Cupid’s Quest

by Ann, Natalie

  It’d been smooth sailing since then and she never looked back. But that didn’t mean rougher waters weren’t going to pop up in the future.

  The commission on Josh’s house was going to be sweet. She sold a lot of houses in that price range, many higher, but she had just as many much lower too.

  She had to split the six percent commission with Carolyn, but at least she got half of that three percent. The rest went to the business.

  “So what was so bad about your day?” Carolyn asked.

  “The usual pain in the butt clients. Nothing is right. They want the moon and the stars but their budget barely fit the purchase of a fire hydrant in the areas they wanted to be and they aren’t willing to go higher.”

  “Not everyone can,” Carolyn said.

  “Trust me, I know.” She knew that more than most. “But telling them that doesn’t help any. I’ve been working with them for months. I thought it was the wife that was picky, but the guy is worse. I just want them to be realistic.”

  Not to mention the looks he was always sending her. He was one that brushed against her when he went from room to room. Never when his wife was in the room though. Michael and Mandy Frank were the type of clients she hated to deal with but knew it was part of the business she was in.

  “Sometimes people don’t want to commit. They just like looking.”

  “I almost think that might be what these two are doing at this stage. I don’t jump anymore when they find a house they like and want to see. I kind of hope they go with someone else when I don’t.”

  Carolyn laughed. “Now that is bad. How many have you shown them?”

  “At least thirty. Every time I think I’ve got what they want, they change something on me. Like I said, I’m hoping they see something online and contact that realtor if I can’t do it. Then they can be someone else’s headache.”

  “Says hardly any realtor ever,” Carolyn said. “I’ve had much worse.”

  “Me too. It’s just something about these two that gets to me. Anyway, you definitely made my day. Josh is going to be thrilled, I’m sure.”

  “Josh, huh?” Carolyn said. “Not just ‘my client’?”

  It was a good thing Carolyn couldn’t see her face or she’d catch the red that matched her name. “I need to run now. I’ll be in touch.”

  Once Ruby disconnected the call, she sent a text to Josh telling him she was done. It was barely four thirty since her last client didn’t want to see the final house she’d sent them. They’d driven by and weren’t interested. It worked for her and gave her time to run to the store and get the makings for dinner that she was still trying to figure out in her mind.

  Rather than tell him the good news about the house, she was going to do it in person, wanting to see his reaction.

  * * *

  Josh showed up at Ruby’s at six. Earlier than he figured he’d be coming over.

  He’d spent the day doing laundry, working out, running errands and gathering what he might need if this offer went through.

  Then he researched kitchen costs, appliances, flooring. He was trying to figure out what it was going to cost him to get this house the way he wanted it.

  He had two months left on his lease but put in a fast closing. Thirty days if the bank moved fast enough and they’d told him they could if he gave them everything they needed right away.

  Good thing he was organized and had it all.

  So if it worked out as he’d like, then he’d have close to a month before he had to leave his apartment and move in. Enough time to do the floors in the house, which was the first order of business. If he could get them done, he could live through the rest.

  And here he was thinking thoughts that had no business being there when he’d told himself he didn’t chase anything. That if they didn’t accept his offer he’d just move on to something else.

  Only he didn’t want to move on to something else. He really wanted this house.

  Almost as much as he wanted Ruby.

  The question was, would he get either of them?

  He knocked on her door, which she opened right away with a huge smile on her face, her arms reaching up and wrapping around his neck, then placing a kiss on his lips.

  “What do I owe that welcome to?” he asked.

  “Maybe I’ve missed you today.”

  “That’s a good answer.”

  He walked in and noticed she was in black leggings and a long sweater, socks on her feet. She looked cozy and comfortable. Soft and touchable. His hands were itching to remove what she had on and he had to tell himself to back the hell up.

  “And maybe I’ve got good news.”

  “What good news would that be? Are you making something with bacon for dinner?”

  She started to laugh. “Well then, I’ve got two pieces of good news.”

  “I was joking,” he said.

  “I wasn’t. Dinner does include bacon. And the other piece of news is you’ve got the house.”

  “What?” he asked, wanting to make sure he heard her correctly. “Already?”

  “I didn’t think we’d hear back from them today. Or if we did, they might counter. The realtor even told me that there were four other showings and she was waiting to see if they got any other offers, but the owners wanted to firm yours up as soon as they got it.”

  “So the realtor was being greedy?” he asked. “Are you like that?”

  “No,” she said. “I do what the clients want most times. I advise them if I don’t agree, but I don’t push. If they were my clients and they wanted to take it, I’d tell them to. I think it was a great offer. Is it possible someone could offer five thousand more? Sure, but they might have contingencies or other stipulations. And then you run the risk of losing the first offer when it might have been the best. Getting the most money isn’t always the best offer.”

  He was glad to hear her say that. That she wasn’t always out for the buck like so many people who lived off of commissions were.

  “Good. I’m glad. Excited and a little stunned. I spent the day doing research on things I want to do to the house without even knowing I was going to get it. Now I’ve got a good window of time to get things done before I have to be out of my apartment.”

  “Floors first,” she said. “If you are changing them.”

  “You know I am and that is exactly my thought. The carpets are going on the first and second floor and the wood floors will get refinished, if they can be.”

  “Keep your fingers crossed. Anyway, we need to set up inspections and appraisals this week. You should call your bank on Monday.”

  “I will. As for the inspection, where do I find someone for that?”

  “I’ve got a list of all sorts of people I use. We can call Clint if you want, or you can find your own.”

  He thought of Nathan and wondered if he should use him or not. “A coworker flips houses. Let me just give him a call tomorrow and find out if it’s something he can do, or if he has someone he uses.”

  “That’s fine. Your bank is going to want a report of that most likely, so you better check with them if they require the person to be a licensed inspector or not.”

  He didn’t think of any of that. “Okay. So I guess we get to celebrate tonight. I should take you out?”

  “No. I’m cooking. Nice fattening food. Fried chicken and bacon sandwiches with potato salad that I just finished making.”

  “That’s the perfect dinner to celebrate, if you ask me.”

  He loved that she wasn’t someone to pick at salads all the time.

  “And after dinner, maybe we can celebrate in another way.”

  Damn, was he going to get both things he wanted tonight? Must be his lucky day!

  14

  Strength In Us

  Ruby was glad to hear that Josh was excited about the house. That he was making plans before he even knew it’d be his.

  She’d offered him a beer while she finished up dinner and then poured herself a glass of wine. She
wasn’t one to drink often, but she didn’t mind a glass now and again.

  “This is great,” he said when she put the fried chicken breasts on toasted buns with bacon, lettuce, and tomato.

  “It’s a simple meal, but sometimes those are the best. Do you want barbeque sauce or mayo or something with it?”

  “Barbeque if you’ve got it,” he said so she pulled it out of the fridge and then put the bowl of potato salad on the table with a big serving spoon.

  “Help yourself.”

  The two of them started to eat in the quiet and instead of it being awkward it was actually peaceful.

  “So, I have to say I like that you aren’t afraid to eat.”

  She rolled her eyes. It was not the first time a man had made a comment about her appetite. “I don’t eat much during the day so dinner is about the only meal I usually get.”

  “Nothing wrong with that. I’m a big guy and can appreciate a meal like this more often than something lighter.”

  She debated telling him about her childhood. She’d always kept so much of that hidden, but he already knew more than most. “Food wasn’t always plentiful when I was growing up. We ate what was there and were happy for it. When I was on my own I couldn’t wait to eat what I wanted.”

  “How many kids were in your foster home?” he asked.

  “Which one? I’ve been in a lot. The last one I was in for two years. My last two years. Sheri and I and another girl shared a room. That girl rotated out twice while I was there. There were two younger boys in another room and a third boy filled a bed on and off.”

  “Six kids is a lot,” he said.

  “I’ve been in homes with more or less. There are rules and you follow them. I learned that was the way to go if I wanted to stay.”

  She’d never been a troublemaker. Not like so many others that she’d lived with. But she did happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time enough and that got her moved around.

  That and some homes were just rotten and when she had the guts to speak up, she’d get shuffled around. Either social services moved her because they believed her, or the family wanted her out because they thought she was causing problems.

  “I’m sorry about your childhood,” he said. “Do you mind me asking how you ended up in foster care?”

  “It’s not a big deal. I should say I don’t share my past often. At least with people I’ve only been on a few dates with. But it seems to me you had it a lot worse than I did.”

  “Hardly,” he said. “I had my grandparents. They were wonderful and gave me a nice stable home.”

  “That’s true. But you came from a loving home and lost that. I never experienced that a day in my life.”

  She might have been six when she was put into foster care, but she had plenty of memories of her mother and the men in and out of the picture. Drugs, alcohol, and prostitution. She didn’t know what it was back then, but even as a kid she knew it wasn’t good.

  “I’ve got memories,” he said. “I keep them with me to help get me through.”

  “And you use them to move forward. I use those memories to change.”

  “It seems to me you’ve made a great life for yourself.”

  “I’ve tried. And I know you want to ask again, so I’ll just tell you that my mother overdosed one night. Her john panicked and called the cops while he split and they found me in my room with the door shut and a blanket over myself to block out the noises of what was going on in the other room.”

  Loud music was always playing, trying to cover up the drinking and whoring, but sounds still go through. Laughing, giggling, sometimes yelling. She supposed she should be happy most weren’t aware she was locked in another room or they might come knocking.

  “And your father?” he asked.

  “No clue who it is. She probably didn’t know either. Most likely a man she was getting high with and didn’t think to use protection if she even had it on her. And this conversation is ruining what we are supposed to be celebrating.”

  “I just wanted to know more about you,” he said.

  “Well, know my past isn’t what my present is.”

  He pushed his finished plate back and stood up, pulling her up with him, his arms going around her body and pulling her close. “No. It’s not. That could be said about both of us.”

  “It could. You turned out pretty damn well for someone who lived through what you did.”

  “There is a strength in us that most don’t understand. Maybe only the two of us do or can.”

  She’d like to think that. That maybe that connection was what she’d felt all along with him.

  “Why don’t you show me some of your strength,” she said pulling his head down and laying her lips on his.

  That strong forceful kiss he’d given her on their first date was taking hold again and it was exactly what she needed. What she wanted.

  “Are you going to let me take you to your room?” he asked. “Or is this as far as I’m getting?”

  “Would you be mad if it was a far as you got?”

  “Mad? No. Disappointed? Sure.”

  “We wouldn’t want you disappointed then, would we?”

  She took his hand and pulled him down the hall to her single bedroom and opened the door, tugging him in and putting her hands on the hem of his shirt, bringing it over his head.

  Oh yeah, now that was what she was talking about.

  Big. Toned. Solid.

  And all hers for the moment. She planned on taking advantage of what was in front of her.

  “In a hurry?” he asked when she went for the button on his jeans.

  “Eager,” she said back and let them drop down around his ankles. There was a nice bulge in his boxer briefs that had her mouth just watering for more.

  “The same,” he said, reaching for her sweater and getting rid of it just as fast. Her leggings were harder, but he yanked them down with her underwear and then sat her on the bed while he removed the rest. Her bra didn’t have a chance at that point and went flying in the room with the rest of her clothes.

  “I’ve got a condom right in the side drawer that I’ll get while you take care of the rest of your clothing.”

  She climbed on the bed on her hands and knees, grabbed the condom out, put it on her pillow, and didn’t have a chance to do anything else before big hands gripped her waist and turned her on her back.

  His mouth went right in for the kill and latched onto her swollen nub. She all but shot off the bed at the sudden attack.

  Before she could make a sound, he had two fingers inside of her causing a groan to slip out of her lips.

  Her fists reached for the comforter and held on for dear life as he started to make a meal out of her.

  If she was trying to hold back she shouldn’t have bothered because he just went at it more and more until her explosion was so powerful she thought there were stars floating around the room.

  “Holy shit,” she said, gasping for breath.

  He laughed and reached up for the condom, slipping it on, and then plunged into her.

  Her nails went to his back, her hips lifted into his, and her teeth started to graze his shoulder as he withdrew and slid back in.

  She’d expected hard and fast, but he was going slow and steady. Setting a pace that made her wonder if he could go all night.

  She might be just fine with that with the way she was feeling.

  His large, firm, warm body on top of hers. His lips moving around her neck and to her ear, whispering, “Are you going to let me get you there again?”

  “Sweetie, I’m all yours for the night.”

  He let out what she thought was a laugh and then she held on for the ride.

  His speed only picked up slightly, but the pace remained steady. Her legs went up and around his hips, her ankles crossing while she tried to grind her swollen nub against him.

  “You sure know what you are doing,” she said, her breath catching. There was a building of sensations inside of her agai
n. Those stars she saw last time were ready to light up the room.

  “There is no good answer to that,” he said and this time his breathing seemed labored.

  “I’m almost there,” she said. “Make me fall. Make me feel it like I did moments ago.”

  His mouth crushed hers, his hips moving even faster, not steady in the least and when she shut her eyes, everything lit up.

  Not stars this time. A comet that flashed before her. Bright and powerful and letting her know that Josh Turner was going to turn her world upside down.

  15

  Making It My Own

  A little over a week later, Josh met Ruby at the house along with Clint who would be doing the inspection. Nathan would be stopping over to walk through too and give him an idea of the cost of everything that Josh wanted done.

  “This is a great location,” Clint said when he shook hands with Josh. “I’m going to walk through and test everything imaginable. I’m sure we’ll find little things. That always happens in a house like this. Ruby said there is a twenty-five-hundred-dollar minimum for anything that would allow either of you to renegotiate or back out.”

  “Yeah. Hopefully we don’t find anything, but since I plan on doing a lot of changes, most will probably be taken care of then. I’m more concerned about the major items even though most aren’t that old.”

  “Sounds to be an easy inspection then,” Clint said. “Ruby loves to give me business. She keeps me busy.”

  He watched as Clint sent a flirting smile Ruby’s way. She just laughed and then went right back to the tablet she had in her hand and continued to work. “Are you going to stay in the kitchen the whole time?” he asked her.

  “Yes. I don’t need to walk around. I’ll just be in the way. I’ve been through plenty of these though. Go on, he’ll show whatever he finds.”

  Josh walked away and went down to the basement with Clint while he started to look around the furnace. “I’ll check out the AC unit in the yard too though it looks like it’s covered for the winter so I can’t turn it on but Ruby said it’s only a year old.”