“What do you know, Dallas?” Luke asked. His voice just above a whisper. I shook my head at him.
“No, I’m still asking the questions around here. Why the fuck did Kirkley want that land so bad?” I spit between my teeth. I was angry at Luke. I was angry at Kirkley. I was angry at my father, but most of all, I was angry at myself. I wanted Luke to believe that I was naïve and stupid, but now that the cat was out of the bag, I had no other options.
“The pipeline. They have been trying to lay one across that highway for years, but it keeps getting rejected. As promised, your dad got Kirkley in as Mayor and he passed it. They are supposed to begin construction next year. He wanted to know what business you planned to put there so he could invest in businesses that would coincide with yours, pulling everyone from downtown, out to the highway. He knew you wouldn’t fail, you never do,” Luke said seriously. I could see respect and approval written on his face. I didn’t need either one.
“I just did,” I said, turning and placing my full cup of coffee in the sink. My mind was blank. Fun, flirty Dallas was gone. It was time for me to go back to being the cold bitch that I was. For years, it helped me avoid shit like this. It was my shield, my armor, and I knew that the moment I let my guard down this shit would happen. Luke Carmical would be a memory of mine. Just like all the others.
When I turned, Luke was standing at the bar. The look on his face let me know that he knew he fucked up and that he was sorry. It was a little late for that.
“I assume Red knows the details,” I stated, giving him a cold stare. He nodded, confirming my assumption. I didn’t need a friend or a confidant. I needed the fucking truth and she would give it to me, if I had to beat it out of her.
“I’ll call her. She can come over and fill me in. I want you to leave. I want you out of my life and out of my business. I know what you are going to say, but I don’t want to hear it. I have had enough of this shit with you. I don’t need anything else. I want my dog and you can leave the box that contains my information. I don’t see where it’s any concern to you anymore. You don’t have to tell Kirkley anything. I’ll call him myself and fill him in. When Red comes, you can send my dog with her.”
With that, I turned on my heel and headed to my room, leaving Luke standing in my kitchen, his face impassive.
“Dallas,” Luke started. I threw my hand up in the air, letting him know this conversation was over. I walked in my room and shut the door then lay down on my bed, smothering my face in the comforter. I’m not sure how much time passed before I heard the rumble of Luke’s pipes as he headed out. My stomach twisted when the realization hit me that he was really gone. He never tried to talk to me, other than saying my name. I would be lying if I said I hadn’t expected him to come into my room and try to talk to me. I would be a bigger liar if I said it wasn’t exactly what I wanted. Oh well, sometimes life was a hard knock. I set my emotions aside and went to get dressed. I could cry about life later, right now, I had shit to do.
After my makeup was on, my hair was fixed and I was dressed in a pair of black Armani palazzo pants with a sage green, satin sleeveless top and a pair of black, thin heeled Jimmy Choo’s, I located my purse and cell phone and called Dr. Yarborough. He answered in a very cheerful voice, and I got an eerie feeling that he knew who it was before he answered.
“Ms. Knox. How are you feeling?” he asked in his smooth voice. Doctors had a way of making you feel extremely inferior or comfortable. I was happy it was the latter.
“Call me Dallas, please. I am feeling much better,” I said in my I’m-the-CEO of-a-multimillion-dollar-corporation-and-I-think-my-shit-don’t-stink voice.
“Well, that’s wonderful news. Were you just calling to check in or can I help you with something?” he asked, his voice turning silky and I could have sworn he was attempting to flirt with me. Not a chance in hell, doc.
“Yes sir, actually, a little bit of both. I was hoping to find out if you could narrow down the time for me, so that I could re-cap my surroundings and see if I could get to the bottom of what happened.”