Stealing Her Heart

I would laugh, but the way he says this is serious enough to stop my initial reaction. So, instead, I repeat his words back to him. “An industry secret?”

He sighs. Places his fork down. Reaches for his glass of beer and downs the remaining half in one go. Then, after yet another deep breath that must be bracing him for the bomb he’s about to drop, he says, “The truth is that my father is Ronald McAvery.”

He says this like it’s supposed to mean something, but nothing is connecting in my brain.

“I’ll take it you’ve never heard of him?”

I shake my head.

“But you must have heard of McAvery Investments.”

This puzzle pieces that seem so clear now click into place. “Your family owns McAvery Investments?”

“Guilty as charged. I’m the son of the CEO trying to prove himself. Only, how can I ever live up to my dad’s image? He

helped his own father put the company on the map. I’m just his only born who flies around the world, marking off countries.”

“That explains how you have enough money to explore the world,” I reply. “What I’m struggling to get is why you would ever set your sights on Branchville.”

Robert holds up one finger. “In a word, money.”

“You're going to have to walk me through that one. Because I’ve lived there all my life, and not once have I equated my hometown with anyone rich. I mean, someone who graduated from my high school once starred in a TV commercial for deodorant, but that’s about the extent of our celebrities.”

“I’m not talking about money that your town has. McAvery Investments is looking to expand into the solar market. Now we could purchase a piece of land in New York for an arm and two legs. Or we could buy some land down here dirt cheap. Open up jobs for people who need them. Maybe even bring in more companies looking to diversify. The way I see it, it’s a win-win situation.”

“But why Branchville?” I ask. “There are thousands of small towns with land that’s basically worthless. Why come to my corner of the country?”

Robert winces at this. “Can we just say that I threw a dart at a map?”

“We could. Or you could say the real reason.”

A deep sigh. “You’re not going to like it, but the reason I stopped by your bank was to get cash before I met up with this hot flight attendant I met a few months back. She’s apparently from your town and….” He trails off after I slug him in the shoulder. “Guess I didn’t need to add that part about her being hot, did I?”

“You think?”

“The important part is that I ran into you first. And honestly, this is the first time I’ve thought about her since I got cuffed on your bank floor.”

“It’s not my bank. I just work there. Or at least I hope I still will when I get back.” I rub my hands through my hair. “Shit. I really wish we hadn’t started talking about all this. Now I can’t even appreciate where I am. All I’m doing now is worrying about my job back home. That reminds me. Did you get Shane fired?”

“Shane?”

“The policeman that tackled you to the ground that day in the bank.”

I watch as the stress weighing him down is shed, and Robert recalls something much more enjoyable.

“Is that bastard out already? I thought it would take at least a month.”

I gasp. “What did you do?”

He shrugs. “Not much. I’d say Karma did most of the work.”

My eyes widen as I think back to what I told him about Shane. “You got him fired because of what he did to me.”

“I’m not a saint enough to say that was the only motivating factor. My shoulder’s been bothering me since that day. But yes, it was mostly because of what you told me.” When I say nothing—only look at him with expectation—he relents.

“I was really hoping to leave the details of what I did a mystery. Because the truth is pretty melodramatic.” He sighs when I simply tilt my head and wait for further elaboration. “Really, I didn’t do much. What he did to me wasn’t technically illegal. I was a suspected bank robber after all. But I figured that if he’s always had a bit of a temper and flare for getting his way that he must have something to hide. So I hired a private investigator to follow him. I heard that he found out the cop was cheating, but I never heard anything more. Guess I should check my email.”

“From what my old boss says, he was sleeping with the mayor’s wife. It’s the talk of the town.”