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I smiled. “This is not early.”
He lifted a shoulder, and a crooked grin curled his lips. “It is for here. Most of the guys stay up all night and sleep until noon. I’m normally the only one out here in the morning.”
He took a drink from the mug in his hand as he studied me.
“I was in bed before ten last night. I almost slept twelve hours,” I told him.
“Eh, Prez’s suite doesn’t have windows, so I expect that’s easy.”
I glanced up at the second floor and noticed there were windows up there. “So, not all the suites are windowless?”
Country chuckled. “No, and the only suite belongs to Prez. The rest of us have bedrooms with a bathroom much smaller than his. When he had this place built, he chose not to have windows for security purposes. His former VP was his best friend; he thought the idea was funny and teased him about it.”
I frowned. I knew so little about Liam, and I was carrying his child. Our child.
“Former VP?” I asked, curious why his best friend was no longer his VP.
“Tulsa Abe. I never met him—before my time. He was killed about fourteen or fifteen years ago, I believe it is now. His son, Micah, is the VP now. He was a kid when his dad died, and Liam raised him after,” he explained.
Liam had lost his best friend and raised his son. Wow. I hadn’t expected that.
“Where was Micah’s mom?” The question came out before I could think about how nosy I sounded.
The hunger to know more about Liam and his life was new to me. But he was never going to open up to me. I would take what I could get.
“I’ve heard someone mentioned she died before Tulsa. I know Micah’s younger sister is his half-sister. She has a different mom. Pepper owns a bar in town. Nice place. Nina and Goldie go with their ole men from time to time. You should go. You’d like Pepper.”
One conversation with Country, and I knew more about Liam than I’d learned since I’d met him. At least it felt that way.
My gaze swept over the property, and I sighed, thinking of all the lovely plants and flowers that could spruce up the place. It was like a blank canvas needing some art. The grass was freshly mowed and a pretty green that made me think it must have a sprinkler system. Florida summers were rainy, but the sun could still turn things brown around here with its brutal rays.
“Who cuts the grass?” I asked, wondering if the men did it or if there was a landscaper.
Country chuckled. “Whoever draws the short straw on Friday night.”
I laughed. “Really?”
He nodded. “Yep. Grass gets cut on Saturday morning. Now, granted, we have a John Deere riding lawn mower with a cover and AC, but no one wants to get up early on Saturday to cut grass after a late night of drinking.”
Chewing on my bottom lip, I tossed the idea around in my head before looking back at him. “How do you think everyone would take it if I took over the mowing on Saturdays, and in return, I’d be allowed to plant some flowers? Just give the place a little color? I wouldn’t overdo it.”
Country took another drink from his mug while he looked out over the backyard. “I think you can plant whatever the fuck you want, and not a soul will complain. But I’m gonna just veto you cutting the grass now. Don’t offer that. Some of those lazy-ass fuckers will let you do it, and then I’ll be up every Saturday morning, cutting the damn grass because there is no way in hell I am letting you do it.”
I frowned, placing a hand on my hip. “I am very capable of running a lawn mower. I have mowed lawns with a regular ole mower many times in my life. When I was growing up, my stepmom had me do it every week, and there was no seat or fancy AC on the thing she had me using.” I finished my little rant, not appreciating the fact that he thought riding a mower was beneath me.
“Where was your dad?” he asked, his brows drawn together.
I swallowed. It had been over twenty years now, and time did heal, but not completely. “He died when I was ten years old. A few months before my eleventh birthday.”
The sympathy in his brown eyes was immediate, and I could tell he regretted asking me. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thanks,” I replied, hating that it felt awkward now. It always did when this topic came up.
“I’m still not letting you cut the grass. The mower is huge, and there are areas you have to get off and use a weed eater to reach things. I just can’t allow a pregnant woman to do that kind of work. Especially out in this heat. You’d have to climb up in the mower and …” He paused, shaking his head. “Can’t do it. Even if my momma hadn’t raised me to take care of women properly, I wouldn’t be able to stomach that. But you want to plant flowers? Go for it. I’ll handle the others. They won’t give a shit though. I promise you that.”
My head was instantly turning with ideas. Over by the back entrance and around the pool area. I had my scrapbook full of all the inspiration I’d saved. I could go through it today and piece together the things I wanted to do. I would need to make sure it worked in this heat and in the shading the backyard provided. I didn’t need to overspend. Even though I didn’t have bills right now, I wasn’t going to just stay here and give Liam nothing.
Once the baby came, I needed money saved to get a place of our own. I wished he’d allow me to get a job here. Maybe I could work at that bar his VP’s sister owned. I’d ask about that next time I saw him. Although I didn’t know when that would be. Perhaps I would ask the VP himself or ask Nina how to get in touch with Pepper.
