Divided Interests (Southern Bride 3)

I scoffed. “Little does he know it was all your idea.”

“Like you were against it.”

“I was! I didn’t want to have sex with you for the first time in a stall.”

“You didn’t complain. Besides, I thought it was romantic. You even put a blanket down for us.”

“Only because Milo told me to do it. Experience from when he and Jen did it in the barn.”

Paige’s mouth dropped open. “Jen and Milo slept together?”

“I thought you knew that.”

She shook her head and made a weird sound. “Wait until I see her again. She’s always going on about how I never tell her everything. Ugh. How could she not tell me Milo was her first?”

“He wasn’t,” I replied, drawing a gasp from Paige.

“That little whore!”

I laughed, then gently pulled her hand down. “How’s it look? I have a meeting tomorrow with some clients in Austin I’m still trying to finish up with.”

She chewed nervously on her lip. “Is it outside? If it is, you might want to keep your sunglasses on.”

My shoulders slumped. “Why would it be outside?”

Paige shrugged. “Wishful thinking.”

“Shit.” I picked up the bag of frozen corn and put it back on my eye.

“I’m probably going to get a hotel in Austin tomorrow, since I’ll be out late. They always like to do dinner and drinks afterwards.”

Paige brushed a piece of my hair back.

“Okay, I’m meeting with a florist in Fredericksburg to go over the flowers for the wedding. Are you still okay with me meeting her alone?”

“Totally. I know nothing about flowers, and I want you to pick what you want to have.”

She smiled. “I found an old picture of the greenhouse, Millie standing in there in her wedding gown. She was holding a bouquet of beautiful white chrysanthemums. I thought a few of those in the arrangements might be nice.”

“What about for your bouquet? What do you want?”

The way she smiled made my heart feel like it skipped a beat. “Pink daisies.”

In that moment, I fell in love with her a little more, if that was at all possible. “The first flowers I ever gave you.”

She nodded. “I think I might add in a white rose or two.”

Smiling, I placed my finger on her chin, drawing her mouth to mine. “God, I love you.”

Our mouths met in a sweet kiss when I heard the porch planks protest with someone walking on it.

“You want your other eye black and blue, son?” Phillip said, causing me and Paige to smile against our lips.

“No, sir.”

“Then get your mouth off my baby girl.”

“Daddy, that’s enough. You got your shot in, Lucas is now off limits for any future injuries.”

Phillip crossed his arms over his massive chest. Why hadn’t I ever noticed how freaking built he was? He honestly didn’t look a day older than forty, and he sure as hell didn’t run like he was in his fifties.

He huffed and gave me an incredulous look. “We’ll see about that. One mess up, and I will tear you apart.”

I swallowed hard, then cleared my throat. “I have no intentions of messing up anything, sir, ever again.”

“Holy hell, Foster. Where did you get the shiner?” Pete Mulligan asked as we all took a seat around the large conference table.

“My future father-in-law, Phillip Miller.”

Timothy, my old boss and the guy in charge of this venture, laughed. “I still can’t believe you’re engaged.”

I smiled as I glanced around the table. Luckily, Bianca wasn’t here. She was an investor in this apartment building being built in downtown Austin. I had recently learned about her involvement. I was positive she did it because she heard Timothy had asked me to stay on as the lead designer.

“I’m thinking the dad doesn’t approve of you,” Pete stated with a chuckle. More light laughter trickled around the table.

“Well, considering I dated his daughter in high school and then broke up with her before we left for college, he has a few issues with me. Anyway, we’re not here to talk about me, we’re here to go over my design.”

I pulled up my CAD design and hit the play button, then directed everyone’s attention to the large screen behind me.

After thirty-five minutes of describing the building, the projected timeframe, and a rough estimate of costs, I leaned back in my chair and waited. Pete made a few notes, leaned over and spoke quietly with his business partner, Roger. Then he looked up at me and smiled.

“I like the design, a lot. It’s in keeping with the feel of Austin, to appeal to the locals, but the inside amenities will appeal to the investors who want to live downtown.”

With a brief glimpse at Timothy, I smiled at Pete. “I’m glad you like it.”

“You’re pretty confident about the timeframe?” he asked.

“As with any project, things could come up to slow us down. You have to take that into consideration, as well as dealing with the city. Something as simple as pulling a permit can turn into a long, drawn-out process.”