The fault of her and Coop’s declining friendship wasn’t his alone.
****
“I said no!” Coop stood beside the round table in his office, glaring at his marketing team. “No more probing the Nashville area. If Mr. Haynes wants to open a store then let him come to us.”
Almost as if the angelfish stood at attention on a slant, they eyed him. He shouldn’t have yelled.
“But, sir,” Yaci said from a chair off to the side. She usually hung close in case anyone needed anything or to fill in information.
“Find another ‘must-have’ spot. Gaining what we want at the expense of others is not who I am.” He pinched his lips to stop from confiding too much to his associates. He shouldn’t have let the acquisition go this far. If Lyse ever found out…he ended his train of thought. She would find out because he planned to come clean. She would learn how he manipulated her. By him doing so, she was in his life. Something he wanted down to his core. For that, he would never apologize.
“Lyse Haynes said she liked the idea,” Yaci said, breaking into his thoughts. “She loves your store and the ice cream.”
Someone overheard his and Lyse’s conversation on the sidewalk the other day. He wished people didn’t run their mouths so much in this town. Everyone knowing everything about each other’s business grated on his nerves.
“One last time, and I’m not repeating myself again. No!” He grabbed his papers from the table, stuffed them in a folder, and into his briefcase. “I have a reunion. Have a good evening,” he said and exited the room before anyone had a chance to respond. He jogged down the stairs, and peeked into the ice cream shop.
Cass rung up costumers as two other employees scooped ice cream. Good, everything was under control. He exited the rear entrance to the parking lot and climbed into his Lexus.
Hot and bothered from the discussion over the Haynes’ space and more hot and bothered because of the woman who controlled it, he wanted to spit nails. It’d been two days since they’d spoken. She didn’t knock on his door and didn’t stop by the ice cream shop. She didn’t do anything so they could see one another and talk.
He started the car and pulled out into traffic on Heart Avenue.
Working across the street from the B&B, he kept one eye on the window and one on the road. Okay, maybe both eyes stayed glued to the window waiting for her to walk out. In passing, he’d asked Felicia if Lyse planned to check out early. Learning she hadn’t was a relief, but he still didn’t know if she would come to the reunion.
Traffic crawled. At this rate, he would be lucky if he got there on time. The committee probably had everything under wraps anyway. After the initial meetings, they had done most of the work and only contacted him if they needed funds or if any problems arose.
A couple minutes’ ride turned into a half hour by the time he reached the school. He grabbed a few boxes out of the backseat, took them inside, and returned for his suit.
Chapter Four
All my stories are like myths, legends .
~Rill Babcock
Lyse parked her car in Heather Ridge B&B parking lot. It took her forever to get from one end of town to the next. She hurried inside. With any luck, she could catch Coop before he left, maybe they could ride together. She jogged up the stairs and knocked on his door. No answer. She raced downstairs, skimmed the main living area. No one. The place was empty. Usually, a person or two reclined on the couches watching television or reading a book.
Laughter erupted from the kitchen.
“Lyse?” Felicia’s voice drifted from beyond the swinging door.
She stopped short.
“Yes,” said a woman Lyse didn’t recognize. “Your brother tricked her into coming to the reunion by putting a FIND ME heart in her box. Now, he’s used his sex appeal to tempt her out of the prime real estate space her family owns in Nashville.”
All the air wheezed out of her lungs.
“Marketing has
****
“I said no!” Coop stood beside the round table in his office, glaring at his marketing team. “No more probing the Nashville area. If Mr. Haynes wants to open a store then let him come to us.”
Almost as if the angelfish stood at attention on a slant, they eyed him. He shouldn’t have yelled.
“But, sir,” Yaci said from a chair off to the side. She usually hung close in case anyone needed anything or to fill in information.
“Find another ‘must-have’ spot. Gaining what we want at the expense of others is not who I am.” He pinched his lips to stop from confiding too much to his associates. He shouldn’t have let the acquisition go this far. If Lyse ever found out…he ended his train of thought. She would find out because he planned to come clean. She would learn how he manipulated her. By him doing so, she was in his life. Something he wanted down to his core. For that, he would never apologize.
“Lyse Haynes said she liked the idea,” Yaci said, breaking into his thoughts. “She loves your store and the ice cream.”
Someone overheard his and Lyse’s conversation on the sidewalk the other day. He wished people didn’t run their mouths so much in this town. Everyone knowing everything about each other’s business grated on his nerves.
“One last time, and I’m not repeating myself again. No!” He grabbed his papers from the table, stuffed them in a folder, and into his briefcase. “I have a reunion. Have a good evening,” he said and exited the room before anyone had a chance to respond. He jogged down the stairs, and peeked into the ice cream shop.
Cass rung up costumers as two other employees scooped ice cream. Good, everything was under control. He exited the rear entrance to the parking lot and climbed into his Lexus.
Hot and bothered from the discussion over the Haynes’ space and more hot and bothered because of the woman who controlled it, he wanted to spit nails. It’d been two days since they’d spoken. She didn’t knock on his door and didn’t stop by the ice cream shop. She didn’t do anything so they could see one another and talk.
He started the car and pulled out into traffic on Heart Avenue.
Working across the street from the B&B, he kept one eye on the window and one on the road. Okay, maybe both eyes stayed glued to the window waiting for her to walk out. In passing, he’d asked Felicia if Lyse planned to check out early. Learning she hadn’t was a relief, but he still didn’t know if she would come to the reunion.
Traffic crawled. At this rate, he would be lucky if he got there on time. The committee probably had everything under wraps anyway. After the initial meetings, they had done most of the work and only contacted him if they needed funds or if any problems arose.
A couple minutes’ ride turned into a half hour by the time he reached the school. He grabbed a few boxes out of the backseat, took them inside, and returned for his suit.
Chapter Four
All my stories are like myths, legends .
~Rill Babcock
Lyse parked her car in Heather Ridge B&B parking lot. It took her forever to get from one end of town to the next. She hurried inside. With any luck, she could catch Coop before he left, maybe they could ride together. She jogged up the stairs and knocked on his door. No answer. She raced downstairs, skimmed the main living area. No one. The place was empty. Usually, a person or two reclined on the couches watching television or reading a book.
Laughter erupted from the kitchen.
“Lyse?” Felicia’s voice drifted from beyond the swinging door.
She stopped short.
“Yes,” said a woman Lyse didn’t recognize. “Your brother tricked her into coming to the reunion by putting a FIND ME heart in her box. Now, he’s used his sex appeal to tempt her out of the prime real estate space her family owns in Nashville.”
All the air wheezed out of her lungs.
“Marketing has
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