Page 51 of Love You Still
We made it out of the house with no further interruption from my libido, but only slightly. I dropped her off at her parents’ house with just enough time for her to change and head directly to the studio, but not before ravishing her against the side of my truck.
“I really need to get inside, Vance,” Selina murmurs, as I nibble down the side of her neck.
I inhale deeply before giving voice to my deepest fears. “I know, but I can’t help but feel that if I let you out of my sight, you’ll disappear.”
Selina has mentioned many times that she plans on heading back to New York when her company director calls. But I can’t help but wonder if she will tell me beforehand. Will she give me the chance to come with her, to support her as she follows her dreams, or will she let fear win a second time?
She kisses the tip of my nose before putting some space between us. “I can’t miss our dinner date tonight, right? I’ll be at the studio all day. You can stop by there or call me whenever you want. If I’m not in a class, I’ll answer.”
“Okay.” I smile, the grip around my heart loosening slightly. “I’ll see you later. Tell the girls I said hi when you see them.”
“I will,” she replies before heading for the door, but I grip her wrist.
“I love you, Seli,” I say with conviction before letting her go.
Selina doesn’t say another word as she rushes toward her parents’ house and ducks inside. I stand there, staring at the door, waiting for her to reappear for a few minutes before climbing into my truck and backing out of the driveway.
Just as I’m about to turn the corner and head for Connor’s, my phone rings. “I was just coming to your house.”
“I’m glad I caught you. Meet me at the office. We have some decisions to make,” Connor responds, an ominous tone to his voice.
“Is everything okay?” I question, turning in the opposite direction and driving toward the office on the opposite side of town.
“Yes,” Connor begins, before sighing loudly. “I got a phone call this morning from a man wanting us to help him renovate an old farmhouse.”
“That’s amazing! An opportunity like this will put our business on the map for sure.”
“You’re right.”
I turn into the parking lot in front of our office and pull into the spot beside Connor’s truck before climbing out. “Okay. Why do I feel like there’s a but coming?”
“Because there is.”
“Hold that thought. I just parked. I’ll be inside in a minute.”
I hang up the phone and climb out of my truck. My mind races as I stride toward the door, wondering what his hang-up could be. Remodeling a house is a huge undertaking, but it’s not anything we haven’t done before. Connor and I have had plenty of practice with my house here in Tyson’s Creek. We have a great team of guys working with us and have connections to different distributors around the state. There doesn’t seem to be a downside to this, as far as I can see.
“Now, please explain to me how this could be a bad thing.”
“The job is for two weeks. He wants us to practically gut the entire interior of the house and rebuild it from the ground up. Kitchen, living room, and renovating a sunroom, as well.”
“We may have to hire a few more guys temporarily, but I don’t see any big problems with that timeline. We may have issues getting materials they may want, but if the client is realistic about the cost, we shouldn’t have any problems.” I plop down into my desk chair, crossing my arms over my chest. “Again, what’s the problem?”
“The job is in Magnolia.”
Well, shit.Now I see the problem. We are a local company, sticking to jobs that are close to home. By doing so, Connor can be home with Jade every night and not disrupt her schedule. However, Magnolia is about a three-hour drive from here, and if there is any hope of us getting the work done in two weeks, we’ll have to remain on-site.
“I’m also skeptical about us being able to get all the work done in the time frame he’s asked for. I have a few pictures of the place they sent over, and it doesn’t look like anything we couldn’t handle, but I’m worried.”
“You’re always in a constant state of worry, man.” I chuckle, slapping him hard on the back. “Let me look at these pictures, and we can give the client a call. Once we get a detailed list of everything, we can come up with a game plan and a price for the client. We could be worrying about nothing. If they don’t accept our quote, there’s no job.”
“Sounds good. I just need to call Audrey and let her know I won’t be home for a few hours. I told the client we would call them back before dinner.”
“Is there any way we could fudge the time a little bit?” I question, rubbing the back of my neck. “I made plans to have dinner with Selina tonight.”
“I take it things went well between you and Selina last night?” He’s trying to be nonchalant, but I can tell he’s on a mission for information.
“Who’s asking? You or the ladies?” I smirk at Connor, not wanting to tell him what happened between us. We didn’t do as much talking as we planned, but all the important things were said. “I think she finally understands that I’m all in, no matter what that might entail. We had a great night together. We spent most of the night getting to know each other again.”