AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Teddy was the only person on the planet I could have this conversation with and not get my ass busted. I actually smiled thinking about what would have happened if I’d called our younger brother. Or one of my buddies. They’d have laughed me off the phone already.
“Who is she?”
“Believe it or not, a woman who works for the Trust.”
“The one you’re trying to buy the land from?”
“That’s the one.”
“What does she do for them?”
“Conservationist.”
Speaking of laughing me off the phone...
“Nate,” I interrupted him. “It’s not fucking funny.”
“Actually, it’s hysterical.”
“If you’re a sick bastard, maybe.”
“Takes one to know one. Alright, so she clearly hates you.”
“How did you guess?” I asked wryly. “It’s actually worse than that,” I said, knowing he was on borrowed time. “She has a personal connection to the land I’m buying. And is now the case manager for the project.”
“And how’s that looking?”
I winced. “It was good. Public hearing next week.”
“Was?”
My conservative, non-risktaking brother would think I’d lost it. “Was. Until I made a bet with her earlier this week that we’d get together. Told her if we didn’t, I’d drop my bid.”
More laughter. What the hell had I been thinking to call him?
“You crazy motherfucker. What the hell were you thinking?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “She hates the hell out of me, but wants me too. She’s been working here, at my place, since she was assigned to the case on Monday.”
“What aren’t you telling me?” he guessed.
“We kissed. Just once. Told her it was a pass from the bet.”
Nate exhaled. “You are seriously batshit crazy. How much are you looking to lose if she wins the bet?”
“A lot of fucking money,” I admitted.
“So why’d you do it?”
Why indeed? “I guess as an excuse to get close to her. So she stops hating me so much.”
“Since when does my brother need an excuse to get close to a woman?”
I was a stubborn bastard, but at least I knew myself and wasn’t afraid to admit it. “Since Natalie.”
Nate was quiet for a second. “Alright. To answer your question, no, I didn’t know Anna and I would get married after our first date. Or even our second. As we got to know each other, though, it became pretty clear she was different.”
“How so?”
