I tilted my head toward the bathroom a little bit more so I could listen to the sound of the showerhead. The second the water turned off, I wanted to be done with the conversation so there was no chance he would be able to overhear me talking about him.
“Amanda, you’ve got to have that conversation with him. You have to make him have that conversation with you. This isn’t something you can just pretend isn’t going on or just ride with,” she said.
“Why not?” I asked. “Can’t we just keep going the way we are right now?”
“Are you serious?” Emily asked.
“Yes,” I said. “What would be so wrong with us not having that conversation? Things are going well between us. We’re comfortable with each other, and we’re enjoying being around each other. He kissed me again last night. Maybe we can just slide into the rhythm of having a relationship without all that drama.”
“Do you really think that?” she asked.
“No,” I said, disappointed to even have to admit it.
“Exactly. There’s too much at stake here. This isn’t just some random guy you met at the bar. It’s not somebody you’ve only known for a couple of weeks. This is Tom Anderson. Gorgeous, dignified, fabulously wealthy owner of the company you work for. You have to figure out what’s going to happen moving forward. You’re not going to be there in Astoria forever. Eventually, you’re going to come back to San Francisco. And when that happens, you’re going to have to have some sort of idea of where you stand.”
“I know,” I said. “I’ve been thinking the same thing. They’re the company policies against us dating, but things are so good between us. I just don’t know what to think or do.”
“I know exactly what you need to do,” she said. “You need to sit down with Tom and talk about it. And then you need to have sex with him again. Just because he’s there and it would be a tremendous waste if you didn’t.”
I laughed. “Always the pragmatist.” The shower turned off. “Oh, Emily, I’ve got to go. He’s getting out of the shower, and I don’t want him to hear this conversation. I’ll call you later.”
“I want to know everything,” she said.
“You will,” I said. “Bye.”
I ended the call and slid my phone onto the table just as Tom walked out with a towel wrapped around his waist. Looking at him like that made me want to take Emily’s last piece of advice immediately.
“Were you just talking to somebody?” he asked.
“Oh, I was on the phone,” I said. “I was talking to Emily.”
He gave a short laugh. “Emily. Isn’t that your wildly loud friend?”
I laughed. “That would be the one. I’ve been meaning to call her the last couple of days. She’s been checking in on me to make sure I was doing okay, but I haven’t been able to talk to her much.”
“How’s she doing?” he asked, dropping his towel and starting to get dressed.
For a brief second, I couldn’t respond. I was far too focused on his exquisite body, still damp and warm from the shower. I shook my head to get myself back into reality when I noticed him staring at me.
“Oh, yeah, she’s fine. Same old same old, pretty much,” I said.
“That’s good,” he said. “Okay, go ahead and get ready.”
“Get ready?” I asked. “For what?”
“We’re going to go out and scout the new place for the bar. I’ve already talked to the real estate agent.”
I was surprised by the revelation. “Already?”
“It sounds like it might be perfect. I don’t want to give anyone else the chance to snatch it out from under us. Come on. Get ready,” he said.
Tom sounded excited, and I had to laugh a little as I got up and got ready to go. He drove us out to the location, and we found the real estate agent already there waiting for us. She smiled as we approached.
“Hi,” she said, extending her hand toward Tom. “I believe we spoke on the phone. I’m Vera Hardley. You must be Tom Anderson.”
“Yes,” Tom said, shaking her hand. “And this is Amanda.”
Again, he didn’t give me any sort of descriptor but just let Vera think about what she would about who I might be to him. It was flattering in that he didn’t mind what she might think of us, but it was aggravating in that it would have been very helpful to hear him describe what was happening between us.
“Nice to meet you,” I said, shaking her hand.
“You too,” she said, then let out a breath as her hand dropped away from mine and swooped in a gesture of invitation toward the building behind her. “Well, would you like to get a look inside?”
Tom nodded eagerly. “That would be great.”
Vera unlocked the door, and we went inside. It only took a few seconds before Tom and I turned to each other and smiled. It was perfect. At least, that was what it seemed like to me. Tom knew far better than I did considering he knew what the old bar looked like inside while I had only seen pictures.
I could envision a bar here, but I didn’t know for certain it would be a good replacement for the one they lost. From what he told me, The Hollow had built up quite a fan base, and it would be important to make sure they followed the bar to its new location. This meant ensuring it had the same types of features and could be adapted to appeal to the customers.
We spent the next half an hour walking around taking pictures and jotting down notes. When we were finished, Tom walked up to Vera with his hand extended.
“This looks fantastic,” he said. “I’ll have to talk it over with my brothers.”
“Absolutely. And if they would like to see it, give me a call and we’ll meet up here again,” she said.
“That would be great. Thank you.”
We left the location and made our way back to Mason’s house. Tom spent most of the drive calling his brothers, so it was only a short time before they started streaming into the house. Ava came in with snacks.
We all sat down, and Tom brought up pictures of the new location.
“I think it’s time to start discussing rebuilding,” he said.
Jordan immediately tensed. His eyes went dark, and his arms crossed over his chest. “I want to take Danny down first. Before we do anything to put things back together, I want to hold him accountable for what he destroyed.”
Tom nodded with understanding. “I get that. I felt the same way.” He turned to me with a soft smile on his lips. “But then Amanda helped me see we need to focus on the positive and start rebuilding.”
The way he looked at me brought a wave of butterflies to my stomach and made my heart tremble in my chest. It must have been the look everybody was talking about. Now that I knew that I thought back to all the times he gave me that look and wondered how I possibly could have missed it.
21
Tom
The Realtor was showing us around the new location, and the more he showed us the more excited we grew. Tyler in particular was envisioning expansion, and he and Mason were discussing where specific areas would be when I called a family conference. As they made their way over, the Realtor stood by the door of the empty husk of a building, a satisfied smirk on her face. She might as well have deserved it.
“Which one of you told her we were going to take it?” I asked as the guys got close.
“Wasn’t me,” Mason said.
“Us either,” Matt said, pointing to himself and Jordan. They had been around on the other side of the street, checking the foot traffic in the area and nowhere near the relator. That left me and Tyler.
“I didn’t say we’d take it, per se,” Tyler said.
“Ah, man,” Mason said.
“What?” Tyler asked.
“You gave up our negotiation position, you dimwit,” I said, sighing. “It’s fine. I likely couldn’t have gotten her down much further from the listing price. It’s already pretty damn cheap.”
“So, we’re going to do it, right?” Tyler asked. I looked in the eyes of each of my brothers in turn before noddin
g.
“It looks that way. All the different requirements come together here. Jordan, Matt, how was the foot traffic?” I asked.
“Insane,” Jordan said. “I knew this area was hopping, but not like this. All the little shops and restaurants in the area have kind of made this corner a destination for people coming into or going out of town. A first and last stop, if you will.”
“I saw they’re building new apartments just across the street, too,” Mason said, pointing. I looked over to a rising set of steel girders and a construction crew.
“Is that what’s going there?” Tyler asked.
“Yeah, there’s a sign on the other side of the street,” Matt said. “It’s going to be pretty large, too, with a bunch of shopping and stuff on the ground floor. Give it a year or two, and this will be prime real estate.”
“This is all pretty much what Amanda and I found out,” I said, waving the stack of papers I had been carrying around all day. “I just wanted to confirm it with our own eyes first. With the proximity to the nearby towns going both north and west, I think this is the perfect spot for us. What do you say?”
My brothers all glanced at one another and one by one nodded.
“Then it’s settled,” Mason said. “Tom, let’s go talk to the Realtor.”
As we walked over to the agent, I could see her grin stretch further. She knew what she had in her hands, and she knew that we were going to buy it. She was undoubtedly seeing zeros added to her paycheck as she stood there.
“After consideration, I think we’re in,” I said.
“Fantastic,” she said. “Just let me—”
“But before we do all that,” I interrupted, “I need to check with our insurance agent.”
The Realtor looked like she had suddenly gotten a whiff of a particularly noxious odor and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Do you need me to step away for you to make the call?”
“No, it’s fine,” I muttered, dialing the number. “Hello?”
“Mr. Anderson,” said the jovial voice on the other line. “I was just about to call you. The auditors have approved the final number, and we can have a check for you in roughly a week or so. Two at the top.”
“Perfect, that’s just what I was calling about. Let me know if things change,” I said.
I hung up and turned to the Realtor.
“I can have a payment to you in a week or so,” I said, holding out my hand to seal the deal with a handshake. She looked down at it and then up at me, a pained smile that looked like she doubted I was actually good for the money suddenly appearing.
“Oh, well, that could be problematic,” she said. I put my hand down.
“Problematic? How?” I asked.
“It’s just that this property is in growing demand. In order to lock you in at this price, I need a payment much sooner,” he said.
“Who else is looking? Another bar?” Mason asked, rather forcefully.
“Yes, in fact. I just fielded an offer by a man that owns a bar in town and is looking to relocate.”
“Danny?” Jordan nearly screamed. “You’re going to sell this place out from under us to that no-good piece of…”
“Jordan, get ahold of yourself,” I said, then turned back to the Realtor. “Just one second, please.”
I huddled my brothers again a few feet away, which wasn’t easy with Jordan pacing like a caged lion.
“That son of a bitch is trying to destroy us,” Jordan said in a barely hushed whisper.
“Either that or this guy is full of it,” Matt said.
Mason shook his head. “He was awfully motivated to sell it to us when he thought we had the ability to write a check today. But as soon as it seemed like we might not, he got all squirrelly. It’s like he has another offer on the table already and it just isn’t as good as the one he gave us.”
“Wait, so you mean to tell me he might sell it to Danny, but that Danny also might get it for less than what we would pay for it?” Jordan asked, his rage barely contained.
“It’s possible,” Tyler said. “So, what are we going to do about it?”
I pursed my lips and thought about it for a second. The only plan I had wasn’t going to go over well with my accountant, but it was worth it. I held up one finger to my brothers and took out my phone again, pulling up his name in the contacts. He transferred me, rather reluctantly, to the lender at my bank.
“Hello, Mr. Anderson, what can I do for you?” he said.
“I was calling to ask about the loan I applied for,” I said. “Has there been any movement on that?”
“Let me check,” he said, and I could hear the sound of his fingers typing on a keyboard. “Ah, yes, it looks like I just received word that you are approved. Would you like to come by tomorrow and sign the paperwork?”
I grinned. “I’ll be there bright and early. Thank you.”
“Well?” Mason said as I rejoined the group. “What was that?”
“Just follow me,” I said and made my way to the Realtor.
“Ah, do we have a deal?” she said, suddenly dropping the sad act.
“We do,” I said. “I will have the down payment for you tomorrow.”
The Realtor drew herself up, placing her hand out to shake and slapping on a smile. “I will wait for you at the office,” she said. I took her hand and shook firmly, stepping a little closer to her and dropping my voice an octave.
“If the other interested party calls you, you’re out to lunch. Right?” I asked through the gritted teeth of a smile.
“Indeed,” she said, wrenching her hand from mine at the first opportunity.
As she took off, my brothers gathered around me, and we made our way back to our cars.
“We need to go see Danny,” Jordan said. “I need to have a talk with him.”
“The hell you do,” Mason replied. “The time for talk is way over. Now he needs a couple fists to the face.”
“Guys, we have to calm down,” I said. “I know we’re all pissed, and Danny clearly deserves whatever you have in your head about how you would remedy him. But if we went down there right now, it would just give him a heads-up that we know he’s in the market for the spot and that we haven’t gotten it yet.”
There was a pause as everyone thought through it. Tyler kicked at a rock and sent it down the drive toward the store.
“Hey,” I said, “careful. That’s our rock now.”
That got a smirk out of him and seemed to break the tension of the group. I looked back over the building and the lot and clapped Mason on the back. He turned to me and then to the lot himself. For a quiet moment, we all took it in, each of us undoubtedly envisioning what it could be.
“This is going to work,” I said. “Not only is it going to work, but it is going to be great. We will set up our new bar here, maybe expand into a full-fledged restaurant, and get in on the ground floor of the expansion of this part of the city. And Danny is going to be left in the cold where he is. He can’t come up with that kind of money, and we all know it.”
There was a general murmur of agreement and shaking of heads.
“He still deserves a boot in his ass,” Jordan grumbled.
“He does,” I said. “But for right now, I am content with him helplessly watching while we thrive. Besides, we need to get the down payment first.”
Tyler and Mason exchanged a glance at that and then at me.
“So, what’s the plan there?” Tyler asked.
“I’m getting a loan,” I said.
“Christ, seriously?” Mason said, frustrated.
“It’s only for a short time,” I said. “Look, the insurance money will be back to us in a week or two. But I don’t trust that Realtor as far as I can throw her.”
“Yeah, she seemed a little weird,” Jordan said, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Not just weird, untrustworthy. I don’t for one second believe she won’t go trotting to her phone to call anyone who might be interested in this property an
d try to jack the price up at the last minute. So, I’m getting a loan and when the insurance money comes in, I can pay most or all of it off, and the rest can go to building the interior, okay?”
“And you’re sure we can’t just drive by Danny’s and throw a few rocks through his windows?” Jordan asked, getting a big laugh from the rest of us. I was struck in that moment that no matter how annoying some of them could be sometimes, or how it always seemed like one of them was getting on my nerves at all times, I loved them, and our bond was like steel. Each one of us would go to bat against the devil himself for any of the other ones. The least I could do was foot the bill for the loan again.
“Not today, but I am reserving the right to change my mind at a further date,” I said, getting another laugh.
“Alright, fine, so what do we do now?” Matt asked.
“For right now, I’m heading back to the hotel. I need to chill out and get some work done. Tomorrow morning, I’ll swing by the bank, sign the paperwork, and have a meeting with the relevant people to get this done,” I said.
“You’re going to go see Danny, aren’t you?” Jordan asked.
“I won’t lie, I want to,” I said. “But right now, the priority has to be on getting the money together and solidifying this place as our new spot. Then we build it. Then, maybe, we have time to tell Danny which barstool leg he can sit on and spin.”
“Trick question; the answer is all four,” Tyler said, and we laughed.
22
Amanda
I was just finishing up a snack when the hotel room door opened and Tom came in. I wiped my fingertips off with a napkin and tossed it in the wire trash can set beside the desk. Standing as I swallowed my last bite of cinnamon crumb cake, I started toward him. He looked stressed, his expression drawn and uncomfortable.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “Did something happen? Is there something wrong with the new property?”
I might have sounded a bit unhinged in that moment, but I was realizing how important this whole thing was to me, too. It mattered so much to Tom, and that made it matter to me.
Taboo Boss: An Older Man Younger Woman Romance Page 12