by Tia Siren
Chapter 4
Brock
I could literally feel her presence in the air. I knew she’d gotten into town yesterday, but I hadn’t seen or heard from her yet. I wasn’t sure what to think about that. Was it a good thing or a bad thing? Did she know I was the one who wanted to buy the farm? Did she care?
Maybe life in New York was so good for her that she didn’t care that the family farm was going to be gone. What if she only came to town to pack up the last of the things she’d left behind? I didn’t want to think about what it meant if she wasn’t bothered by the fact that I was the one who was going to buy the farm and sell it so a developer could put up condos. If it didn’t bother her in the least, she was not the woman I thought she was.
Hell, I already knew that. She proved that to me years ago when she packed up and left without so much as a fuck off or go to hell.
Maybe she didn’t know. That would explain why I hadn’t seen or heard from her. She had to know who I was now. There is no way she could have gotten through town without seeing my face. Even I got tired of seeing my face plastered all over town. It was a marketing tactic. When people wanted to buy or sell real estate, I was going to be the first person they thought of. How could they not?
“Brock! Line one,” Helen shouted from the other room.
I rolled my eyes. The woman took full advantage of our laid-back office setting. It did seem a little silly to use the intercom system when she was twenty feet away and we were alone, but still. I liked the professionalism of the intercom.
I picked up my phone. “This is Brock Trenton.”
It was the developer. He approved of my plans and appreciated all the leg work. He was excited to move forward. There was more work to be done, but if I could get the land, he was willing to develop it. This would be my first big land deal. I could almost taste the money. I imagined all the things I could buy.
My giddiness over the deal was short-lived, as I heard the bell on the front door to the office tinkle. I popped my head around the open door to see who it was and froze.
It was her.
I sat back, hoping she hadn’t seen me. I instantly smoothed my hair back and straightened my shirt. I hadn’t worn a tie today. It was too damn hot. I regretted that choice now. I wanted to show to her how successful I was. A power suit was one way to do that.
“Hi,” Helen said to her. “Ma’am, please, you can’t—”
She could and she did.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she shouted as she strolled through my open office door.
It took me about half a second to regain my composure. God, she was stunning. I remembered she was pretty, but she had grown into a beautiful woman. Her blond hair was cut in a youthful, slightly rebellious style, short in the back and a bit longer in the front. There was a streak of pink down one side. She was wearing a pair of tiny cut-off shorts and a T-shirt that hugged her figure. She was hot. Damn. Now I remembered why I had fallen head over heels for her all those years ago.
I stood and walked around my desk, extending my hand. “Good to see you, Ashley.”
She looked at my hand as if it were a poisonous snake. I pulled it back, not offended in the least. I was actually thrilled to see her this mad. My plan was working.
“How dare you!” she seethed. “How could you be such a ruthless prick? Are you seriously so desperate that you would steal a man’s home? Not just any man, but a man who has cancer! A man who took you in and did so much for you! You’re a pig, Brock Trenton! A vile, nasty pig!”
I refused to let her see how much guilt she made me feel. No way. I would not feel guilty. I was doing Tanner Parks a favor. If I didn’t buy it, the bank would foreclose, ruining his credit and likely causing him to have even more debt.
“Tell me how you really feel, Ashley,” I said with a menacing grin.
I’d been waiting for this moment for six long years, and I wanted to enjoy every bit of it. I hoped she was furious. I hoped she cried. I wanted her to long for what she couldn’t have.
“Are you seriously that hung up on the past that you would go after my dad to get your revenge?”
I smiled, not a nice smile, but a smile laced with malice. “It’s just business.”
She shook her head. “You are not the man I thought you were.”
“Really? That’s a shock since you obviously don’t know me at all.”
Her face was pink with heat and anger. She stepped close to me, her eyes glowering. “You are an arrogant man. Your arrogance will be your downfall,” she said, slamming her tiny finger into my chest.
I didn’t respond. I stood there, staring down at her, my face devoid of emotion. I would not let her get a rise out of me. Not anymore. Never again.
“A real man would have a sense of honor and respect for people who were kind to him, people he’s known his entire life, people who have never done him wrong. A real man would never sacrifice an innocent person for his own need for revenge.”
The last bit made her pause and take a step back. I raised an eyebrow. We both knew that was bullshit. She had done me a serious wrong and, by extension, her family.
“I don’t know how you can preach to me about honor and respect. You certainly don’t possess those qualities. I don’t remember anyone doing you any wrong, but I guess you are above the rest of us measly peasants here in West Virginia. You’re someone special because you live in the city.”
Her eyes widened in shock. “You’re a despicable human.”
I shrugged. “I might be, but don’t climb up on your high horse. You are right down here in the mud with me.”
She was shaking her head. “I would never do something so callous.”
I cocked my head to the side and looked at her. “Really? Are you sure about that?”
“Oh my God, get over it! We were kids! What I did doesn’t give you the right to go after my father!” She looked at me, her brown eyes a little softer than they had been. “Brock, you can’t do this to him because of what I did to you.”
I fought back the urge to shout at her. “Ashley, this may be hard for you to comprehend, so I’m going to speak real slowly. This. Has. Nothing. To. Do. With. You. Get over yourself.”
Her eyes were practically shooting arrows at me. “Bullshit! It does too. You’re a coward, Brock, a selfish, pompous little baby who didn’t get what he wanted six years ago so now you are throwing a fit. God, I can’t believe I ever thought I wanted to marry you!”
The words stung. It felt like I’d been kicked in the gut. No way would I let her see how she could get to me. I would show no weakness.
I took a deep breath and walked back to sit at my desk. “Ashley, I have a full day, and while I really enjoyed this little reunion, I need to get back to work. I have properties to snatch up. I wouldn’t want to let anyone who thinks I might be a humble, honorable man down.”
Her hands went to her hips, and she glared down at me at my desk. “I won’t let you do this,” she said in a low voice.
I looked up at her. “If you have any questions or concerns, I retain counsel to deal with those matters. I’m simply the face of the operation.”
She clenched her jaw before raising her chin in the air. “This isn’t over, Brock, not even close. If you want a fight, you’ll get a fight.”
I laughed. “I want nothing from you, Ashley, except your absence. That’s something you’re real good at doing. You can see yourself out. Door’s that way. You won’t even need to use the window to run away from me this time.”
“Wow, you really hold on to the past, don’t you?” she said in a quiet voice before spinning on her heel and stomping out.
Upon hearing the tinkle of the bells on the door, I knew she had left the office. I breathed a sigh of relief. That had been intense. Seeing her had stirred up all those memories and feelings I had pushed away a long time ago. She was a lot like I remembered, but she had changed a bit as well. I knew she would be fiery, always had been, but she seemed m
ore calculating. I was actually a little intimidated by her. I would have to fight extra hard to push this deal through before she could throw a wrench into my plans. I was sick of that woman ruining my plans for the future.
“You okay?” Helen asked, standing in my doorway.
I put on a fake smile and nodded. “Yep. Just some old business.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m not that much older than you, Brock. I know what happened between you and Ashley. Are you sure you aren’t pushing this deal so hard because you want to get some kind of revenge for what she did?”
“Helen, I am a professional. This is my business. If I were to shy away from property connected to anyone from my past, I would go bankrupt. This is a small town. I have had both good and bad dealings with everyone at some point in my life.”
She nodded her head, but I knew she didn’t believe me. “Okay then. I’ll be at my desk if you need me.”
“Helen?”
“Yes?”
“Will you shut my door? I need to make a phone call.”
She did as I asked, and once she had gone, I let out a long breath of air. I didn’t need to call anyone. I just needed a minute to get my shit together. That woman had a way of making me crazy—still!
I would not let her win. I would definitely not allow her to get under my skin. There was no way she could hurt me if I managed to stay indifferent toward her. I just hoped I had the strength to ignore the stirring of passion she always managed to incite within me.
Chapter 5
Ashley
I hated him, absolutely fucking hated him. He was an arrogant, conceited asshole who was drop dead gorgeous. I hated that I found him so damn attractive. Years of fantasizing about him in my bed came rushing back. He was the one man who popped into my head every time I went to bed with someone. There had only been a couple of men with whom I’d gotten close enough to have sex, but they had never measured up. None of them had been Brock.
I walked out of his office, looked up and down the street, and decided a piece of pie was what I needed. Chocolate cream pie. It would help settle my nerves, I hoped. Brock had looked so, so, manly, like a real man. The last time I had seen him, he had been a young man, barely old enough to drink. Now he was all hard lines and his chest was much broader than I remembered. I didn’t think people could grow after the age of twenty-two, but he had. I’d felt so small standing in front of him, poking my finger into his chest. I knew it had been ridiculous, but in the moment, I’d felt it was better than wrapping my hands around his neck. As if they would even be able to close around his neck. I had seen the muscles on either side and then the vein popping out that had always been the giveaway when he was angry. At least that was still the same.
I walked into the diner, plopped down in a booth close to the door, and looked around the place. It had been a favorite hangout for the teens back in my day, but that didn’t seem to be the case today. I looked to my left and groaned.
Shit!
My sister held up a finger and told the customer she was waiting on to sit tight for a minute.
“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be off saving the day or ruining someone’s life?”
“Knock it off, Anna. Get someone else to wait on me. I don’t trust you not to spit in my food.”
“Ha! As if I would ever wait on you. Everyone else bows down the great Ashley, but I do not,” she spat at me before turning to call the other waitress over. “Donna, can you please deal with this customer?”
Donna, who was filling salt shakers, looked up, looked at me, then Anna, and rolled her eyes. “Yeah. I’ll be right there.”
The woman had clearly been a two-pack-a-day smoker for some time judging by her gravelly voice.
Donna made her way over in no big hurry and took my order for coffee and pie. I didn’t get the impression there was any love lost between Donna and my sister, so I wasn’t too worried she would take up the crusade against me and sully my order in some spiteful way.
I stared out the window, looking at the various businesses and watching people walk by. A lot had changed, but the feel of the town was the same. The Starbucks on the corner had been a surprise, but there were still plenty of mom-and-pop joints up and down the road.
A clatter on the table caused me to jerk and turn my gaze back to the restaurant.
“Here’s your damn pie,” Anna sneered, dropping the plate on the table and slamming down a cup before filling it with coffee from the pot she was carrying.
I guess I should have felt lucky she didn’t pour the hot coffee over my head. Small miracles I supposed.
“Where’s your kid?”
I glared up at her. “My son, Jasper, is at home with Dad.”
Her eyes bulged out. “What! You left your kid at home with our sick dad? You get that he has cancer, right? Like, he isn’t well?”
I rolled my eyes. “Uh, duh, yeah. I get it. Jasper isn’t difficult to watch. Dad wanted him to stay. He was feeling good today.”
“Whatever. You are such a spoiled little bitch, always expecting everyone to jump when you say.”
I couldn’t take her anymore. She was toxic.
I reached into my purse, pulled out a ten, and left it on the table. “Keep the fucking change, Anna.”
I walked out of the diner and headed for my rental car. I needed to get out of this town. It was not good for my health. I was going to have high blood pressure by the time this was all settled.
The drive out to the farm was nice. I was glad I was alone. I cranked up the radio and listened to the latest song from Carrie Underwood. The woman was small town but powerful. I admired her. When I pulled up in front of the house, I saw my dad sitting on the porch in his favorite rocking chair. Jasper was in the yard close to the steps, digging in the dirt. The boy loved dirt.
“Hey, guys!” I said, feeling much happier than I had a short thirty minutes ago.
“Hi, Mom! I’ve been taking care of Grandpa and now he is going to take care of me,” Jasper said, standing and rubbing his dirty hands down his shirt.
I groaned. The kid had a way of staining clothes beyond what any laundry detergent could possibly remove.
“Thank you,” I said, hugging him before making my way up to the porch. “How was he?” I asked.
My dad smiled and shook his head. “You’ve done a real good job with that boy, Ash. Really. I am amazed at how smart he is. And caring. He is far wiser than his cousins, but don’t tell Leslie or Hank I said that.”
I laughed. “Your secret is safe with me, Dad.”
Jasper went back to digging in the dirt. His little box of special rocks sat off to the side. I smiled while watching him dig with an old garden tool. He was really in his element.
“So, how’s the farm business been going?”
He shrugged. “Last year was great. This year I just don’t know. I haven’t been out there to check the fields. I had a hired hand help get the seeds in the ground, but it’s been sorely neglected since.”
“I’m sorry, Dad. I’ll take a look out there today. How’ve you been feeling?”
“It comes and goes. The first round was worse, I think because I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t feel sick so I kept up with my chores. Toward the end of the round, I wasn’t doing well at all. I just overdid it. I’ve been a little smarter this time around,” he said with a grin. “I’ve got all my kids around to do the heavy lifting, and I’m letting them do it.”
“We are all here for you. I’m here to help, too.”
“Oh, Ash, I wish you didn’t have to pick up and come running back here. Losing the farm wasn’t my plan, but if it happens, it won’t be the end of the world,” he said in a soft voice.
“Dad,” I said, not willing to accept his defeat, “we can fight this. We’ll figure out a way to keep the farm. You’ll recover from the cancer and life will go back to normal.”
He laughed. “Normal for you. We don’t need this big ol’ farm anymore. I’m getting old, Ashley. I do
n’t need to spend my days planting and harvesting, worrying about how much rain we get. It’s time to retire and enjoy my remaining years. I want to have free time to visit you and spend time with all my grandkids.”
“But, Dad, this is our home,” I argued.
He shook his head. “It hasn’t been a home in a long time. Hank and Leslie have their own homes and families. You live in New York, and I expect with your rising-star status, you’ll buy your own home real soon.”
“Dad, this is your home,” I stressed.
“I don’t need a house this big. It’s just more work for me.”
“Anna still lives here, doesn’t she? Make her help out.”
“Anna,” he shook his head. “Well, Anna’s new boyfriend will want her to move in with him now that she’s pregnant.”
“What!?” I blurted out. I’d had no idea she was pregnant. That explained the increase in hostility. She had been extra bitchy since I’d been home. Maybe she was pissed she was pregnant. She was twenty-seven though. If she didn’t want to be pregnant, she should know how to prevent it by now.
“Yep. She’s only a couple months along, but I suspect she’ll be moving in with that boy real soon.”
He didn’t look pleased about Anna’s new boyfriend, but with three daughters, my dad had been through a lot of boyfriends. He always told us he didn’t bother getting to know them all that well because we would end up dumping them anyway. He was usually right. Despite his automatic disapproval of the boys my sisters and I brought home, he was always polite. He was gruff and tough, but never overly rude.
“I can’t believe she’s pregnant,” I said in disbelief.
He laughed. “I would think you’d understand how that all works.”
I rolled my eyes. “I meant I’m surprised she is. She has never struck me as the maternal kind.”
“No one is until it happens.”
I smiled. He was right—again. I had certainly not been the maternal kind, but the moment Jasper was in my arms, I’d known I was meant to be his mom. That maternal instinct had kicked in and, despite being all alone, far away from my family, I had figured it out.
