Tears built behind her eyes, and she turned away so Nate wouldn’t see how he’d affected her.
“Hey.” His voice was too close, and she took a step away, but his hands landed softly on her shoulders. Gently, he spun her toward him.
She blinked hard, but a traitor of a tear crept out and slipped down her cheek.
“This isn’t what I want. You have to understand that.” He bent his knees until his face was in her line of sight. She wanted to look away, but she couldn’t make her head turn. He looked sincere.
She nodded once and pressed her lips together. It may not be what he wanted, but that didn’t change anything.
“I’m going to do what I can to help, okay? But I can’t make any promises.”
She sniffed and nodded again. He watched her for a second, then took a step closer, sliding his arms around her. She stiffened as he pulled her in to him. But then her good arm lifted to wrap around him. She let herself lean into him, resting her head on his chest.
She’d almost forgotten what it felt like to be held like this.
His arms didn’t feel the same as Cade’s. They were slightly shorter. Slightly broader.
It should feel wrong to stand here in his embrace. But to her surprise, she didn’t want him to let go.
“There’s one more thing―” His voice was muffled as he spoke into her hair.
“What’s that?” She was afraid to ask, and yet, with his arms around her, she was pretty sure she could handle anything.
“Apparently, the investor―”
But he broke off as the chime above the door clanged.
“Is here,” he muttered as he let her go.
Chapter 17
This was the investor Dad had found? The guy was dressed like a used car salesman and wore a smarmy grin Nate wanted to punch off his face. But he put on a neutral expression and held out his hand. If he played this right, he might be able to convince the guy to open his new venture―whatever it was―in another location.
“John Talmadge.” The guy’s hand was moist as it landed in Nate’s.
Nate resisted the urge to wipe his palm on his pants. “I understand you’re looking to lease a property from us.”
“Not a property.” Talmadge’s voice was well-oiled. “This property.”
Behind him, Nate heard Violet’s sniffle, followed by her retreating footsteps. He didn’t allow himself to look at her. “With all due respect, I always advise clients to consider all possible properties before settling on one.” Not that he’d ever advised any other clients, but Talmadge didn’t need to know that. “If I may ask, what kind of business are you planning to open?”
“A bar.”
Nate opened his mouth, then slammed it shut. Dad really wanted to support a bar after a bar had taken so much from them?
Then again, it wasn’t the bar’s fault Nate hadn’t stopped that night.
That was on him and only him.
“So can you?” That Talmadge guy was talking, and Nate realized he must have asked him a question.
He had to stop thinking about what he’d done in the past. The mistakes he’d made.
He had to focus on what he could do now. Before he made another mistake. There must be a way he could steer the guy toward a different property. “I think we have a couple other properties that might be a better fit. Let me put some things together for you, and I’ll take you to see them next week.”
Talmadge’s smile hardened into an expression that said he was used to getting what he wanted. “You can show me some other properties. But I’m telling you right here and now that this is the one I want. And your father told me you would get it for me. I understand you have a lot riding on this.”
Nate was sure his smile was just as hard and unyielding as Talmadge’s. “Just keep an open mind. I’ll get you exactly what you need.”
“You won’t mind if I take a look around as long as I’m here? In the interest of keeping an open mind.” Talmadge smirked at him and pushed his way through the shop, shoving an old tricycle to the side.
Nate snatched at the handlebars to stop the tricycle before it crashed into a table of figurines.
He followed Talmadge into the workshop, where Violet had retreated. She was at the far end of the room, facing the shelves, though Nate doubted she was actually looking for anything. She kept her back to them as Talmadge pulled out a tape measure and ordered Nate to hold the end against the wall.
Nate stared at it a second, then grabbed it. No sense antagonizing the man. He had to keep on his good side if he was going to convince him to choose another location.
Talmadge paced to the other side of the room and leered as he read the measurement. “Perfect size for a kitchen.”
Nate’s eyes darted to Violet. Her good hand gripped the shelf above her head, the knuckles white.
“Let’s see the upstairs.” Talmadge reeled in the tape measure and started for the door into the hallway.
Nate couldn’t help the gasp that escaped, but he quickly covered it with a cough. Talmadge wanted to take over the upstairs as well? That would leave Violet homeless.
Violet’s head dropped to her arm. Nate longed to go to her and promise to make all this right. To make this go away.
But he wasn’t sure that was a promise he could keep.
Instead, he followed Talmadge out the door and up the steps.
Ten minutes later, he finally ushered Talmadge out of the shop, less sure than ever that he’d be able to convince the guy to consider another location.
As soon as Talmadge was gone, Nate peered warily into the workshop. He couldn’t blame Violet if he was the last person she wanted to see right now.
She was sanding a coffee table, her movements jerky and sharp. Her hair fell over her face, but he caught a glimpse of the tight lines around her mouth. He let himself indulge in watching her a moment longer, then cleared his throat.
She looked up. But instead of her usual room-brightening smile or even the hardened anger he expected, her face was completely blank.
He moved cautiously toward her. “I’m sorry about all of this. I really am. I’m going to try to steer him to another property.”
Violet set down her sandpaper and marched toward the sink, swerving to make a wide arc around him.
His stomach dropped, but he slid around an old sewing machine table to meet her at the sink.
He touched the top of her hand, but she yanked it back as if he’d shocked her.
“Just don’t.” Her voice was as carefully flat as her expression. “I heard what that man said. You have a lot riding on this deal. So just do it and get it over with.”
“Violet, I’m not―”
“I have work to do. You should go.” She watched the floor as she slid past him toward the front of the store.
Nate stood there, torn between following her and doing as she’d asked. The chime above the front door jingled, and a second later, he heard Violet greeting her new customers cheerfully, in the same voice she’d greeted him with when he’d come in.
Maybe he’d been wrong to imagine she’d been glad to see him when he got here, that they’d started to develop a connection over the past couple of weeks. Obviously she showed that same warmth to everyone.
A soft chorus of laughter carried to him.
Nate nodded to himself.
Then he ducked out the back door.
Chapter 18
Violet slammed her laptop screen shut.
What was the point anyway?
Nate was going to pull the store right out from under her, and there was nothing she could do about it.
The worst part was, she had let herself start to feel something for him, when she’d promised Cade that would never happen.
But it had been so nice not to be lonely for a change. She’d let herself get pulled in by Nate, with his brooding eyes and his smile that came easier and easier the more time they spent together.
But that had all been an act. She’d found out yest
erday that the real Nate was a ruthless businessman who was willing to sell her out for whatever it was his dad was offering.
The door chimed, and she spun in her chair, pasting on a smile. Who knew when she might be helping the last person to ever walk through the doors of the store?
But her smile cracked the moment she saw him. “What do you want?” She congratulated herself on keeping her voice firm even as her heart pulsed against the restraints she’d put around it.
He crossed the store, not saying anything until he stood right in front of the counter. She kept her eyes on the wind chime that hung from the ceiling behind him.
“Look, I know you’re upset―”
She clamped her mouth shut. Much as she wanted to yell and scream at him, ask him how he could betray her like this, she knew she never would.
“You have to believe me, Violet, I’m doing everything I can to make sure you can keep your store. But you’re going to have to help me out.”
She let her eyes skip to his for a second. The sincerity there shook her.
It was just an act, too. It had to be. So she wouldn’t fight back.
Well, he needn’t have worried. After three years of fighting to keep this store going, she didn’t have much fight left. The weariness that had lightened over the last couple weeks had cloaked her soul again, darker than ever.
She stood. “Do what you have to do Nate. I’m done.” She wasn’t sure if she meant with the store or with him.
It would have to be both.
“You can’t give up.” He came around the counter, holding a hand out in front of him as if she were a wild animal and he was afraid he’d spook her.
He stopped a few feet in front of her. “I went through your lease with a lawyer buddy of mine. We both think that if you caught up on your back rent by the time your lease expires, you’d have a case for renewal.”
“You said I would have had to renew four months ago.” She crossed her arms in front of her.
“I know.” He scrubbed his hands over the scruff on his cheeks. “But we spent all night going through the lease line by line, and he found some unclear wording in the guaranteed renewal clause that he thinks a judge would find in your favor.”
“You want me to hang the future of my store on ‘unclear wording’?” She couldn’t keep the sneer out of her voice. That was thin at best. So what if he said he’d spent all night going over her lease? It was just another ruse.
“It’s not much to go on, I know. And it’s not the only angle I’m working on. But it’s something at least.”
“And you want me to take your dad to court over this or what?”
“It won’t come to that. My dad is a hard man, but he’s fair. If we show him what the lease says, he’ll uphold it.” Nate’s voice was stony. He didn’t sound at all like an adoring son who wanted to please or impress his father.
“Do you think there’s any way you could catch up on your back rent?” He said it gently, without accusation. “It looks like it’s two months’ worth.”
“Plus this month’s in a couple days.” She knew it wasn’t fair to be angry with him for asking. He was the landlord, after all, and she did owe the money. But it was so much. If the only way to keep the store was to pay it off within the next two months, she wasn’t sure there was any hope.
He waited, watching her as if he really cared what she answered. Of course he did. He wanted his money before he shoved her out of here.
“Maybe―” He started pacing the small walkway between the counter and the Queen Anne dining set. “What about a loan from the bank?”
She shook her head. “I’m already maxed out on loans.”
“Okay.” He was still pacing, picking up speed. “What about family? Do you have anyone who might be willing to lend you some money?”
“I don’t have any family anymore.” She said it flatly. She couldn’t afford to let emotion into this right now.
But he stopped pacing and gave her that soft look that usually melted her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“You couldn’t have.” She worked to keep her hand from shaking as she waved off his sympathy. She couldn’t let him touch her heart right now.
He looked hurt for a second, but then his usual shuttered expression fell into place. More pacing.
She wished he’d stop. He was making her dizzy.
After a few minutes, he snapped his fingers. “What if I found a buyer for the piano?”
Right. And why didn’t she just start growing money on trees? Didn’t he think she’d already scoured every nook and cranny in search of a buyer for that thing? If it ever actually sold, it would bring in enough money to pay her back rent and then some.
“Mint condition Bosendorfers aren’t exactly in high demand in the Hope Springs area.” She hoped her sarcasm would be enough to make him give up, but he shoved a hand through his hair, apparently thinking.
“I used to have some contacts in the music world. Let me call around and see if anyone knows someone who might be interested.”
Violet opened her mouth. She should tell him she didn’t need his help. Didn’t want his help.
But he seemed sincere. And she didn’t really have any other options. Not if she wanted to keep the store going for Cade.
“Okay.” She finally managed to drag out an answer.
By the smile he gave her, you’d think she’d said he could buy a pony.
“Thank you for trusting me.” He took a tentative step closer, and when she didn’t move away, took another. “I can’t promise I’ll find a buyer, though. Do you have any other big-ticket items we might be able to sell more quickly?”
“We?”
“Yes, we. I’m going to help you through this, just like I said I would.”
She watched him for another second, but she couldn’t pick out anything besides sincerity in his expression. “Okay, then.” She opened her laptop and clicked to the email she’d been looking at before he came in. The pictures of the huge mahogany and glass hutch were beautiful, and she knew she could sell it for a tidy profit if she purchased it, since the gentleman who had emailed her was asking for a more than reasonable price. With a little loving care, she could double her investment. But the seller was located more than two hundred miles away, on the other side of the state.
Since Cade’s accident, she hadn’t been able to convince herself to drive much farther than Sophie’s house, a few miles outside the city.
Nate gave a low whistle. “That’s a beauty.”
Violet threw him a look over her shoulder. Now was not really the time for sarcasm.
But Nate leaned closer to the computer. “Look at those lines.” He held up a finger to point to the curved edges of the piece. “And that whatever it’s called.” He pointed to the elaborate scrollwork at the top. “That takes some skill. Is that a good price?”
“Yeah.” Violet scanned the email. “Really good, actually. I could probably sell it for double.”
“Wow. Your problems are solved then. That’s not nearly as specialized an item as the piano. There have to be plenty of people around here who would be interested.”
Off the top of her head, Violet could think of three regular customers who would kill to get their hands on a piece like this. But it didn’t matter. There was no way she could go pick it up. And if she arranged for a truck to deliver it, she might as well give it away for free, since shipping costs would eat any profit.
“How soon can you get it?” Nate’s voice was lighter than before, as if he thought all her problems were solved.
Violet rubbed her temples. It wouldn’t be that tough, would it? Just get in the car and drive. She’d done it a thousand times before Cade died. Why should now be any different?
But she shook her head. “I’m not.”
“Why not?” Nate bent closer, his lemony clean scent overtaking her senses. “Is there something wrong with it?”
Again, she shook her head.
Behind her, Nate’s scen
t weakened as she felt him move back and straighten.
Without warning, her chair spun to face him.
“Why not?” His hand was on the back of her chair, next to her shoulder.
“I can’t.” The words were almost a whisper.
Nate’s brow creased. “This guy obviously wants to sell it to you. Look―” He leaned across her to scroll down to the bottom of the email. “See? He says he knows you’ll be fair and find a good home for the piece. Your reputation must precede you.”
To her chagrin, tears flooded her eyes. She tried to blink them back, but she was too slow.
“Whoa, hey.” Nate crouched in front of her, resting his hands on the armrests of her chair.
Instead of feeling caged in, she felt protected, enclosed.
“What’s wrong? You don’t have to get the piece if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to stick my nose in where it doesn’t belong.”
Violet attempted a laugh and quickly wiped her eyes. “You didn’t do anything wrong.” A shuddering breath wracked her frame. “Cade died in a car accident on his way back from picking up a piece. I haven’t been able to drive more than a few miles out of town since then.” To her own surprise, Violet didn’t experience the wave of embarrassment that usually accompanied the admission. Even Sophie thought it was odd that she never left the city. But Nate simply nodded, his eyes registering a sort of kinship.
He let out a breath and stood slowly, giving her space. Instead of relief, Violet was overwhelmed by a sudden emptiness. She was all alone.
“What if I went with you?” Nate’s eyes remained steady on hers.
“What?” Violet tried to make sense of his offer.
“I’ll go with you.” He said it with more certainty this time, not demanding, more like reassuring.
Violet shook her head. “I’d have to go tomorrow afternoon. You don’t want to waste your Sunday like that.”
“A day with you wouldn’t be a waste.”
A warmth spread through Violet’s insides. She chewed her lip. If she had someone with her, could she handle leaving the city? Could she put the demons behind her and move forward?
Not Until You (Hope Springs Book 3) Page 12