Page 105 of Best Laid Plans

Mama had moved out and gone to Atlanta. Alma had gone with her. Despite how angry Mama had been with my sister, she'd forgiven her as I knew she would.

We were closing the mansion down. It was an expensive estate so it would take a minute for it to be sold. I'd still have to keep up the property—the gardens and the mansion, inside and out, so it was in tiptop shape for buyers.

I'd had a meeting with Gabe Rhodes, and he seemed keen to establish a Rhodes Hotel in Sentinel. Someone from his team had taken a tour of the mansion and grounds, but they were dragging their feet to decide. I didn't blame them; it was a big-ticket item.

My mother was, needless to say, disappointed that I was selling away a piece of Larue history. An old house that had freaking slave quarters was probably not the kind of legacy I wanted. I was happy to be rid of it.

Mama and Alma were staying at a Larue property in one of Atlanta's most expensive areas, so it wasn't like they were slumming it, though they complained like they were.

Alma had gotten over her broken heart rather quickly after Tyler grew a pair and told his father to go fuck himself. She was now dating a Hattenbarger of the Hattenbarger Fabrics empire. The guy was a known douchebag, but I didn't think Alma wanted him for his intellect. As always, she landed on her feet.

Bailey was out on bail. It had been a scandal of gigantic proportions in Sentinel, when news of Bailey's arrest hit the small town. Bailey's mother had come to me and begged me to drop charges against her daughter. I told her it was out of my hands, which was true. This was a GBI case, because Bailey had not just embezzled Larue Homes' money, but the Georgia state government's as well.

Bailey and Alma didn't remain friends—so much for loyalty, but then Alma always knew which side of her bread was buttered, and it wasn't the side of the woman who had been arrested for embezzlement.

Nova had met with Agent Fancie at the GBI offices in Savannah with Lemon Goodwin, her barracuda of a lawyer. The GBI was still investigating Pete—and Diego's GBI friend had given Diego a head's up that they would be arresting him soon.

Since leaving Sentinel, my life had changed for the better.

Living in Savannah had not only, once again, brought Nova into my life—but all her friends and their families as well. I used to feel lonely in Larue Mansion, with a mother and sister who were self-involved. But now, I felt cared for.

Nova loved hard. I had never thought that such happiness would be mine.

The Sentinel Heights project was moving along with alacrity. In fact, with Diego and Nova at the helm, I didn't even have to check up on progress. I knew Nova preferred it that way; keeping the professional and me separate. I was okay with that, as long as she let me take her to work every day and back home every night. As long as she let me come into her office, and lock the door so I could kiss her.

I was thinking about calling Nova when there was a knock on my office door, and Charmaine stepped in. "We have a situation."

"Okay."

"Bailey is downstairs demanding to see you. Security has stopped her, but I wanted to check with you."

I thought about how to handle this. I'd spent so many years going with my gut that now I was working toward becoming more methodical; assessing personal situations as I did professional ones. I never jumped in when it came to business, but in my personal life, I seemed to have been making decisions without much thought. I was turning thirty-one in a few months—so it was time for me to become more mindful.

"Ask one of the security guards to walk her in." I picked up my phone then. "And, ask them to make sure she doesn't have a weapon."

Charmaine's eyebrows shot up. "Say what?"

I shrugged. "I don't know this woman, Char. The woman I knew…well, the woman I thought I knew wasn't someone who stole and framed an innocent."

Charmaine pouted. "Then why do you want to talk to her?"

I smiled. "Closure."

"Really?"

I laughed. "Yeah. I'm growin' up, Char."

"About freakin' time." Charmaine flounced out of my office.

Since Georgia was a "one-party consent" law state for purposes of making audio recordings of conversations, I turned my phone's recording feature on.

I wondered how I'd feel seeing Bailey again. It had been months since we'd broken up. Some would say Nova was the rebound, but the truth was, and I was ashamed of it, Bailey and every other woman since Nova had been the rebound. It had taken me seven years and seeing Nova again to figure out where my heart was.

I had Valen to thank for helping me find Nova because if I hadn't gone to Savannah Lace to meet with Nina, none of this would have happened.

I'd talked to Valen often about Nova when we were deployed. He told me about his crushes and a girl he hoped would wait for him. In a war zone, you believed that life at home was brilliant because it was. There was food and a bed, and no one was shooting at you.

Bailey didn't knock, just walked in like she owned the place, like she had a right to me like she used to.

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