Wilde Edge (4 page)

What the hell had Greg told these
people? “I’m his
ex
-wife. We’ve been
divorced for over two years. This business belonged to my father and I
inherited it when he died, which was after the divorce papers were signed.”
Greg had gone ashen, and when the larger of the two men turned to glower at him
he quailed and then started stammering. “W-we’re talking about reconciling, so
it’s not the way it sounds…”

“Like hell we are!” Anger gave her
the boost she needed to raise her voice and make her feelings clear. It felt
good.
Really good.

“I see.” The slimmer one spoke
again, turning an icy gaze to Greg. “I think we’ll conduct the rest of this
conversation without you, Sparks. You can wait for us outside.”

 
Her ex nodded once and left without another
word, though he did shoot a vicious look at Jo. His expression was full of rage
and hate, and she was thankful there were witnesses present. Greg was too canny
to lost control when there were others around to see it. He was only dangerous
when he got her alone, and she was never going to let that happen again.

Once he was gone, both men turned
their attention back to Jo, and she had a sinking feeling this was far from
over. “We’d like very much to purchase this location from you, Ms.––uh, I’m
sorry, I had assumed your last name was Sparks.”

“It’s Miller.”

“Thank you. As you can imagine, Ms.
Miller, we’re very disappointed to realize how badly we have been misled. My
name is Sims.” He produced a business card from his pocket, wrote something on
the back and then offered it to her. When she made no move toward them, his
brows twitched into a brief frown and he set the card down on a nearby shelf.
“Let me be clear. My partner and I were led to believe that we would be
purchasing this site. We have already invested in neighboring parcels of land,
and this parcel is required to finalize a larger deal. We are very motivated to
complete this sale.”

“While I’m sorry to disappoint you,
I can tell you my answer is not going to change. I have a strong, sentimental
attachment to this place, as well as an obligation to my staff to continue to
provide them with a paycheck.” She lifted her hands to encompass the building
they were standing in, as well as the four mechanics currently standing within
earshot. They had been with the garage for years, and were more like family
than any blood relation she had left on the planet.

The two men made eye contact and
then Sims spoke again. “I took the liberty of writing an amount on the back of
my card. I think it’s a more than fair offer.” He nodded once and then
departed. Not long after, she could hear angry voices in the parking lot, cut
off by the slamming of a car door.

The bastard had done it to her
again. Every time she thought she was free of him, he found some new way to try
and drag her back into his life. She walked over to the shelf where Sims had
left his card and picked it up. Without even looking at the back, she tore it
into pieces, letting the scraps tumble out of her hand to the floor.

She’d sweep it up later, with the
rest of the garbage.

 
“They all got into a silver Lincoln town car
with tinted windows. They must’ve had a driver too since they all climbed into
the back,” Jack reported from the far side of the garage.

“If you see them again, tell me
right away,” Jo said firmly. “I’m not selling, but I’m not an idiot. I don’t
think they’re going to just go away.”

“Men like that rarely do. You’d
have made your dad proud today, sending them off that way and standing up to
that asshole you married.”

“If he comes back again…” she
sighed and didn’t finish the sentence. If he came back again, she was going to
have to go renew the Order of Protection she’d let lapse. It wasn’t perfect
protection, but it was better than nothing.

Tom just nodded in silent
understanding. “All right, back to work. We’ve got shit to do before we close
up shop.” He shooed the others back to their cars and then stepped up to Jo’s
side. “And I’ve been told that I’m to see to it the boss lady gets out of here
on time. Something about a dinner date?”

“Who told you that?” she asked in a
hushed whisper.

“Nick’s brother, the one who was in
here earlier. He asked me to make sure you got out of here on time. He didn’t
want you to be rushed getting ready.”

“That cocky son of a––”

“Yep, he was that. Better not keep
him waiting. In fact, why don’t you head out now? I’ll close up tonight.”

“Is that your way of saying you
approve of him?”

“Joe asked me to look out for you,
and that’s what I’m doing. There’s more to life than working. If you want me to
approve of him, then come back here tomorrow with a smile on your face. That
would be a good start.”

 
“It’s just dinner, Tom. He’s looking for a
place to live, and I’m considering renting the lower suite to him. Dinner is
probably his way of trying to get me to lower the rent.”

Tom just rolled his eyes and
pointed back toward her office. “Get your things and go, girl. You’re
officially off the clock.”

“You’d think you ran this place the
way
you
boss me around,” she grumbled, already
moving. She wouldn’t mind having a few extra minutes to clean up and get ready
before seeing Tag again. Maybe it was a real date, and maybe it wasn’t, but she’d
feel better after a shower and a change of clothes. She might not be able to
shed twenty pounds before dinner, but she could at least ditch the
grease-stained jeans and baggy shirt for something a little more flattering.
Just in case this actually
was
a real
date.

Her heart beat a little faster at
the possibility.

Chapter Three

Tag knew he’d rent the suite the
moment he stepped inside. Hell, he would’ve rented it no matter what the
condition, so long as he could afford it. He was a man with limited time and
fewer options. As it turned out, the place was perfect.

Just like his soon-to-be landlord.

Jolena
was waiting on the front stairs when he’d walked up, looking very different
from the woman he’d met that afternoon. Her dark red curls still tumbled around
her face, but she’d changed into a cream-colored blouse that showed just enough
of her cleavage to make him want to see more, and her jeans and steel-toed
boots had been exchanged for a pair of black slacks and high-heeled shoes that
made her stand a few inches taller.

She seemed to be pleased to see
him, but the moment they’d exchanged greetings she had started talking about
the suite. He could tell that she was nervous. If he was going to be honest
with himself, he was too. It occurred to him on the drive over that it had been
a long time since he’d actually taken a woman out on a proper date.
Years, in fact.
Hook ups and casual affairs didn’t require
that kind of effort, and that was all he’d been doing for the last few years.

Jolena
had shown him around the property and then taken him to the entrance to the
suite, which was tucked in under the front stairs. She had filled the brief
tour with information about what the rent would be, what utilities were
included and other small talk.

The suite itself was far nicer than
he’d expected. The interior walls were painted a neutral white that helped
brighten up the space, and the laminate wood flooring looked brand new. It was
big enough to fit all his furniture without having any wasted space, with
a
 
large
window at the
front that would let in plenty of daylight.

They had walked from room to room,
and by the time they were done there was no doubt in Tag’s mind. “I’ll take it.
If you have the paperwork ready, we could go over it at dinner and then I’ll sign
on the dotted line.”

“You’re sure?”

“I’m very sure. This is a great
suite. I’ve got my current landlord’s information if you want to call him up
and ask him what kind of tenant I am. And I’m betting you already talked to
Nicky.” He dug into the front pocket of her jacket, pulled out the scrap of
paper he’d scribbled the info on, and offered it to her.

“You don’t mind if I just duck
outside and call him?” she asked as she took the paper from him.

“Go ahead. I told him to expect
your call.” Tag shrugged out of his coat and moved in close enough he could
wrap it around her shoulders. “It’s getting cold out there. I don’t want you
catching a chill.”

He watched as the tip of her pink
tongue flicked out to wet her lower lip, and it was all he could do not to drag
her into his arms and kiss away every trace of the soft coral lip gloss she was
wearing. He might have too, but then he remembered this wasn’t just any woman.
He wanted to do this right. Instead of moving in, he moved back a few inches
and her lips parted in a silent sigh that nearly broke him all over again.

I’m
going to be a goddamned gentleman. It might fucking kill me, but I will be a
gentleman.

“Thank you,” she said and gave him
a shy smile. Oh yeah. He could be a gentleman if it meant she looked at him
that way.

“If you leave me the keys, I’ll
lock up down here and wait for you outside.” He held out his hand and she
dropped the keys into his upturned palm.

“You might as well keep those. Once
we sign the paperwork this place will be all yours. I hope you like it here,
Tag.”

“Oh, I think I’m going to like it
here very much.” He didn’t bother pretending that he was only talking about his
new home. When she blushed and ducked her head, he knew she’d gotten the
message.
Jolena’s
high heels clicked against the
flooring with every hurried step, the noise echoing in the empty space. When
the door closed he took one last look around and nodded. This had been a very
good day so far, and he knew just who to thank for it. He pulled his cell phone
out of his pocket and dialed up Nick.

“Hey, Nicky.”

“Hi, bro.
What’s up?”

“Looks like I’m not going to be
homeless after all. I owe you a beer. If you come help me move my shit to
Jolena’s
this weekend, I’ll make it a case and throw in
pizza, too.”

“So she took pity on you, huh? I’m
glad. She came and asked me if you were really my brother and what sort of
person you were. Because I love
ya
, I lied and said
you were a fine, upstanding guy. Just…don’t mess with her, okay? She’s a
sweetheart, and she’s been through a lot.”

“I’m insulted. First you fail to
tell me that the Jo you sent me to see is a drop-dead sexy little redhead with
a thing for classic cars, and now you imply I’m a jerk who might not treat her
well. I’ll have you know that I’m taking her out for dinner. I even wore a
shirt with a collar and buttons and everything, like a grownup.”

Nick growled into the phone.
“You’re taking her out to dinner? Fuck! If you…just…you better be serious about
this. That girl is way too nice to be going out with a dog like you.”

“I’m a dog?
This
from the man who calls all his girlfriends by the same nickname, so he doesn’t
have to remember their real names?”

“Takes one to
know one.”

A thought crossed Tag’s mind,
threatening to darken his perfect mood. “You and she were never a thing, were
you?”

“Are you kidding? Her dad
threatened me with castration by tire iron the first time he caught me flirting
with her. She’s more like family now.”
“Good.” Tag wasn’t sure why it mattered so much to him that Nick had never been
out with
Jolena
, but it did.

“Besides, if she’d been with me,
she’d never go out with you. Once you’ve been with the best…” Nick trailed off,
laughing.

“Fuck you, little brother. I’ll
talk to you later.”

“’Night.”

Tag tucked the phone away and
headed out, locking the door to his new home behind him with a feeling of
satisfaction. This was a damned nice place, and he was glad to have found it.

The wind had picked up while they
were inside, and he could feel the first real chill of winter riding on the
air. The cooler air contrasted to the heat pouring off the area he’d had
tattooed that afternoon. He’d nearly forgotten about it with everything else
that was going on, and it occurred to him that since he’d gotten the phoenix
tattoo, he had made a lot of progress moving forward with his life.
A new place to live and a date––all on the same day.

Not a bad start.

Footsteps overhead drew his
attention as
Jolena
left the house and came down the
stairs wearing her own coat. She had his jacket in one hand and several documents
in the other. “Your landlord had nothing but good things to say about you.
Congratulations, the suite’s yours.”

“I’m really happy to hear that. I
called Nick, and he’s going to come out this weekend to help me move in, if
that’s okay with you.”

“That quick?
I hadn’t expected you to be ready to move so soon, but that’s no problem.”

“Most of my stuff is already
packed. I had to be out by the end of the month. You just saved me from being
homeless. As thanks, I’m taking you out to enjoy the best Italian food in the
city, There’s this little place I used to go to all the time when I was a beat
cop,
Tino’s
.”

She handed him back his jacket and
then cocked her head at him in query. “Now comes the fifty-dollar question ...
Are we taking your baby, or mine?”

Tag pulled on his jacket and then
offered her his arm, pleased when she took it without hesitation. “We’re taking
mine. I wouldn’t be much of a gentleman if I made you drive on our first date.”

“First date?” she asked, and he
couldn’t miss the faint note of surprise in her voice.