Before she could tell him that, the bell at the door chimed, and a delivery person walked in with a thin manila envelope. Callie signed for the package. The name on the return address was PRO-TEM.
She ripped open the envelope, and a single sheet of paper fell to the desk. At the top, in bold letters, she read: EVICTION NOTICE, and her world tilted on its axis.
Callie gasped. She gripped the sheet of paper so tightly she thought her fingers might poke holes in the copy.
It was over. Her last chance. The last place on earth where she felt like she belonged. Holliday Spas wasn’t just her business; it was her reason for coming back to Vegas.
“And now the Oasis has nothing to do with Holliday Spas at all. I’m being evicted.” She handed the sheet of paper across the desk, but even Gage’s blanching face didn’t make her feel better.
“This doesn’t make sense. The Oasis isn’t big enough for anything more than what it is.”
Callie pointed out the window, to the courier delivering manila envelopes to every business in the complex. She took the eviction notice back. “The man in the blue shorts and polo shirt says differently.” She began reading the notice. “Citing clause four, subsection B, the termination clause. Selling the property gives the new owners the right to terminate existing leases. I have sixty days to vacate.”
“But it doesn’t make sense. He can’t expand the Oasis, it’s landlocked, and he can’t build anything bigger than three stories because of zoning ordinances. Even at three stories, a property this size won’t accommodate a hotel and spa, not in Vegas.”
“Maybe he doesn’t want both.”
Gage raised one eyebrow. “Everybody wants both, honey.”
“Maybe he has plans to un-landlock it. You said yourself the best thing about Vegas is the fact it’s always changing.”
“Those weren’t my exact words.”
“Right now I don’t care about exact words. I care about what is written on that notice. Eviction.” Callie sighed. “You should leave, Gage. Looks like I’m going to be hunting for a new office space.”
“Cal, you don’t have to do that. I know—”
“I don’t care what you know,” she said sadly. “I care about what you’ve done. And what you’ve done is take my business legs right out from under me.”
He reached out, but Callie backed away. She put all the strength she could muster into her voice.
“Please, Gage. Just go. I need to figure this out.”
She couldn’t look at him. Couldn’t touch him. Gage had never made her any promises, except one: that he would help her business succeed.
The bell chimed as he left. Callie watched him walk to the side of the building and, she imagined, continue down Las Vegas Boulevard.
She looked back at the past few weeks with Gage. No warning signs, other than that stupid newspaper headline. He’d been attentive and focused. Sure, his ideas for the spa were the opposite of hers, but in the end, he’d let her make the final decision on the kind of establishment she wanted to run. He never promised her forever, and if he had, she would have laughed. They barely knew one another. He’d taken her for greasy cheeseburgers and a roller coaster ride off the top of a skyscraper.
That hadn’t stopped her from falling in love with him, though. That was what hurt the most. She loved him, more than she’d loved anyone in her life. He hadn’t intended to betray her, she knew, but not telling her about the sale, not thinking about what might happen after he signed on the dotted line, was still a betrayal.
Callie shoved the eviction notice into the manila folder and sat down hard on her chair. She had to get it together before Mandy got back.
She needed to contact a real estate agent about another new location.
She needed to figure out how to live in Las Vegas without Gage in her life, because she was damned if she would lose everything—again—over a man.
• • •
Gage sat outside Callie’s condo for hours. He didn’t know when she would be home, didn’t know if she would come home. He only knew he had to see her. He needed to assure her she wouldn’t lose her business. And maybe somewhere in there tell her that he loved her—in a way that she would actually believe and not think he was using their personal relationship to solidify their business arrangement.
Maybe he should lead with the feelings part.
A little after six, she pulled her Bug into the drive and shot him a glare. Okay, so the cooling off period obviously hadn’t started yet.
“Can we talk?” Gage stood as Callie reached the porch.
“If you’re worried about your investment, don’t be. You’re a good businessman, Gage, and I learned a few things over the summer. I contacted the casino we looked at a few weeks ago. The space is still available. I’ll sign with them later this week.”
“Cal—”
“Don’t.” Callie closed her eyes. “You did what you needed to do to preserve Walt’s land. I get it. It doesn’t change the fact that you sold my location out from under me.”
“I did, and I’m sorry. I thought I was protecting something that would be just as valuable to you.”
She ran her hand over his cheek. “Walt’s ranch is valuable to me. So is my spot in the Oasis. But what was more important to me was you and what we seemed to be building over the past few weeks.”
Gage stilled. Were?
“I love you, Callie.”
“If you loved me you would let me in.”
“I’ve spent practically every day with you since you showed up in my office. If that isn’t letting you in—”
“I told you about my marriage. I told you how hurt I was when my parents drove into the sunset in their RV. I told you how important Holliday Spas was and why I wanted to come back here, to reclaim my roots.” Callie put her hands on either side of his face. “You told me about your plan to build an eco-friendly resort. You took me mini-golfing and got me to ride Insanity. But in all the time we’ve spent together you haven’t told me anything important.”
“You already know the important things.”
“Knowing them isn’t the same as talking about them. I was there when your dad died, and I heard you rail against the world. I saw how angry you were and how badly you wanted to get the hell out of Nevada. You stayed. Why?”
Gage clenched his jaw. He’d stayed to build something with his brothers. To pay them back because they’d held everything together after Caleb died. He stayed because keeping the ranch meant keeping a small part of his father.
Caleb had loved two things in his life: the ranch and Helena. Gage couldn’t save his mother, but he could damn well save the ranch.
“I haven’t had to explain myself to anyone for a long time.”
Her voice was quiet as she stepped inside the condo. “Why did you stay in Nevada, Gage?”
“It didn’t make sense to have two-thirds of Reeves Brothers in Vegas and the other third somewhere else.”
Callie twisted her lips. “I love you, Gage. I don’t know when it happened, and I really couldn’t tell you why, but I do. I love you.” She drew away from him, putting the kitchen island between them. “I’ve been the only one in love in a relationship before. I can’t be with someone who won’t let me into his life.”
“Cal—”
“Go finish your deal. Make sure all the t’s are crossed and all the i’s are dotted. I’ll call Barb later this week, when I know for sure about a new location.”
She closed the door.
There was nothing left for Gage to do except leave.
Chapter Seventeen
Callie pulled into her parking spot at the spa just after nine on Thursday. They had a light day. She’d spent most of Wednesday postponing appointments for later in the month and talking over lease arrangements with the casino management.
Alan McKinney sent her a basket of fruit and another notice, informing her she had until the end of the summer to make new business arrangements.
Mandy waited behi
nd the reception desk, looking a little bit lost.
“I don’t know if I can face packing this place up again.”
Callie put her bag in the closet and joined Mandy at the counter. Together they watched the shopping center come to life. A limo pulled up before the hair salon at the end of the complex, and a minivan parked before one of the boutiques.
Life moved on, Callie mused. Life didn’t care.
“Did Gage call?”
Callie shook her head and then sipped her coffee. It was tepid. She threw it in the trash and grabbed a cold soda from the mini-fridge under the desk.
“Why would Gage call?”
“He might be the rat bastard who sold this place to Alan McKinney, but he’s also the rat bastard who loves you and didn’t mean to throw your business life into turmoil.”
“He’s also the unavailable man who thinks random conversations about cheating on high school midterms and riding roller coasters is the basis of a deep relationship.”
“Maybe he doesn’t know better.”
“Maybe you should go out with him.”
Mandy had a point, though. Gage probably didn’t know any better. Who would have shown him what it meant to share a life with another person? The only things Helena ever shared were airport shuttles and hotel rooms. Caleb’s love for Helena was evident in the number of times he’d chased her down and dragged her back to the ranch, but could Gage see that? Or did he only see that his father wasn’t home to teach him to throw a baseball or drive a manual transmission?
Nope, not going down that road. That road would only lead to more heartache, and she’d had enough of that over the past few days. She went to sleep thinking of Gage and woke up thinking about him. She caught herself doodling his name in the margins of her paper while talking to prospective clients and the casino manager.
She would get over Gage. It would take time, but she would do it. She’d gotten over Eddie’s betrayal, hadn’t she?
The messenger who delivered the first envelope from McKinney walked through the door with another thin envelope. Callie sighed. What did the devil of a man want from her this time? She signed for the package and waited until the deliveryman drove away to unseal it. The driver pulled onto Las Vegas Boulevard without visiting any of the other tenants. Apparently this time McKinney only wanted to mess with her.
Mandy backed away from the desk and slung her bag over her shoulder. “Nope. Can’t deal.”
Callie cut her off. “You leave this building, and you can look for both a new job and a best friend. You’re not just an employee, you know.”
Mandy wrinkled her brow, but she tossed the bag back onto her chair and didn’t make a run for the door. Progress, Callie thought.
She pulled two sheets of paper from the envelope and gasped. The first was simple; it read:
I’m sorry.
Not from McKinney. But the fact that Gage had apologized by messenger didn’t exactly add points in his favor, either.
Callie looked at the second sheet and felt the blood drain from her face. The world outside the office window seemed to grey and shimmer before her eyes. There was a sticky note stuck to the top and it read:
Because it’s about time you were able to take care of your own future.
Below the sticky note, Callie read the word deed. The address was Walt’s ranch.
“He gave you a ranch?” Mandy was incredulous. “Who gives a person a rundown ranch?”
Callie read the notes and the fine print on the deed twice, and then her vision blurred again. In anger this time. “Son of a bitch.”
Mandy picked up on the anger in Callie’s voice and put her hand on Callie’s arm. “I know it’s not exactly flowers, but when you take into account flowers cost about fifty bucks while Walt’s ranch cost him—”
“I know, Mandy, I know.”
“It’s maybe not such a bad deal is all I’m saying.”
“Watch the store. I need to go see a man about a deed,” she said and hurried out of the spa.
• • •
Gage skipped a flat rock over the small lake on the back side of the ranch, and when it sank below the surface he counted the ripples until they reached shore. He picked up another rock and did the same thing.
It wasn’t the most productive way to spend his time, but then neither was buying and selling half of Nevada, and he’d done that for more years than he cared to count.
At some point in the past ten years, buying and selling properties had lost its luster. Making deals and designing properties … It had stopped being fun. He didn’t realize it until Callie walked into his office. But touring properties and packing boxes with her was fun. He’d been downright giddy when he threatened her former real estate agent with a civil suit if she wasn’t released from the Vas Hole Center.
Dating Callie was fun, and loving her was so easy he still couldn’t pinpoint when it had happened. Maybe that night on Insanity. Maybe when she walked through the door that first day.
A vehicle skidded to a stop on the loose gravel and dirt, and he turned. His heart seemed to stop for a moment as Callie got out of her Bug and strode to his side. She shoved a few pieces of paper at his chest.
“What the hell is this?”
“Paper?”
“Charming. Why did you sign the deed to Walt’s ranch over to me?”
“Because the only reason I bought it was you.”
“Bull. You bought the ranch for your eco-friendly resort.”
“Yeah.” Gage measured his words, hoping they made as much sense when spoken aloud as they did in his head. “You made me want the resort. You were so excited about the spa, it made me excited. I’ve talked about an eco-friendly place for a long time. I’ve toured properties on the Strip and in the desert. I never followed through on any of those places until you came along. You made me get excited about the project I’ve been pushing aside for far too long.”
“Then why give it up?”
“Because your security is more important than the possibility of a resort. Although, I’m determined to build it this time around. I want you to have a place that is yours. You can do whatever you want with it, Cal. Hold on to it and build Holliday Spas at the ranch. Sell it and use the cash to build something spectacular on the Strip with no one else holding the purse strings.” Gage put his hands in his pockets to keep from reaching out to her. Anger seeped from her expression until all that was left was confusion.
She shook her head. “You’re the developer. I’m a masseuse who opened her own spa.”
“You’re more than that, Cal, and you know it.”
He couldn’t stop himself. Gage reached out, taking her chin between his finger and thumb so she had to look at him. “You’re everything.”
“Gage.” She closed her eyes.
“You’re the reason, you know.”
“Don’t.”
But Gage couldn’t stop himself. “I never left Nevada because you were here. Things changed for me the night of the funeral. I was pissed at Caleb, and I didn’t want anything to do with my brothers. They had all the good memories, from before Helena started gambling. I had all the bad memories of her disappearing and Caleb leaving to track her down.” He sighed. Might as well get it all out, he decided. “And there you were, being sweet and inviting me to dinner and not treating me like a kid who didn’t understand anything. You were my friend, and those feelings scared me to death, so I pretended they weren’t there. You’ve been out of my life for three days, and I’ve wondered at least a hundred times what I could do to bring you back.” Her hand reached for his, and Gage took it as a positive sign. “I do love you, Cal. I think, all those times Caleb left, he wasn’t just trying to bring Helena back to save face. I think he was trying to show her he loved her. What other reason could there be for him to chase after her for so long?”
Callie rested her head on his shoulder for a long moment. “I think he loved her so much he couldn’t face what life might be like without her.”
&nb
sp; “As long as it takes, Cal. I’m going to keep telling you I love you and chasing after you for as long as it takes.”
“Was the deed part of chasing after me?”
He shook his head. “No, it was part of setting things right.”
Callie squeezed his hand. “You didn’t need to give me the ranch. All you had to do was talk to me. Let me in.” Callie met his gaze. “I came back to Vegas to reconnect with a part of myself I lost. I thought going to college and then staying back East would make me stronger. I love my dad, but his dreams were only ever dreams. I can build my business, but I don’t just want the business any more.” She paused and watched him for a long moment. “You’re where I want to plant my roots. Somewhere between the Vas Hole Center and the Oasis, my roots became less about Las Vegas, in general, and more about you, in particular.”
Gage grinned. “You love me.”
She nodded. “I love you, Gage Reeves. I don’t need your deed, and I don’t need you to make things simple for me. But any time you want to hold my hand, it will be right here.”
He took her mouth with his and tasted the sweetness of Callie for the first time, again. And this time, mixed in with the passion and friendship, he tasted love. And the future.
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Jackson Taylor’s toes clenched as he came abruptly awake, the left side of his body shivering. The right, however, was delectably warm. A soft weight held his shoulder down, the feel of a woman’s curves pressed hard against his chest. Cold water tickled his feet and wet sand dug into his butt. The tangy, salty smell of the ocean filled his nostrils. Another tickle of water. A slight shiver came from the curvaceous woman beside him before she settled back into sleep.
A flash of red hair, spinning lanterns, and Latin dance music raced through his mind before it went blank. The infernal pounding started again behind his right temple.
Must have been a great night. The naked body lying next to his on the beach said as much.
What the Bachelor Gets Page 22