A Chance at Love (A Ferry Creek Novel): (a billionaire romance novel) (25 page)

“
I
’
ll hopefully go soon,
”
Sullivan said.
“
Bobby is still there, or at
least I assume he is.
”

The first property was fifteen
miles out of Ferry Creek. Sullivan had never been so comfortable in a car in
silence with someone before. The house was not comfortable at all. As Sullivan
crept up on the house he saw it was tilted.

“
Damn,
”
he said.

“
Wow,
”
Jess said.
“
That
’
s rough looking.
”

Two windows were broken. The
upstairs windows boarded up. The front and side yards were so overgrown that the
grass and weeds were bent over. An iron fence stood outside the property and
that, too, had seen much better days.

“
So
you buy this stuff?
”
Jess
asked.
“
And fix it?
”

“
Well,
this one I won
’
t touch,
”
Sullivan said.
“
The way the house is tilted, it
’
ll probably cost me a fortune to
mess around with the foundation. But the land may have value.
”
Sullivan looked at his phone.
He went to the second address.
“
Is
Johnstonville Drive around here?
”

“
Five
minutes away,
”
Jess said.

Sullivan took direction again and
began to drive.
“
You know
your way around outside Ferry Creek. Travel a lot?
”

“
Hardly,
”
Jess said.
“
I can
’
t remember the last time I was outside Ferry Creek.
”

“
Then
how do you know these roads and towns?
”

“
From
younger days,
”
Jess said.

Sullivan watched as she quickly
looked out the window. He had touched on a long lost subject. He wanted to know
more about her.

The next house was in better
condition than the first. It had a beautiful wrap around front porch. White
shudders hung on all the windows with only two missing. One of the two was in
the front yard. The house was abandoned, but it didn
’
t seem like it was for long. That would be
something to look into. Sullivan drove to two more houses and noticed they were
heading south on the outskirts of Ferry Creek.

“
Okay,
”
Sullivan said.
“
One more and then dinner.
”

“
Sounds
good,
”
Jess said.

Sullivan thought about skipping the
last house. He wanted to get Jess to a restaurant so all his focus could be on
her. But it was just one more.

“
Okay,
”
Sullivan said.
“
We
’
ve
got... Handers Port Road. Does that mean anything?
”

Jess looked at Sullivan as all
color fell from her face.
“
What
’
s the address?
”

Sullivan read off the numbers and
watched Jess
’
s mouth fall
open. Her face was pale white like she was gong to pass out.

“
Jess?
What
’
s wrong?
”

“
Uh,
nothing,
”
Jess said.
“
That... that house is ten
minutes from here. Just stay on this road until you see Handers Port.
”

Sullivan noted the way she said
Handers
Port
, like she knew the road. He drove but kept an eye close on Jess. She
looked out the window and didn
’
t
speak a word. Sullivan saw that Jess wasn
’
t
just upset about this address. She looked afraid. It made Sullivan drive a
little faster than he normally would have. When he got to Handers Port Road, he
stopped in the middle of the road and checked to make sure nobody was behind
him.

“
Jess,
”
he said.
“
If there
’
s something about this road or house...
”

“
Just
go,
”
Jess whispered.
“
Please, Sullivan.
”

Sullivan took the turn and looked
at the houses. He counted the addresses and noticed that the further down the
road he went the more the houses seemed to deteriorate. Then at a corner lot
Sullivan found the house. A one story brick ranch with a white screen  storm
door and a large bay window. A garage off the side of the house. The yard
neglected, like the other. A picket fence in need of repair and paint. Some of
the posts were cracked or even missing. A large antenna stood on the roof,
slightly bent. Overall, however, the property looked to be in decent condition.

“
This
is it,
”
Sullivan said.
“
Not too bad. I mean, I don
’
t like the surrounding houses
much either, but it
’
s a
nice little house.
”

“
A
nice little house,
”
Jess
said.

Sullivan saw her eyes. Wide and
glued to the house. She looked afraid and angry at the same time. Sullivan
couldn
’
t stop himself as he
reached across for Jess
’
s
hand. He touched her hand and she jumped. She looked at his hand and then to
him.

“
What
is it?
”
Sullivan whispered.
“
Let me help.
”

Jess shook her head.
“
Nothing. Just memories.
”

“
Of
what? This house? This area? Ferry Creek?
”

Jess blinked.
“
I
’
d
like to go to dinner now, Sullivan.
”

“
Okay,
”
Sullivan said.
“
We
’
re
out of here then. We
’
re
going to dinner.
”

Sullivan opened his fingers and
felt Jess do the same. He held her hand as he made a quick U-turn and drove
away from the house as fast a he could. Jess looked in the mirror the entire
time they drove down the street. Sullivan squeezed Jess
’
s hands and she squeezed right back.

When Sullivan saw a tear form in
the corner of Jess
’
s eyes,
his heart twisted. He liked Jess. He cared about her. And he swore to himself,
at dinner, he would find everything out about her... and then save her. Because
Jess didn
’
t deserve to feel
alone and lost.

___TEN___

Tyler circled the block three
times. He was supposed to be off duty, but it didn
’
t matter because he was the only real police
presence in Ferry Creek. Sure, he had bosses and those bosses had bosses, but
within the lines of Ferry Creek, Tyler was the one who took care of things. He
had a few part-time officers that worked the off shifts that gave Tyler a
break. They were young men looking for hours and experience to obtain a
full-time position somewhere else within the county department or those who had
served a twenty year career and just couldn
’
t
let the job go but didn
’
t
want a full-time schedule.

Two things ran through Tyler
’
s mind as he drove.

He thought about Darryl. Everything
that happened between them all those years ago kept replaying. When Darryl came
to Ferry Creek, Tyler didn
’
t
think much of it. They saw each other. They shook hands. That was it. There was
no big smiles and reliving the past like some did when they left and came back.
Tyler respected Darryl and his attitude. He was thankful that Darryl ended up
as a bad ass motorcycle kind of man instead of hooked on drugs or worse yet,
dead. Tyler remembered when Darryl left Ferry Creek with his father. He
remembered sitting in his room as a teenager, shaking with fear because he
thought the next time he heard anything about Darryl, it would be that Darryl
was dead. Maybe by his own accord or maybe by the violent actions of his
father.

That was the hardest part for
Tyler. His life had been pretty normal. His parents were still together. His
father worked, his mother worked, they saved money, and when they felt the time
was right, they moved to Florida. It was a simple life. Sure, he got into
trouble as a teenager, most of it guided by the persuassive words of Darryl,
always wanting to get back at the world for giving him such a shitty deal.
Tyler
’
s parents never liked
Darryl but they tolerated him. Then once Darryl
’
s
mother was dead and Darryl was going to be leaving Ferry Creek, Tyler sensed
relief from his parents. It was as if they were happy Tyler
’
s best friend was leaving town.
And that
’
s exactly what it
was. Darryl begged to live with Tyler and the answer was always a resounding
no
.
It was something Tyler never understood... even to this day.

They only thing Tyler could do now
was try to be there for Darryl in whatever state of hell he lived in. Darryl
had every right to feel how he feels, but he didn
’
t
have the right to bring anyone in Ferry Creek down with him. That
’
s what gave the impression of
bad
blood
between he and Darryl. Jess and Darryl bothered him not because of
jealousy but because he didn
’
t
want to see Jess get hurt. Which she did. Again and again. Feelings for Jess
never went beyond a strong friendship, even when Tyler maybe wanted more.

He finally realized that when he
went to Jess
’
s house to
check on her and saw Katey. Looking at her was all he needed to know that he
and Jess would never happen.

Tyler parked his cruiser outside
Jess
’
s house. He looked
around, checking for signs of Darryl. He wanted to believe that Darryl would
figure things out for himself - or maybe just get the hell out of Ferry Creek
for good - but he still needed to keep an eye out, just in case. There was a
big difference between Darryl sober and Darryl drinking. One had a small sense
of reality and the other didn
’
t.

Tyler walked up to the house,
knowing Jess wasn
’
t home.
Her car was at the diner and Sullivan
’
s
car wasn
’
t. It was pretty
easy to assume that Jess and Sullivan were somewhere together. He worried how
that would end when Sullivan would need to go back to Virginia.

Knowing that Jess wasn
’
t home meant Katey should be
there.

Tyler knocked on the door and had
no idea what he was actually doing there.

The door opened a sliver and Tyler
smiled.
“
It
’
s just me. It
’
s Tyler.
”

“
Officer,
”
Katey said and opened the door
the rest of the way.

“
Officer?
No. Don
’
t call me that.
”

“
You
’
re all dressed up,
”
Katey said.

Tyler put his hands to his belt. He
was nervous. He could feel the color in his face changing. He stood taller than
Katey yet her eyes screamed
wild
and it got to Tyler.

“
Everything
okay?
”
Katey asked.
“
Jess isn
’
t home. She
’
s
out with Sullivan. They went to look at properties.
”

“
Properties?
”
Tyler asked.

“
Maybe
he
’
s going to stay,
”
Katey said.
“
Or maybe it was just a plot to
get Jess out of the house and on a date.
”

“
Smart
man,
”
Tyler said.
“
Maybe I need a cheap move like
that.
”

“
Well,
you do drive a cop car,
”
Katey said.

“
Does
that mean you want me to arrest you?
”

“
Did
I do something bad?
”

Tyler laughed. Katey was fast and
beautiful.

“
I
just wanted to check on things again,
”
Tyler said.
“
I hope
whatever anyone saw with Darryl didn
’
t
give the wrong impression of him. He
’
s
not that bad of a guy. Just going through a rough patch in life.
”

“
Trust
me, I know,
”
Katey said.

She held up her left hand. There
was nothing there. But Tyler understood it had meaning.

“
I
’
m sorry about that,
”
Tyler said.

“
I
’
m not,
”
Katey said.
“
Not
anymore.
”

“
Well,
I still am. Hard to go through, I
’
m
sure.
”
Tyler felt his mouth
running dry. The way Katey stared at him was like she could overpower him.
“
I hope I didn
’
t bother you or startle you.
”

“
Not
at all,
”
Katey said.
“
Just sitting and writing.
”

“
A
writer, that
’
s right. Big
time author in a small town.
”

“
Has
a good feel to it, doesn
’
t
it?
”

“
It
does. Writing anything good?
”

“
Well,
everything I write is good,
”
Katey said.
“
But it
’
s up to my agent, editor, and
publisher to decide if it
’
s
really good. Want to come in for a drink?
”

Tyler looked down and mentally
cursed himself. He should have gone home and changed. He should have had his
own vehicle to drive. Better yet... he shouldn
’
t
have be interested in a recently divorced woman. The ink on her divorce papers
probably wasn
’
t even dry
yet and here he was, ready to accept an offer from Katey to go into Jess
’
s house and have a drink.

“
No,
I better not,
”
Tyler sighed.
“
Thank you for the offer.
”

Katey smiled.
“
I wasn
’
t offering alcohol, Tyler. A glass of water. Can of
soda. Five minute conversation.
”

“
I
appreciate that, Katey,
”
Tyler said.
“
Did Jess give
you my phone number? I mean, in case something happens and you need something?
”

“
She
did,
”
Katey said.
“
I feel all protected now.
”

“
Good.
I
’
m glad. If anything
happens...
”

“
I
know the drill,
”
Katey
said.

“
Have
a good evening,
”
Tyler
said.

He turned and Katey closed the
door. When she did, he closed his eyes and let out a breath. His heart was
racing. But the last thing Tyler needed was a recently divorced woman. What
good could come of that?

Jess had tried her hardest to shove
everything behind her. Sitting across from Sullivan at Rud
’
s Steakhouse was like a dream
for her. She didn
’
t want to
ruin the moment by falling back into the past. Sullivan didn
’
t know where he was taking Jess
when he went to look at those properties, so it wasn
’
t his fault at all.

“
I
’
m glad you came with me today,
”
Sullivan said.
“
Something tells me my GPS would
’
ve had a hard time finding a
couple of those houses.
”

“
Not
a problem,
”
Jess said.
“
Can I ask why you were looking
at those houses?
”

“
I
asked my top associate to find properties for me down here,
”
Sullivan said.
“
There
’
s a whole bunch more I could go look at, too. Some
commercial buildings and lots.
”

“
But
why? Are you... are you staying here?
”

Sullivan shrugged his shoulders.
“
I
’
m
thinking about it. I mean, I have to go to the hospital. I have to help when...
you know, when the time comes...
”

Jess nodded in amazement. Sullivan
was hooked. Ferry Creek had wrapped its hands around him.

“
I
don
’
t want to run out on
anyone,
”
Sullivan said.
“
I don
’
t know what Bobby is going to need from me when
everything happens. I don
’
t
know what the financial situation is like. If there
’
s a will. If there are any assets. And by all
means, I
’
m not saying I
’
m going to want anything. No.
Not at all. I just want to be here so there
’
s
no problems. You know?
”

“
That
’
s pretty amazing, Sullivan,
”
Jess said.

“
Well,
I admit, I do have some help.
”

“
Help?
Where?
”

Sullivan smiled.
“
You, Jess. I
’
m looking at you and I have no
urge to care about anything outside of this town.
”

Jess looked down at her appetizer.
Sullivan was almost too real for her. He was in her face, he was honest, and he
didn
’
t back down. Not to
mention, he seemed like such a good guy.

“
Can
I tell you about that house?
”
Jess asked.

“
I
’
d love that,
”
Sullivan said.
“
I hope you know you can trust
me, Jess.
”

“
That
’
s a hard thing for me,
”
Jess said.
“
I think the only person I ever
really trusted in my life was Bob. He took care of me. He always kept his word.
But even now, with him admitting to having you for a son, it
’
s hard to imagine...
”

“
I
’
m sure we
’
ll all get answers soon,
”
Sullivan said.
“
I
’
m not worried about it right
now. I have more important things to focus on right now.
”

“
Those
properties?
”

“
You,
Jess. You.
”

Their waitress came just in time to
break up the intense moment between them. She didn
’
t mind it one bit because she wasn
’
t sure how she should feel in
that moment. Now that there was a huge possibility Sullivan would be staying,
what did that mean? Jess would be a complete liar if she denied that the
thought of sleeping with Sullivan had crossed her mind. Why wouldn
’
t it? What woman wouldn
’
t look at Sullivan Chasen and
have that image in their mind? He was tall, strong, sexy, and rich. He was most
women
’
s fantasy.

But if Sullivan stayed in Ferry
Creek for good...

“
Enjoy,
”
the waitress said.

“
Thank
you,
”
Sullivan said.

Jess made her standard choice of
chicken. Even at a steakhouse, she ordered chicken. She caught herself looking
at the price of food until Sullivan ended up closing her menu and telling her
to just order. Jess wasn
’
t
used to being taken care of.