Something About You

by Bridget Anderson

  “No, you don’t,” Kyla said.

  “What do you mean?” he asked, turning to her.

  “What you’re experiencing is the typical student–teacher crush. The tables were turned this week and I was the authority figure. I know you’re not used to that, but it happens. There’s been a little harmless flirting going on, but that’s it. You made a vow with God and you’re sticking to it. You know, I’m very passionate about what I do, and sometimes that passion can be attractive.”

  He traced her lips as she spoke, not buying a word of it. “But my question is, is the teacher attracted to the student?”

  She released her arms and brought a hand up, stroking her throat. She tilted her head towards him. “I think you know the answer to that question.”

  Every nerve ending in his body stirred as she turned and walked away leaving him weak at the knees.

  * * *

  With his bag packed and his bill paid, Miles said goodbye to his hosts. “I want to thank you guys for a wonderful experience. I gained an education on growing organic foods that I’ll never forget. And tell Mrs. Rita she cooked some of the best food I’ve ever put in my mouth.”

  Rollin and Tayler laughed along with Miles.

  “Well, now that you know where we are, don’t be a stranger,” Rollin said.

  “Most definitely. I’ll be sure to recommend the Coleman House to all my friends. As a matter of fact, I might gift my business partner a week’s stay.”

  Tayler looked up at Rollin, smiling, and then turned back to Miles. “We’ll be more than happy to host anyone you send.”

  Miles cleared his throat. “I didn’t really get to say goodbye to Kyla after the truck came back in. Do you know where I can find her?”

  “She should be down by the gazebo. Her workshop’s about to start,” Tayler said.

  “Okay, thanks, I’ll run down there on my way out. Again, it’s been amazing.”

  After exchanging handshakes, Miles walked out to his SUV and tossed his bag inside, then turned around and headed toward the gazebo.

  From a distance, he didn’t see anyone there. When he reached the empty gazebo he decided to leave her a note. Before he could find a pen or some paper, he heard laughter coming in his direction. When he turned around, Kyla and several of the B and B guests were coming down the path.

  “Miles! I thought you were gone.” She entered the gazebo with a big smile on her face and an armful of small herb pots like the ones they’d planted last night.

  “I’m on my way out now, but I wanted to say goodbye.”

  “Are you Miles Parker, the baseball player?” one of the guests asked.

  Miles nodded and glanced at the man briefly before turning back to Kyla.

  “Cool. Are you taking this workshop, too?” he asked.

  Kyla set her pots down. “Mr. Parker was with us all last week. He’s learning about organic farming and discovering the many wonderful benefits. Isn’t that right, Mr. Parker?”

  The fake smile on Kyla’s face and the disguised lift to her voice wasn’t fooling Miles. Maybe she didn’t want these people to know how she felt about him, but something special had happened between them this week that couldn’t be denied. “I learned a lot this week. Organic farming is definitely a labor of love. But I also learned a lot about myself and what I really want out of life.” Miles stared deep into Kyla’s eyes, as if she were the only one in the gazebo.

  Her lips parted, and she gave him a hesitant look before asking, “What’s that?”

  “A woman who shares my passions and dreams of one day ridding the world of hunger. Someone who’s not waiting on the government or anybody else to do what needs to be done in this world. That’s what I want.”

  Miles needed to touch her at that moment. He wanted to taste her lips and wrap her in his arms. Once he walked away from here the moment would be lost. He didn’t know if he’d ever see her again, but he wanted to make sure she knew how he felt.

  He closed the distance between them and wrapped his arm around her waist. “Thank you for the education.” He covered her mouth with his, and closed his eyes while savoring the minty taste of her lips.

  Suddenly, her body pressed against his while her hand wrapped around his neck. A moment of confusion turned into the realization that Kyla was kissing him back. She’d lost all inhibitions right there in front of her class. His body temperature rose when she opened her mouth and entwined their tongues.

  He didn’t see, hear or care about anything right now but the woman wrapped in his arms. The sweet taste of her exploded in his mouth and momentary lightheadedness took over. His loins tightened. In front of everyone, she’d let her feelings for him be known in the best way possible. He was so preoccupied with thoughts of kissing her, he hadn’t even noticed some of her family members coming down the path.

  To a round of applause, she lowered her hands from his chest and slowly pulled away, looking up into his eyes. Unable to find words, he merely stared at her in disbelief.

  Chapter 13

  The cozy offices of Parker Edmunds Foods occupied space on the fifteenth floor of the PNC Tower in downtown Lexington. Miles ran the entire company from these five rooms. Rarely did anyone come into the office who didn’t work there. Unless, on occasions like today, when his attorney, Winston Collier; his brother, Brandon; and a longtime advisor, Ralph McKay, met to discuss business.

  “So, everyone’s in agreement this is the move we want to make?” Miles asked his business team to confirm before they made a very important acquisition.

  Glenda turned her gaze from the window toward the team. “We won’t be able to survey the land until the family moves out, but from what we’ve seen I think it’s perfect for soybeans. Anywhere in that area would be good, but with this foreclosure looming, we’d be foolish to pass it up.”

  “What about the family living there now?” Brandon asked from his corner spot in the room. “What if they refuse to leave? I saw something like that on television.”

  Miles cleared his throat. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. A foreclosure’s not an easy thing to come to grips with.” He looked at Glenda. “Do you know anything about the family living there?”

  She shook her head. “No, but do we need to know anything about them? And I’m not trying to be facetious here, but the acquisition is more my concern.”

  Winston shuffled some papers in front of him. “I do know that only one person works outside of the farm. That land is the source of most of their income. However, it hasn’t produced enough to pay off the loan in years. I believe there are about six residents, two of them children.”

  Miles shook his head. “I know their well-being is none of my concern, but unless they have someplace to go, this stinks.”

  Winston, Ralph and Glenda all chimed in at the same time in response to Miles’s concerns. He couldn’t help how he felt. While doing mission work, he’d watched his father help families who’d lost everything due to drought, conflicts or corruption, with no place to go.

  He didn’t like the idea of benefiting from someone else’s pain.

  “Look, at the end of the day, it’s business, Miles,” Ralph broke through the chatter. “You’re not the cause of their pain, and you aren’t taking advantage of them. But I understand where you’re coming from. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll personally look into the owner’s situation as best I can.”

  Miles nodded. Always sympathetic, Ralph, like Miles, had traveled the world as a child and had his own famine stories to tell.

  “What’s the name of the family?” Ralph asked Winston.

  “Montgomery. The name on the deed is Paula Montgomery,” Winston confirmed.

  Ralph nodded as he jotted it down.

  “Okay, the next piece of business to discuss is the Global Summit in Chicago next week,” Glenda said. “Everything has be
en shipped to McCormick Place, reservations have been made for Friday night’s dinner and I’ve booked my hotel, but Miles, I assume you and Brandon will be staying at your condo?”

  Miles opened his mouth to respond, but Brandon spoke up before he could get a word out. “I can’t go.”

  Miles turned to his little brother in disbelief. “What do you mean, you can’t go? We’ve been talking about this for months.”

  Brandon shrugged. “I know, but something’s come up.”

  Miles wanted to know what could be that important, but he didn’t want to ask in front of everyone there. “We’ll talk after the meeting,” was all he said.

  They finished discussing all of the business at hand, and thirty minutes later their staff meeting was over. Miles pulled Brandon aside before he could get away.

  “So, what’s so important?” he asked Brandon.

  Brandon shoved his hands into his pants pockets. “I’ve been invited to Martha’s Vineyard for a couple of days by one of my frat brothers.”

  Miles shook his head.

  “Miles, it’s an important invitation. He’s the president of the Finance Club, and his father is the CEO of Easley Stock Holdings. I could be setting myself up for a great internship. Before I come to work for Parker Edmunds, that is. Not everybody gets an invite. I can always go to the next summit with you. I just couldn’t turn this down.”

  “I understand, but you could have told me before you made the announcement today.”

  “I’m sorry, I was going to. Can somebody take my place?”

  “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get somebody else to go. You’re missing out on a great learning opportunity.”

  “Yeah, but I’m sure you’ll find a way to make up for it,” Brandon said with a smile.

  “You’re damn skippy I will. But first, be sure to finish all the work you’re doing with Glenda before you go. And when you return to Atlanta you need to plan to spend some time with Mama before you go back to school.”

  “Oh, most definitely. I’ll spend a good week in the ATL before I head back.”

  Miles wondered if Brandon had any idea how privileged he was. All of his young life he’d had someone watching out for and taking care of him. Miles was trying to be a father figure, but maybe he wasn’t being tough enough on him.

  After Brandon, Winston and Ralph left, Miles and Glenda retreated into their respective offices. Now Miles had to find a replacement for Brandon or forfeit his registration fee.

  “Miles.” Glenda popped her head into his office. “I’m running down to Sawyer’s to grab some lunch. Do you want anything?”

  “Naw, I’ll grab something on my way out. I need to run a few errands.”

  “Okay, but they’ve got these huge chocolate chip cookies that you love. Are you sure I can’t bring you one?”

  He smiled. She knew him so well. “As tempting as that sounds, I’ll pass.”

  “Okay, I’ll catch you later.”

  The minute Glenda walked out, he could smell warm, soft-baked chocolate chip cookies, as if he stood in the dining room of the B and B. He missed the afternoon treats, and he missed Kyla.

  Then he sat straight up. Brandon may have handed him an opportunity to see Kyla again.

  * * *

  Kyla was on her knees weeding a row of lettuce when her cell phone rang. She started to ignore it, but remembered Tracee had told her to expect a call from their brother Gavin. She wouldn’t tell her why, only that he needed to speak with them when he had a moment.

  She peeled off her gloves and pulled the phone from her back pocket. Miles Parker’s name was on the screen. She grinned at the phone and immediately stood up. For a minute, she wasn’t sure if she should answer or not. She hadn’t spoken to Miles since the day she’d embarrassed herself by kissing him in front of everybody.

  Before the call went to voice mail she answered it. “Hello.”

  “Hey, lady, I know it’s been over a week, but do you remember me?”

  She laughed and turned around to make sure no one was within earshot. “Of course I remember you. To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?”

  “Pack your bags.”

  Kyla creased her brow in confusion. “Do what?”

  “As fate would have it, I have an extra ticket to the Global Summit next week. And I’m taking you as my guest.”

  Kyla couldn’t believe her ears. She knew Miles was speaking at the summit, but she never imagined she would have an opportunity to go. She started walking down the row of lettuce. “Uh, wait a minute, is this an invitation for Rooted Beginnings? Because I’m not—”

  “No. This is an invitation for Kyla to attend as my guest. Don’t worry. I won’t put you to work, and you’ll have full access to the showroom floor. You can attend as many workshops and sessions as you want. I’ll take care of the hotel and the airline ticket. Just say you’ll come.”

  She stood there in the open field with one hand on the phone at her ear and the other on her hip. She didn’t know what to say. He was offering her a trip that had been on her wish list ever since she graduated with her master’s in agribusiness.

  “Kyla,” Miles prompted after not getting a response.

  She couldn’t accept his offer. What did he want in return? Maybe sex? No man offered you such a trip and expected nothing in return. But he was celibate.

  “Do you need some time to think it over?” he asked.

  She’d never accepted such an invitation from any man. Then again, she’d never known any man with enough money to offer her such a trip. “Ah, yeah, can I have a few days to do that?”

  “Sure. I’ll go ahead and have your room reserved. If you decide not to go, we can always cancel it. Once you make up your mind I’ll email your plane reservations.”

  She cleared the lump from her throat and held a hand to her chest.

  “And Kyla?”

  “Uh-huh?”

  “Don’t disappoint me. I’m looking forward to seeing you again.”

  Well, she could just drop the phone and faint right now.

  * * *

  “Kyla, are you one hundred percent sure you want to do this?” Tracee asked as she held up a sundress that was lying across Kyla’s bed.

  “I’m two hundred percent sure.” Kyla snatched the dress from her and tossed it onto the pile on top of her suitcase. “You’ve heard me talking about the Global Summit for years. I even tried to get Rollin to sign up. Attending this conference could be life altering for me.”

  Tracee crossed her arms. “You know that’s not what I’m talking about.”

  Kyla held out two pairs of sandals, motioning for Tracee to pick.

  “The strappy ones. They’re sexier.”

  “Sexy isn’t what I was going for.” Kyla tossed the flat sandals into the suitcase.

  Tracee walked over and picked them up. “Miles Parker invited you to Chicago.” She tossed the flats back into Kyla’s closet and snatched the strappy ones from her hand. “Sexy is what you want.” She placed the strappy sandals on top of the pile.

  Kyla shook her head. “I’m not you, Tracee. I don’t know how to lure a man. I’m not even sure I want to. I have to just be myself, like it or not.”

  “Excuse me! After the way you kissed him in front of everybody?” Tracee waved her hands in a wide gesture. “You’re not fooling anybody, girl. You want that man. You’re just so used to keeping everything so secretive. I’ll never understand why you don’t like to publicly acknowledge when you’re seeing someone.”

  Kyla shrugged and pulled a few more things out of the closet, tossing them onto the bed. “It’s my business. Everybody doesn’t need to know.”

  Tracee sat on the edge of Kyla’s bed. “I know what it is. You’re afraid of high school all over again. But that was years ago, and that guy was a jerk. Don’t be afraid to love again. Tr
ust me, all men aren’t like that. You should know that by now.”

  Kyla stopped sorting through clothes and looked at Tracee. “I’m fully aware of that. But Mama didn’t raise no fool, so I’m not putting myself out there like that again.”

  “Then why are you going to Chicago?”

  Kyla’s voice lowered. “To attend the Summit, and... I guess to see Miles again.” She sat down on the other side of the bed.

  Tracee took a deep breath. “Kyla, just be careful. I know you two got to know each other pretty well in a week’s time, but Miles isn’t one of these country boys hanging around here. He might live in Lexington, but he’s been living in another world for a long time. A world of beautiful rich people that you know nothing about.”

  Kyla lifted her chin, about to protest.

  Tracee held a hand up. “I don’t want you to get hurt. That’s all I’m saying. You’re my little sister.”

  Kyla’s throat thickened as she swallowed a lump. Tracee was the more emotional one, not her, so why was she about to cry? She took a deep breath and blinked back the tears. “Trust me, I won’t do anything you wouldn’t do.”

  “Oh, my God!” Tracee laughed and fell back onto Kyla’s pillow. “Don’t you even come close to doing anything I would do.”

  Kyla leaned back onto the other pillow, happy to have this moment with her sister, something that they hadn’t had in a long time. “No, seriously, Tracee, I can take care of myself. He’s putting me up in a hotel. It’s not like I’m staying with him. Besides, I trust him.”

  Tracee’s hand moved across the bed, taking Kyla’s. “Yeah, I know you do. So if anything doesn’t feel right at any moment, call me. I’ll be on the next flight to Chicago.”

  Kyla squeezed Tracee’s hand in return. “Corra told me the same thing earlier.”

  “That’s because we’re here for you, all of us. Wait until I tell Mama where you’re going.”

  Kyla let go of Tracee’s hand and sat up. “Don’t do that.”

  “Why not?” Tracee asked, sitting up.

  “I don’t want to worry her. The last time Gavin was here I had the feeling something wasn’t right at home. But I’ve been too busy to go visit. Mama’s gonna kill me.”