“That’s what they used to call my mom,” she ranted. Devon knew she was doing the crash and burn, but she didn’t care. “Do I look that old?” It came out of Devon’s mouth before she had a chance to swallow it. But instead of being offended, they laughed.
“She’s a hellcat, Nick. No wonder you sprayed her with water. I’d have done worse,” Marc said as he winked at her.
“I didn’t—“
“Enough with all this child’s play,” Sophie interjected. “You guys are totally juvenile. Quit it.” She took several sips of water and swallowed painfully.
What could anyone say to her?
Sophie set her glass down on the drain board and returned to the table. “Although this has given me some fun this afternoon. Something to break up the doom and gloom, but it’s time for getting real.” Sophie strained on every word. “Get yourselves something to drink and then we need to have a talk.”
Devon watched as Nick’s hands immediately fisted and his jaw clenched.
Marc spoke up. “You need anything at the store? I can go run an errand for you, since I’m not really part of this little meeting.”
Devon found his cheerful demeanor irritating.
“Sis, why don’t you just put up the closed sign and we’ll walk back to the house, if you’re up to it.” Nick offered.
“No, I like Marc’s plan. I haven’t died yet, and I sure as hell am still open for business. I need some tequila and I’m afraid I have no beer. You want to pick up something like a pizza, too?” She glanced over at Devon. “But you better bring a salad for Devon, here.”
Nick helped his sister sit down. “Sophie, you’re not supposed to drink with the chemo.”
“Well, that’s what I got to talk to you two about.” With a great deal of pain, she was helped to her chair, where she laced her fingers between themselves, resting her elbows on the plank table.
“Sophie, let me go get some things. You don’t have to pay for any of this,” Devon said.
“Hell, I was hoping my brother would take care of the tab.”
“You got it, Soph,” Nick answered.
“And unless Marc knows about property values in Sonoma County, I think you better stay here and tell me what I can get for the place. If you’re ready, that is.”
Devon hadn’t been thinking. Of course, this was the reason for the little meeting today. How stupid she must seem. “Yes. Completely. Ready.”
“That was really nice, Devon, but Marc and I will cover this. Maybe another time—“ Nick’s eyes were soft and his voice sent a chill down Devon’s spine.
“I’m off. Your keys to the beast, Nick?” Marc was nervously swaying from foot to foot.
“There’s a shopping center down Bennett Valley Road about four miles. There’s a pizza parlor there, as well as Chinese and Mexican, and a grocery store. Go knock yourself out.” Nick also gave him a couple of twenties.
Marc whispered something Devon couldn’t understand and then left.
Devon sat across the table from Sophie with Nick seated at her right. She asked Nick to brew some fresh coffee. When he returned to the table with the steaming mugs, Sophie began.
“The doctor told me today my lymphoma is advancing at a rapid pace. My chemo was ended a month ago. I guess he was hoping the markers would go down, as they sometimes do. I’m not one of the lucky ones. The cancer is raging very aggressively.”
Nick leaned in and grabbed Sophie’s hands in his big paw. Devon could tell he wanted to say something, but couldn’t.
“I’m going to list the property for sale with you, Devon. Ideally, it would sell before I pass on. That way I can sell it to someone I like, someone who will continue my work here, not that asshole next door. But if not, I’d like you to handle it when I’m up in that big nursery in the sky, and distribute the profits, if there are any.”
“Come on, Sophie. Don’t do that. There’s plenty of time. The market has gotten very strong lately.”
“I’m not sure,” Sophie said. “I’m just making plans now for every eventuality.”
“Well that’s nonsense, but it’s your call. We can do some advanced planning. Just let me know who you want as beneficiaries, and I’ll get instructions to escrow drawn up by the title company I use. You do have a will, right?”
“Yes.”
“Good, I’ll need to show a copy of it to title so your wishes can be carried out to the letter. All we have to do now is determine the value and get it on the market.”
“Good. But before we begin, I want both of you to understand three requirements I have. I’ve given it a lot of thought.”
Nick looked away out the window. Devon saw his massive chest rising and falling, heard the hitch in his breath and knew he was struggling with his emotions.
“I’m not sure there is any equity in this property. But if there is, I want to leave it to both of you.”
Devon looked at Nick, who looked just as confused.
“Sophie, you should leave it to family. Nick’s your only living relative. I’m just your friend, and I will handle the sale for you. But you don’t have to leave me anything. That wouldn’t be right.”
“I disagree. You’ve been there for me all throughout my illness. Even before I became ill. I want to say thank you.”
“But it isn’t necessary,” Devon began.
“It is to me. I want you and Nick to work on this together. I want you both to find the right buyer for this property.”
It began to dawn on Devon that Sophie had a plan beyond money.
“And the last part is most important of all.”
Devon had a bad feeling in her stomach about this. She couldn’t look Nick in the eyes, even though she could tell his face was turned her way.
“I want you two to date at least five times before I pass on. That’s all I ask. A real date. A dinner, picnic, whatever you want but not just coffee. You don’t have to get engaged, married, or even fall in love. But I want you two to give each other some time.”
“How can you ask this of me?” Devon began to rise.
“Stop it, Devon. Don’t take me for a fool. I know you perhaps better than anyone else around. If you want to sell my nursery, you’ll accommodate me. And it’s okay if you say no.”
“But—“
“It’s a deal-breaker for me, Devon. You either agree or I find someone else. If you’re going to abandon our friendship over this, then you weren’t the friend I thought you were.”
Nick rose as well. “Sophie, that’s nuts. Like you’re reaching from the grave to make demands.”
“That’s exactly what it is, Nick. You honestly going to stand there and deny me my deathbed request?”
Nick stared at the floor. Devon could see his lungs struggle. They stood close to one another, so close, she could feel the heat from his body.
Sophie never lied. Her eyes were dead serious and unflinching, darting between the two of them. Devon dared to glance up at the man standing to her right and damn, her panties got wet.
That was a very bad sign.
Chapter 4
Of all the fucked up things to have to deal with. On top of his sister dying, now he was forced to “agree to Sophie’s wishes” by dating the cold, uptight woman who stood beside him. Devon had made it obvious she wasn’t interested in him. She didn’t seem to be interested in men at all. Probably why she had that horrible reaction to Sophie’s request.
He’d never been forced to date anyone in his life. He’d never had a woman NOT want to go out with him, either. Of course, until today, he’d not played Thunder Down Under while he washed dishes, singing, and then sprayed a woman with water. He’d never battled a freaking devil of a hose before. This was nothing he wanted to get used to.
And to make matters worse, his pecker was as hard as granite and was about to make him fall over. He sat, attempting to get composed, trying to cross his legs, but couldn’t. He sighed and drummed his fingers on the table until his sister gave him that stern look that said
be careful.
Devon took her seat as well. Her silence was troubling. Was she going to do everything he did first? That was a cooling thought.
It wasn’t fair, being made to do something this way. He never thought of his sister as a controlling bitch before. But this was…nasty. Wicked. Completely unacceptable. Beyond evil. Like showing up for battle in his Batman boxers he’d gotten as an anonymous care package from Navy Moms.
His groin lurched, reminding him his little brain disagreed with him. So be it. He’d beat the shit out of it later, right now he’d have to stay calm and composed. Or should he give her that wolfish grin she hated so much? If he started being all cocky and full of himself, she’d surely hightail it out of here and that might solve the problem.
But then his sister would have lost a friend. She wouldn’t have the person she wanted sell her property. And the whole scene would just go downhill from there.
No, best thing was to just grin and bear it. His little brain liked that idea.
Shut up, you fuckin traitor.
This was wrong on so many levels. But if the girl was willing, he could stand a few dinners. Lord knows he’d had lots of them that were harmless enough. Trick was to not make them so horrible she’d quit ‘cause that would hurt Sophie. Or maybe—
Yeah, his other part was reminding him it had been awhile since his last female contact. And it didn’t count that he and Marc had ogled anything that looked decent in the airports all the way home from the sand country, and at rest stops along the freeway on the drive up to Northern California. And just a week ago, he’d been helping Cooper tend to the women and the children having children, at the makeshift clinic they’d set up over there. Did all this in a no-name village under the protection of his other Team buddies who were watching for bad guys. Their Team 3 medic even delivered a breech baby that last day to a scared girl of fourteen.
Life wasn’t fair. Half the guys he’d left behind when he finished his deployment would give anything for the chance to just talk to a beautiful woman who looked incredible in a red business suit. And here he was complaining about it to himself.
Time to man-up.
Truth was, he was more afraid of women sometimes than the battlefield. Maybe it was the training. Maybe it was because he knew he was made for combat. He wasn’t so sure he was made to do small talk and practice patience. He could perform sex that would blow her mind. But this wasn’t sex. This was friendship. This was “being nice.”
He wasn’t so sure he liked this new uniform. “Being nice” was something you did when you were with an elderly aunt or some retired Admiral who dribbled on himself or accidentally peed his pants.
He wondered if he could trust her, this lovely lady sitting on his left, the one with the red pouty lips and the ramrod backbone that demanded he stay away. But just now, for that second she looked at him, he saw her innocence and her fear. She was afraid of him as much as he was afraid of her.
Damn, that wasn’t a very good start. Not for anyone, but especially not for a SEAL.
Devon licked her lips. She wasn’t going to say anything. Was leaving it totally up to him how it all went down. Half of him wanted to beg out, plead with his sister to be released from this obligation. It wasn’t fair.
But something in Devon made his chest rise, reminded him of his pride in what he did every day. He was a man born to protect the weak and innocent, the women and children and elderly. The ones who couldn’t defend themselves. Part of him wanted to rise to the occasion, take her in his arms and whisper soothing things, promising it would be okay. Letting her know he’d never hurt her. Never do anything she wouldn’t want. And that was the key. What did she want?
As if his eyes had asked her that question, she blushed and looked down at her hands. He tilted his head, surprised at this little slip on her part. Maybe she wasn’t really an ice queen after all. Maybe Sophie knew something about the two of them he had yet to discover.
“Here’s the deal,” Sophie began. “I’m having symptoms of kidney failure. The glow on my face that might look like a suntan is really a buildup of toxins in my system. Any day now I’d have to be admitted to the hospital for some heroic stuff that won’t do anything but postpone the inevitable. Once in there, I wouldn’t be coming out. So, I don’t want to die in any hospital. I want to die here, where I lived. My doctor was ready to admit me today, and I told him flat out no.”
That’s when Nick tore his eyes off Devon’s bowed head and focused on his sister.
Devon did the same.
“Oh Sophie.” Devon reached over to grab his sister’s hands with both of hers. “I had no idea you were so far along.”
“Well, they were trying something new and there was a chance it would kick in. I’m afraid I don’t have enough time left to find out. The plan now is just to keep me comfortable.”
“So you’ll need twenty four hour care. With the three of us, we should be able to handle that, unless—" Nicholas began as he slid his chair close to his sister.
“I’m going to clear the decks so I’ll be available to take a shift,” Devon said to Sophie. Nick could see the comment was intended for him, but Devon wasn’t going to look at him. He read her blush in her cheeks and knew why. She was as confused as he was, but the attraction was there. No mistaking it.
“I have no insurance. I’m on the indigent list. Can you believe it?” Sophie said with a lopsided smile. Nick noticed her teeth had started to yellow and her gums were pale.
“There’s nothing we can do, except get started wrapping up this whole experiment up. I’m afraid there’s no silver lining or happily ever after for my story.” Sophie leaned back in her chair. “Now for you two, that’s another story altogether.” She attempted a smile, but began coughing.
They spent the rest of the hour going over the figures on the property. Devon made some suggestions for ways to market, including holding a big liquidation auction for all the plants and equipment. Sophie said she wanted to be there, if she could. Wanted to watch it all go to good homes.
Nick objected at first, and said he wasn’t so sure this was a good idea, but Sophie’s dream had already taken on a life of its own and he dropped his opposition.
The listing agreement was signed and disclosure statements were given. “I can pick these up tomorrow. Maybe Nick can help you fill them out tonight, if you’re up to it. We like to have everything complete in the file. And if I can, I’d like some profit and loss statements.”
“Nonexistent,” whispered Sophia.
“Then we’ll make something up. It needs to be fairly accurate.”
“Not much to tell,” Sophie said with a shrug.
“How did you survive all this time?” Nick asked.
“I had that auto accident last year, remember? Got a cash settlement and used it all up trying to get this place off the ground. I was sure I was going to be able to do it.”
Nick nodded, looking over the disclosure statements. “Geez, there’s a ton of stuff to fill out.”
“If you have any questions, give me a call and I’ll go over them with you.” Devon offered. She gave him her card with her cell phone number on it.
“I guess I’ll be needing this anyway,” he said, and then winced as he thought better of it. Devon wasn’t a piece of meat that had been auctioned off to the highest bidder. She was flesh and blood. Delicate, even if she was spirited.
“I suppose you’re planning to do it the old fashioned way. You’ll call me to ask me out, too.”
That didn’t sound half bad anymore. Plain vanilla sex and a big bed had never brought such erotic fantasies.
“One other thing, Devon, I’d love it if you’d move in here,” Sophie said.
At first Devon stiffened. "Sophie, I—”
“Yes, I know I have no right, but I’m asking you anyway. I think it would make things easier for everyone. I know you have to work, but I can’t show the property and I want you to be my spokesperson as much as possible. And the truth is, I’m
scared, Devon.”
Nick saw Devon struggle with her reply. “I’ll need a couple of days to get ready.”
“Fair enough,” his sister said. "Not like I’m dying tomorrow."
Marc arrived with the pizza and beer and a side salad for Devon. The afternoon sun was low enough in the sky that the outside lights turned on automatically and the crickets began to chirp. Several waterfalls continued to gurgle. Something about this green patch of ground was soothing and endearing.
The pizza was good, and beer better. Afterwards, Devon rose to leave, giving Sophie a big hug while not allowing her to leave the chair. Slipping her computer case strap over her right shoulder, she waved goodbye. Nick was up to walk her outside to her car.
She thanked him tersely, got out her keys and unlocked her silver Lexus. She paused before stepping up to the driver’s seat.
“Are you sure you’re up for this?" Devon asked him. "I’m okay if you’re not. Your sister is a special friend, probably the best friend I have ever had. But you don’t have to do this. Somehow, I’ll make it right with Sophie,” she said.
Nick admired the courage it must have taken to say this to him. He decided to try on the Being Nice uniform. The damned thing was too small, partly because of the telephone pole between his legs. But he gave it a go.
“Devon, my goal is to see my sister die with a smile on her face, if that’s possible. I think she wants us to pretend we like each other. She wants to live through us, experience something she never had herself. I can do this for her, if you can.”
She thought about it and sat down behind the wheel.
“Alright. Then it’s agreed.” She held out her hand through the opened window for him to shake it. When he gripped her fingers, he tried not to squeeze too tight, but the feeling of her soft flesh in the palm of his hand was thrilling. He started to grip for a shake, and then thought about being the Nice Guy who would do something really out of character for Nick. No one was looking. He held her fingers to his lips and kissed her knuckles.
SEAL the Deal Page 3