine would be an understatement.

I’m not sure what these people did or how long they lived there, but they must have had deep pockets.

There are so many items I want, most of them large and bulky.

I told Nana I’m not above getting a storage unit if we fill up the rectory so we can get as much as we want.

I call Patsy’s husband, Garion, who runs a construction business. He assures me he and one of his crew will be able to meet us with a large moving truck late tomorrow afternoon if we need them to, which is good, since Nana and I obviously can’t move heavy furniture by ourselves.

I’m on my hands and knees on the floor, booty facing the front door of course, trying to find the plug for a lamp when the bell jingles, signaling someone has walked into the store.

I turn around and it’s Rhodes. Of course it is. I’m looking at him from around my big old booty when he smiles and waves.

I am humiliated. Blood rushes to my cheeks and I want to sink into the floor and melt like the witch in The Wizard of Oz .

“Rhodes!” says Nana, exiting her office.

I stand, biting my lip and shaking my head. This was not the impression I wanted to make when I saw him again.

“Hello, Ms. Bonaventure.”

“Please, honey. Call me Barbara.”

He smiles. “Barbara.” He turns to me. “Micah, it’s wonderful to see you again.”

I nod, trying to forget he saw my rear-end in the air moments before. “You too, Rhodes.”

He turns to Nana. “Have you decided to sell the fountain? Just so you know, my client will pay whatever you ask, whether it’s working or not.”

“She’ll have to if she wants it,” says Nana, who returns to her office to get the paperwork for the fountain.

He returns his attention to me. “You look very nice today,” he says, and for a moment it seems like he’s blushing.

“Thank you,” I say before Nana comes back in the room.

She hands a folder to Rhodes. He opens it, raises his eyebrows, and says, “I think that’s fair for something this unique. Do you mind if I take some photos? I’m meeting with her this afternoon and would love to show her.”

“Absolutely,” Nana says. I back away from the fountain and stand in the office door with Nana to avoid being in the pictures.

“We can get afford a new air conditioner now,” she whispers, jabbing me in the side with her elbow.

“Thank you, Jesus,” I murmur back.

“How did you get it in here?” Rhodes asks as he’s snapping away.

“Very carefully,” answers Nana. “We had to take the doors off the hinges, and it took six grown men to finagle it.”

“So it should be fun getting it out?” he asks, grinning.

“I’ll leave that up to you,” she says. “I certainly can’t move it.”

Once he has about thirty photos, he walks over and offers his hand to Nana.

“Honey, we hug in this store,” she says, grabbing him and wrapping her arms around him. She holds him for longer than she should and peers around his arm to wink at me.

I roll my eyes.

“Of course,” he says. He turns his attention to me. “Micah, I have a business associate in town today, but I’d love to take you to lunch tomorrow before I go back to Birmingham.”

“Oh, I can’t,” I say. I feel myself blush again. I hate that I turn bright red every time he looks at me. I don’t even need a mirror to see it—the heat is radiating from my face. It’s so embarrassing. “We’re closing the shop tomorrow to go to an estate sale outside of town.”

“Oh, that’s too bad,” he says with a look of disappointment that makes me feel awful. He pulls out his phone, but Nana interrupts him.

“Why don’t you come with us?” she asks. “There’s plenty of room in the car.”

I open my mouth to object, then realize I have no idea why I’m objecting. I’ve been obsessing over this man for weeks now. Maybe it’s the weirdness of hanging out with him and my grandmother together all day? I should be jumping at the chance to see him, but it does feel a little awkward.

“I’d love to go,” says Rhodes before I can think of anything to say.

“Wonderful! We can pick you up. Where are you staying?”

“The Mossy River Motel south of town.”

“Great!” says Nana. “That’s on our way.”

Rhodes looks at me, and I simply smile.

“We’ll pick you up at eight.”

“Perfect! If you’ll excuse me, I have a meeting with my GC at the Florablanca Inn. I’ll see both of you tomorrow.”

“We’re looking forward to it,” says Nana.

He nods at her, then puts his hand on my arm. I feel my entire body turn to mush, and not from the heat. “Goodbye, Micah.”

“Bye,” I say, my voice sounding weak and squeaky. He makes me nervous, like he’s so dreamy it wipes my brain.

“Well,” says Nana after he walks out, “we may need an extra storage unit after all. We’ll have a lot of room after the fountain is removed, but who knows how long that’ll take.”

“I’ll talk to Garion.”

The rest of the day we spend compacting as much as we can without compromising the navigability and aesthetic of the store. It keeps me busy, which is good, since it also prevents me from obsessing about Rhodes and wondering what I’m going to wear tomorrow.

We go home late, and I’m in the middle of baking salmon and green beans for our dinner when I get a text from Garrett.

Hey sexy – wanna come over tomorrow night?

I pause.

Normally I’d drop everything and jump at the chance to see him. He has so little free time, and this is the first instance he’s wanted to see me since the weekend he cancelled at the last minute.

But I hesitate.

First off, it’ll be a busy day as it is. The house we’re going to is 45 minutes in the opposite direction, and I have no idea what time we’ll get back.

But the biggest factor is Rhodes. I’m spending all day with him. What if he wants to do dinner? Should I keep my schedule open? Or is it sad and pathetic of me to hope for that?

And who am I, juggling two guys? This is not my style at all. I feel like I’ve entered an alternate universe.

I put my phone down without responding when the oven timer goes off.

I take the food out, plate it, and walk to the living room.

I place Nana’s dinner on her TV tray and curl up on the couch to watch reruns of Golden Girls .

I leave my phone in the kitchen, but it dings again, so I get up to check it. It’s Garrett again.

I miss you.

Just like that, my decision is made.

I’d love to see you tomorrow night. I miss you too.

This is a first. He’s never said that before. It’s the closest thing to I love you he’s ever said. Hell, it’s the closest thing to I love you any guy has ever said to me.

I pocket my phone and go back to the sofa and pretend to pay attention to the television while I think about the next day.

Now I have to plan two sexy outfits.