Page 6 of Last Chance Seduction (Montgomery Ink Legacy #9)

Chapter Three

Mercy

“W hat do you mean you don’t know where the invoice went?”

I lowered my voice, relaxing my tongue as I spoke. “The invoice isn’t here. You must have forgotten to send it.”

I leaned back, raising my voice slightly. “No, it was right on the email.”

“Why did you lose it? We’re going to be late because of you.”

I lowered my voice once more. “You don’t need to blame this on me. I know that you’re just trying to find a reason to be angry with me because of what happened, but you don’t have to make something up.”

The banter went back and forth, and I paused my narrating every once in a while, marking moments where I knew I would have to go back, or let my mouth rest. The current forced proximity, workplace rom com on my stand made me smile.

Considering I hadn’t slept much in the past few days getting work done in the few hours that I had available at this moment, it was good to smile.

I reached for my water bottle and winced as the sound of a saw echoed through my tiny booth.

Of course.

Why wouldn’t there be a grating noise out of nowhere when I needed silence for my job. Sound that hadn’t been there when I’d bought my home. Racket that no one had asked for. Commotion that threatened my sanity as it was louder than anything that had occurred in the neighborhood so far.

I had never had this issue in the past, not even with high wind, or massive trucks moving in and out of the cul-de-sac thanks to a neighbor moving. Even in my old place, when I had had a weaker booth and thinner walls, it hadn’t been this loud.

And yet Lexington Montgomery was going to drive me insane. Of course, he had done that when we had been children as well. Always a little too enthusiastic even though he’d dragged me along with him, so I never felt alone. Not that a twin could ever feel alone.

My heart raced and I swallowed the bile that crept up my throat at the thought of Emily.

Lexington.

I needed to think of Lexington. Like how he’d try to run everybody’s lives even if you weren’t prepared for it. He liked to organize everyone to the nth degree and had worked alongside his cousins and Emily to ensure that all our lives and playgroups could go off without a hitch.

There was no time for spontaneity or anything off the beaten path.

I frowned at that, realizing that I was probably being a little too harsh when it came to reflecting back on our childhood.

Because Lexington had enjoyed a little randomness.

It was Emily that had been a little more type A, even more than me.

But I did have the creative streak. Like when I was younger, I had wanted to join the circus and then become an acrobat.

After I had given up that dream, I had decided I wanted to be an actress—racing from Broadway to the Oscars.

It hadn’t mattered which, I wanted to perform.

And then I’d realized that I did better with voices and projecting, than I ever did using the rest of my body to act.

The voice acting was really where I had leaned into it.

I could do impressions and other aspects of that role, but being a comedian had never appealed to me.

So my current job was truly a perfect fit.

Except for the fact that I couldn’t focus with whatever the hell they were doing next door.

Of course, if I would have just asked Lexington that morning, maybe I would be a little more in the know.

My phone buzzed and I looked down at the unknown number. I wouldn’t have normally answered, but I was waiting on a call from a friend’s producer.

“Hello?”

Silence.

“Hello? Are you there?”

A click and the call discounted. How strange. Frowning, I picked up my phone and looked at the text that Lex had sent that morning.

Lex:

I really hope this is your current number and I’m not just texting a random stranger.

But here’s the schedule for this week, and my goal is for us to stay on this path.

But if something happens, I’ll let you know.

I’m sorry that we’re at the point of the project where it’s a lot of noise outside of the house versus in it.

But if all goes according to plan, we’ll be done soon, and you’ll be able to work without having to hear hammering all day.

Lex:

By the way, I picked up your latest book, and I’m totally listening to it while on the job site. Your voice has gotten better, which I didn’t think was possible considering how good you were when we were younger. And congratulations on that award. Not that I was stalking. Okay, I might be stalking.

I had refused to smile at that, knowing it wouldn’t do anybody any good if I let myself laugh over whatever ridiculous thing he was saying next.

After all, I was back in Colorado to find my feet again. Not to jump back into old connections and relationships that would just remind me of everything I lost.

But I clicked the link and looked at the calendar he’d sent over.

Everything was laid out, color coordinated, and signed by not only Lex, but by Jamie.

I frowned, trying to remember if I knew that particular Montgomery.

Probably, as I had a feeling I had met nearly all of Lexington’s cousins over the years, but it shouldn’t matter.

This was my work, something I needed to focus on, and I shouldn’t have to put aside everything for a man once again.

I scowled at that, wondering where that came from.

Just because Lex knew Justin didn’t mean he was exactly like Justin.

In fact, the two had always been nearly opposites.

With Lex being a little more easygoing, and yet at the same time, focused on making sure that others around him were taken care of.

Sometimes to the detriment of himself. It was probably why we had gotten along when we’d been younger.

Because we were birds of a feather and all that.

And that was why Emily had such a crush on him for so long.

I pressed my lips together, hating that once again I was thinking about that time in our lives.

It was always funny to me that Emily’s major crush years ago had been on Lexington of all people.

Nothing came from it, and I was pretty sure that Lexington knew of Emily’s crush for all those years.

But by the time I’d met Justin, and I’d thought I was in love, ready to marry him and spend the rest of my life with him, Emily moved on, and I’d thought Lexington was on the path to getting married as well.

In the time since I’d been gone though, I’d only heard rumblings that he had been in that serious relationship with Carly, and then another woman named Gia, with both of those relationships fizzling out quite spectacularly.

I had never gone out of my way to find out more information about him because when I thought about Lex I thought about Justin. However, we had so many similar overlaps in our connections over the years, that I couldn’t help but hear some of it.

Though it still surprised me that I hadn’t known he was my neighbor, and that he hadn’t known either.

The idea that I had even gone out of my way to not buy a house built by the Montgomerys, just told me that maybe cutting myself off from my past while moving back to my home state, didn’t make any sense in the long run.

With a sigh, I saved all of my work, grabbed my notebook, and figured I would do a few other things around the house and get back to my narrating later.

My throat was a little sore, considering I had been up far too late the night before, so maybe I should actually pay attention to the schedule Lex had gone out of his way to send me and not grumble.

Except as I went upstairs, the sound of construction echoed throughout my living room, and I couldn’t help but glare through the wall.

Mr. Darcy wound his way through my legs, tail up, apparently annoyed with the noise as well, and went to the back door.

“I’ll let you out on the catio, but I am not going out there. Way too much noise.”

Mr. Darcy just blinked at me, and I sighed, realizing I was now having a full on conversation with this cat.

I cracked open the back sliding door, let him out on the catio, and then closed the screen door so that way any bugs that might’ve made their way through the chilled Colorado afternoon wouldn’t be able to enter my home, but I would still be able to hear Mr. Darcy if he was in trouble.

I made my way to my kitchen and scowled as I realized that my refrigerator was far emptier than I thought. Apparently, grocery shopping was next in my future instead of working. Which was probably a better idea anyway.

I looked out the window above the sink and caught a glimpse of Lexington on his roof.

I blinked, wondering exactly how safe it could be for him up there.

Wasn’t he an architect? I hadn’t realized that he was the one who would put on a tool belt and do such a dangerous task.

But with those tight Wranglers of his, the well-worn boots, and ball cap turned backwards, he apparently knew what he was doing.

Tight jeans? Why the hell was I noticing Lexington Montgomery’s tight jeans?

I shook my head and went to get ready to head out to the grocery store.

I slid on comfortable leggings that didn’t have holes in them, cute knee boots, and an over-large sweater.

It sort of worked as a tunic, and I called that a win.

I quickly made up a weekly grocery list, forced Mr. Darcy back into the house much to his discontent, and headed out to my car.

I had parked in the driveway the day before as I had moved around a few boxes in the garage and wasn’t sure what I was going to do with those books that I couldn’t quite lift.

“Mercy!”

I froze in the act of opening my door and steeled myself for that oh-so-familiar voice.

“Lexington.”

“You should just call me Lex you know. My name is a bit of a mouthful.”