Hearts in the City Read online

  “Oh please...don’t even come with that foolishness. Mom would have been happy enough just to see me working in a job I enjoy. That would have been enough for her. You’re acting like I’ve been sitting up in here begging you for money when you know dang well I make my own.”

  “I never said any such thing.” Olivia stared up at her for a moment.

  Okay, so she did have a point. She was taking care of herself, earning considerably more than minimum wage at the boutique so it was a good start. Since the time she was just a little girl parading around the house in Olivia’s clothes and high-heeled pumps playing dress-up she’d always wanted a career in fashion design. Working at the store was definitely a stepping-stone toward that.

  Olivia mulled the matter over for moment. Jazlynn had been more open with her feelings than she’d been in a long time; Olivia didn’t want to spoil it. “Well if you love fashion so much why not just study fashion merchandising at one of the local schools? They have programs that allow you to start anytime during the year.”

  “I know, and I’m not ruling that out. But I’m too close to becoming assistant manager to quit right now.”

  “As long as you’re making a decent living, I suppose.” Olivia stood up from the sofa and stretched. “I’d better check with the office and see how things are going. That way you can watch your show in peace—or at least what’s left of it anyway.”

  “Hmmm...very funny now that I’ve missed pretty much all of it.” Jazlynn rolled her eyes.

  “It’s not the end of the world, Jazlynn...geez...” Olivia was just about to head out of the family room when Jazlynn called after her. She spun around on her heels in the doorway, facing her. “Uh-huh?”

  “You need to get out and start dating again.”

  Olivia gave her a weird look.

  “Well it’s over with Theo ain’t it? He’s already moved on so you should, too.”

  Olivia smirked, trying to mask the profoundness of Jazlynn’s statement. Her sister was right. Theo had put it out there as plain as day that they were done. Now it was time for her to get on with her life, too. She loosened her stance as she stood in the frame of the doorway, dressed in her baggy sweat pants and one of the many T-shirt’s she’d taken from Theo over the past couple of years. She rested her hands on either side of the doorframe as she stared across at her sister. “Since when do you care if I’m dating or not?

  “Since I’ve seen how miserable you’ve been.”

  “I’m happy being alone right now.”

  “Whatever.”

  “I am.”

  Jazlynn shook her head. “Oh please...why don’t you just admit you’re miserable?”

  Olivia shrugged nonchalantly. “Ok, if you insist—miserable it is, then.”

  “I know someone who’s perfect for you.”

  Olivia raised her eyebrows, folding her arms across her chest. “And who might that be?” she asked, already knowing the answer.

  “Alistair,” Jazlynn announced. “He’s not dating anyone. And he’s fine as hell.”

  Olivia certainly couldn’t argue with that. He was definitely easy on the eyes with his caramel skin tone, hooded, hazel-brown eyes, and deep sexy voice.

  “He’s been meaning to call you.”

  “And how would you know?” A cautious look suddenly appeared on Olivia’s face.

  It was true the two of them weren’t strangers to each other. But other than acquaintances who bumped into each other from time to time but what else was there? Oh he was certainly drop-dead gorgeous. She’d been smitten by that fact the first time she’d ever laid eyes on him. But he’d had player written all over him. He’d make a good friend and nothing more.

  “None of your business how I know. And for God sakes...why would you want to be alone when there’s a nice good looking man interested in you? Do you really want to be sitting around here alone when the Christmas holidays roll around? Humph... better you than me,” Jazlynn said.

  Olivia left the room with Jazlynn’s words ringing in her ears. Since when had she started making so much sense?

  Chapter Thirteen

  Alistair waited anxiously for the fax to arrive letting him know whether or not the seller had accepted Mark Templeton’s offer. The past few weeks had been a rat-race. The first house had been too small, the second required too much work, and neither buyer nor seller could come to an agreement on price on the third. Much to Alistair’s chagrin the deal had fallen through in the end. Mark might have had a lot of money to spend, but he sure had a hard time parting with it. Folks with a lot of money could be really stingy with it when they wanted to. He considered Mark an A-list client and wanted to please him. They were on the fourth house and had put in four offers so far. Alistair prayed the fourth time would be a charm.

  Taking a seat on the sofa, he flipped the TV on to watch a little bit of the finance channel while waiting for the fax. With Christmas just around the corner things were moving at a hectic pace, both at work and at home. Trey had announced he’d found an apartment. He planned to be all moved out and settled into his new place by Christmas.

  Too restless to absorb the show, he’d just gone to the kitchen to pour himself a second cup of eggnog when his cell-phone rang from the other room. He ran out of the kitchen and back into the living room. Maybe he’d lucked out and the seller’s agent had decided to call in their counter offer instead of sending it through fax. He answered the phone in his business voice.

  “Hey...Alistair?” came the sound of a female voice on the other end.

  He thought it was Corrine and was prepared to tell her he was too busy and didn’t have time to talk. He’d long ended things with her and had no desire to go back. But it hit him that the voice on the other end sounded different. “Is this Corrine?” he blurted out against his better judgment.

  “Sorry to disappoint you, but no...”

  He recognized the voice immediately. His breath caught in his throat. Lord help him. It was Olivia. He was so stunned he had to sit down. He backed up and eased himself down onto the sofa. “Oh my God...is this Olivia?”

  “The one and the only...”

  A broad grin spread instantaneously across his face. The gods must be smiling on him. “Wow...it’s nice to hear from you and...”

  “Hey look...I’ve been meaning to call you every since you called me that day. There was a lot of drama going on in my life at the time and...well I was just waiting for the right time to call you and thought why not just call now?”

  “I’m certainly glad you did. So...how’ve you been, anyway?” Alistair asked.

  “Work-wise things have been great. Relationship wise—not so much. I’ve learned to take the good with the bad.”

  “I uh...I was sorry to hear about your breakup.”

  She let out a laugh. “No more sorry than I was, I can assure you.”

  It was good to hear her laugh about things now. Maybe she was really getting over Theo. “No doubt...no doubt. Breakups are the worst. But you’re a survivor. I do know that much about you.”

  “You’re too kind—thanks. And from what I know about you...,” Olivia said, “...you’re a man with a good head for business—which leads me to the other reason I’m calling.”

  Alistair’s interest was piqued. “Geez...to what does a player like me owe the pleasure?” he said with a grin. “Isn’t that what you called me the first time we talked?”

  “You mean you remember that?”

  “Some things stay with you for life. I’m emotionally scarred now, thanks to you,” Alistair said in a mockingly somber tone.

  “You poor little baby,” Olivia said, matching his mocking tone with one of her own. “I do admit that was a little judgmental. So let me make it up to you by setting up a meeting so we can talk.”

  Alistair was pleasantly surprised. Hell yeah, you bet they could talk. “Far be it from me to turn down a proposition from a beautiful woman like you.”

  “Well you don’t even know what my proposition i
s. For all you know I might be asking you to bungee jump naked off the Eastside Bridge with me during rush hour traffic.”

  “And pray tell, what would be wrong with that?” he asked, smiling broadly. There were things he could see himself doing naked with her, but bungee jumping sure as hell wasn’t one of them, he though deviously.

  “What’d be wrong with that? Um...everything? I am absolutely terrified of heights.”

  “Well don’t feel so bad. So am I,” Alistair confessed. “Besides, you know full well, heights and black folk don’t mix.”

  He listened as she cackled loudly in to the phone, enjoying that she seemed to be in such good spirits.

  “So let’s cut right to the chase,” she said. “I know it’s been a little while since you brought up the idea of doing business together—and honestly I thought you were a little crazy when you did—but I gave it some thought. Is the offer still on the table?”

  Alistair reeled in surprise. He simply couldn’t believe his luck. Exactly what had he done for the gods to smile down on him like this? “Look, if you want it on the table, then it’s on the table.”

  “Really?”

  “Oh yes, really.” Alistair said, laughing. “So why the sudden interest? Don’t get me wrong—I’m thrilled, but I’m curious.”

  “The only reason I could come up with is that I need a change. Isn’t change supposed to be good for the soul or something?”

  “Allegedly,” Alistair said. He was just glad she was including him in that change in some way.

  “What’s this week look like for you?”

  “I’m pretty booked most evenings this week. Lots of showings to do and one open house later on in the week. How about Friday evening...would that be okay for you?”

  “Hmm...I’m sure I can clear out of the office at a decent hour on Friday evening. So yeah.”

  “How does eight sound?”

  “Eight it is,” Olivia agreed. “Where do you want to meet?”

  “Wherever you want. The choice is yours. I’m not fussy.”

  “Well there’s a cute little Thai restaurant down here on the south side. How about we meet there?”

  Truthfully Alistair would have preferred just meeting at his place. That way he could have wowed her with one of his famous pasta dishes and some fine wine. But he’d take whatever he could get for now. Like his Ma always said, beggars couldn’t be choosers. The fact that the sexy, beautiful, and intelligent Olivia Putnam was asking him to meet her anywhere was the opportunity of a lifetime. “Sounds like a plan to me.”

  At that moment Thunder galloped into the living with a loud bark. Alistair got up immediately and went over to look out of the window in time to see Luther backing his car into the driveway. Shit, Alistair thought. Luther’s timing sucked.

  “Hey, Olivia...” he said, speaking into the phone. “I’d love to continue our chat but company just arrived.”

  “Not a problem. That just leaves us with more to talk about when we see each other on Friday.”

  “I look forward to it,” Alistair said. “And let me just say, again, it’s really good to hear your voice.”

  “Well thanks for taking my call. See you on Friday.”

  “See you then,” Alistair said. He waited until he heard the line click dead on her end. And before he had time to let the call sink in, Luther was already pounding on the door. With Thunder following in tow, Alistair went and let him in.

  After Alistair poured them both a drink, they sat down at the kitchen table and Alistair listened as Luther explained that he’d had a change of heart. After talking it over with Pam, they’d both decided it might not be that bad of an idea to start up some sort of partnership. With the children growing as fast as they were, it would be nice to some extra income coming in to set up college funds for them.

  “So...what do you think? You still up for it or did you abandon the idea?”

  Alistair was insulted by Luther’s notion that he’d abandoned the idea just because Luther had changed his mind. “It took you all these months to come to your senses,” he responded, sounding slightly annoyed.

  “Man, you gotta understand...”

  “Had you trusted my instincts we’d have had at least two houses flipped by now. With all that said, no I haven’t abandoned the idea at all.”

  Luther rubbed his hands together in anticipation. “So what do you say...why don’t we get something on the go then? The housing market is still hot right now, right?”

  “For now it is, yes.”

  “Okay then...let’s get things started?”

  Alistair hesitated for a moment. “Uh...hmm...” he said pensively.

  “So, what’re you chickening out now that I actually want in on the deal? That ain’t like you at all man. The Al I know would be jumping at the chance to finally get this thing off the ground.”

  “I’m not saying I don’t want to do the deal with you. It’s just that there have been some new developments since you and I talked.”

  “As of when?”

  “About an hour ago.”

  “Oh great...this should be good...” Luther said, rolling his eyes. “What...some big time cash cow come on board or something?”

  “I wouldn’t say a cash cow, no, but someone potentially with some decent financial capital to put up.”

  “Man...just how serious are you about doing this thing anyway? I thought this was supposed to be just you and me. Two guys serious about making some money flipping some houses. And now you’re all about dragging someone else up in the mix?” Luther shook his head, gesturing with his hands. “Dunno about all this, man.”

  Alistair put his hand up. “Hold-up here,” he said, coming to Olivia’s defense. “If you have a problem with that, then I don’t know what to tell you.”

  “I thought it was supposed to be a two-person partnership? Wasn’t that what you originally wanted?“

  “You changed your mind, man. I waited for you to make a decision. Hell, I even missed out on the property in Lexington Hills I wanted so badly because you were taking so long to make up your mind, only for you to change your mind anyway. And now that someone else is finally coming on board, you suddenly have a problem with the whole proposition? I’m not feeling it...not feeling it at all, bro.”

  Luther got up from the table and stalked across the kitchen and leaned up against the counter. “I thought you wanted to make money?”

  “Of course I do. That’s the whole idea. She’s got a good pedigree and wants in on the partnership so I’m jumping on it.”

  Luther eyed him curiously. “Man, you sure that’s the only thing you jumping on? You hitting it or something?”

  Alistair’s eyes darkened. “Not that it’s any of your business,” he said coolly, growing very annoyed with Luther. “But no, I’m not sleeping with her. She happens to be a highly intelligent and competent lawyer whose specialty just so happens to be corporate law.”

  “What law firm?”

  “Harris, Templeton, and Monroe.”

  “Ahh...yeah. I know where that is. A big-time firm downtown.”

  Alistair nodded. “Right after you told me you changed your mind she and I happened to bump into each other and I mentioned I was looking to start my own property flipping business. On a whim I asked her to consider partnering with me.”

  “So you already knew you had someone else interested in this partnership since then?”

  “She wasn’t interested,” Alistair said. “Then she calls me out of the blue about an hour and a half ago asking me if I was still looking to start the business. I told her yes, of course.”

  Luther went over and took a seat at the table. He drummed his fingers on the table in thought. “She good looking?”

  “Man, don’t even think about it,” Alistair said, giving him a look of warning. Luther could hit on other women all he wanted, but if he got so much as within two feet of Olivia, Alistair wouldn’t even think twice about kicking his ass.

  “All right, man. Jus
t chill,” Luther said with a grin.

  ”She wants in, so she’s in—period.”

  “So where does that leave me?” Luther asked. “Where do I fit in all this?”

  “I’ll run it by her and see if she’s up for a third partner. But you’d better check your sexist attitude at the door,” Alistair said bluntly.

  Just then the fax machine in his office down the hall went off. “Hang on a sec,” Alistair said, getting up from the table. “That’s probably the fax I’m waiting for. Be back in a minute.”

  He disappeared from the kitchen and was in his office in seconds. He removed the fax from the machine and took a look. Much to his relief, the client had accepted the final offer. The only thing to do now was to contact Mark with the good news. Before returning to Luther in the kitchen Alistair took a moment to take in all the events of the past couple of hours. He simply couldn’t believe his luck.

  Chapter Fourteen

  As Olivia got ready to meet Alistair it dawned on her that he probably thought she’d asked him out on a date and she recoiled in horror. God forbid he thought she was pursuing him. Pursuing a man just wasn’t her style. But the more she tried to convince herself that her meeting with Alistair wasn’t a date, the more it felt like one. She even had first date jitters. She agonized over what to wear, finally settling on a pair of black slacks, a gray blouse, completing the look with a black blazer. The last thing she wanted was to show up at the restaurant looking like she thought she was on a date. They were meeting to talk business, after all. Business and nothing more.

  The Thai restaurant was a little hole in the wall downtown on Carrington Avenue. She’d been there for business lunches a couple of times and she liked the food. She parked her Saab and made her way inside where she cringed. The restaurant’s candlelit atmosphere screamed romance and it was filled with couples gazing at each other through the flickering candle flames. Soft Thai music in the background only further cemented the fact that this was a romantic spot. Lord, she could have kicked herself for suggesting this place. She’d never been there at night before and could only hope Alistair didn’t get the wrong idea.