Divided Interests (Southern Bride 3)

I smiled slightly, then walked farther into the greenhouse. “It’s just like I remember it.”

A grin spread over his face. “Do you remember afternoon tea in here with Grams?”

“Yes!” I said with a light chuckle. “I loved afternoon tea, and you hated it.”

“I was sixteen at the time. What sixteen-year-old boy wants to sit in a greenhouse with his grandmother and girlfriend and drink tea?”

“What else did you want to do?” I asked as I ran my finger along one of the glass windows.

“I’m sure you probably know what I wanted to do, Paige.”

Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I quickly looked away. We walked around the greenhouse in silence. I wasn’t sure what we were looking for. It was empty. Completely empty save for one chair and small table that sat in the middle of the glass room.

When I walked up to one of the windows, I pushed it open and smiled when the cool night breeze hit me in the face. Fall was finally here, my favorite time of year. And although we wouldn’t see cooler temperatures for another month or two, I still loved this season. It reminded me of sitting in the bleachers, watching Lucas and his friends play football. Sitting around a campfire while we all drank alcohol we’d smuggled from our folks’ houses.

Warmth moved through my body as I took in a slow, deep breath and let it out. This building had been a place where I thought all my dreams would come true. Now, I wasn’t sure what it represented because my life and my heart were in complete turmoil.

I opened my eyes and saw the reflection of the chair in the window. “We said we’d get married in here,” I said, almost in a whisper, but loud enough for Lucas to hear. “Just you and me with our families.”

When he didn’t say anything, I turned to look at him. He was at the end of the greenhouse, his hands in his pockets, staring into the darkness beyond the glass windows. Did he have any idea how much I had wanted to marry him? How much I had truly loved him? Glancing down at the ground, I forced myself not to let the tears spring free.

How much I still love him.

Lucas

HER WORDS RATTLED around in my head, hitting from side to side, instantly forming a headache. Or maybe my head was trying to take on the pain my chest felt when she mentioned the dream we once shared.

I wanted to turn and face her. I could feel her eyes on me. Hell, I was almost certain I could hear her heart beating. Or maybe that was mine.

“I’m going to see if Milo knows someone who can take a look at the greenhouse, make sure it is still safe,” I said, doing my best to change the subject.

“You don’t think it’s safe?”

With a shrug, I finally looked at her. It had been a dick move not to acknowledge her comment about the wedding, but I couldn’t bring myself to admit how badly I had messed up.

“The damn thing is over a hundred years old. It needs to be looked at.”

Paige pressed her lips together tightly, then nodded. She walked over to the chair my grandmother had sat in so many times. Her hand traced along the back of it.

“It would make a lovely greenhouse again. Or even an office.”

That caught my attention. “An office for who?”

When her soft brown eyes met mine, I tried not to let my breath catch. Jesus, she was stunning. The moon had risen and cast the perfect amount of light into the greenhouse. The lantern also added to her glow. I needed to look away, or the urge to walk across the room and kiss her would win over all sense.

“It was just a thought.”

I nodded. “Paige, how are you affording to not work?”

She smiled. “If you think I won’t be able to pay for the taxes, you’re wrong. I’ve got a nice little nest egg built up over the years. I live a simple life, so I put a lot of money away, invested it early on.”

The corners of my mouth rose slightly. Paige was nothing like Bianca, and I knew that was why I had even showed interest in Bianca in the first place, to take my mind off of what I’d lost. She didn’t remind me of the sweet, down-to-earth girl I had fallen in love with at such a young age. Bianca was also someone I would never have the desire to marry. Ever. How could I when I had given my heart to the woman sharing the air around me at this very moment.

“I’m not surprised. You always were one to save,” I replied with a wink.

I wanted to ask if she still had the account in her bank that was for her wedding. She had opened it when she was twelve and had informed her parents it was her wedding fund money. I wanted to ask, but I didn’t. She most likely had used it for college, or traveling.