Page 83 of Love Without Control

“Well, it’s really pretty, but… Wait, did you say realtor?” I backtracked, peering out the window into the front yard, where I saw no hint of aFor Salesign.

“Yeah, a guy named Clint who I overheard talking about it at the bakery.” Dane had been working at Sweet Heaven a couple days a week so Charles could travel to Miami to see a wound care specialist. The older man had stepped on a nail during the hurricane cleanup, and it hadn’t healed well.

“So, it’s for sale?”

“It’s going on the market next week.” He lifted an eyebrow at me. “Making sure to always have the realtor’s favorite cookies on hand can get a person some very interesting inside information.”

“Ooh, sugar-fueled shadiness. I like it.” I looked around at the beautiful home, noticing the floating staircase leading up to the second floor. This place was as amazing on the inside as it was from the street. “But that doesn’t explain why we’re in here.”

“I thought since our situation has changed from short-term to indefinite, we might want to get our own place. I’m sure Robert and Jamie would like to have their vacation home back.”

I could literally feel my eyes light up with excitement. “Seriously? You mean we could buy this place?”

Dane stuffed his hands into his pockets, biting his bottom lip. “If you want to. They’ve priced it to sell, and we have plenty of money from… you know.”

From the money his father was going to use to buy me… which we then stole from him.

My shoulders hunched up around my ears. “Let’s look around.”

Fifteen minutes later, I was officially in love with this house. It was modern and spacious, but it also had an undeniable charm that spoke to me. And the master bathroom? I freaking adored it. The floor in there was white tile with tiny black accents, and the countertop and shower were covered by candy-apple-red tiles with black grout. The black dual sinks were a stunning contrast to the red, and intricate tin panel tiles made up the ceiling. It was a fun and undeniably sexy room.

“It would probably be best if we financed it. Handing over that amount of cash would look suspicious,” Dane mused as we descended the stairs. I wanted to squeal like a little kid at this staircase. Every step lit up from below each time you stepped on it. It was cool as hell. Once we reached the first floor, Dane gripped my hips and pulled me toward him. “What do you think?”

“I really like it.”

He studied my face. “Then why are your eyebrows pinching together?”

“It just seems so…”

“Permanent?” he filled in, and I nodded.

“Yes.”

“Houses can be sold, especially ones near the beach in Florida. We can probably sell it quickly when our situation is resolved.” He looked out the windows overlooking the backyard. “Or maybe I’ll just buy you out and stay here when you go back to New York.”

The thought of that brought on a rush of mixed emotions I couldn’t quite understand. Elation. Hope. And a little bit of sadness.

Smiling tentatively, I said, “Then I say we go for it.”

Dane lifted me by the backs of my thighs, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. Holding me up with one hand, he turned his ball cap around backward and kissed the hell out of me. I melted into him like a snow cone in the Sahara.

He pulled back and laid a sweet peck on my nose. “I know this isn’t perfect, Eden. I know you want to be with your family, but I’ll do my best to make you as happy as possible while you’re stuck with me.”

Tears filled my eyes, and I could only nod.

“Robert and Jamie said to tell you hi,” Dane said, walking in from the hallway once we were back home and tossing his iPhone onto the coffee table. He still had his hat on backward, which had the effect of making my nipples perk up. Not to mention the way his sweatpants hung off his hips.

“Are they having fun in Park City?”

Dane chuckled. “Yes, but Robert said his knees hurt after skiing the past three days. They’re going to spend some time in the hot tub tonight.”

“Any new Evie sightings?” The FBI had finally ruled the actual sighting of me months ago in Jacksonville as unreliable. There were no video cameras, and the woman at the convenience store had been near the end of a double shift and was tired. According to Fiero’s spying, that information had trickled down to Luca, which was a relief.

“Oh, yes,” he said, plopping down beside me. “A woman named Thorunn called the Feds and swore she saw you in an ice cave in Iceland.”

“Wow, I’m really living my best life. I was just spotted hanging out near the Great Pyramid of Giza last week.”

The Evie sightings had become a bit of a running joke for us. Robert used his skills to regularly tap into the FBI database and delighted in calling us every couple weeks to let me know where I’d been “spotted.” The FBI call center received at least a dozen each day, and most were dismissed as dead ends. Luckily, there hadn’t been any more Florida sightings.

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