Page 7 of Stick Move

Abandonment leaves you with a kind of emptiness that can never be filled. Or maybe it can for Camryn. With the right love from her father, she might never feel the pain of rejection, and there’s time to Noah to find a mother. I’m not saying my father didn’t love me. He just buried himself in work after Mom left…and then gambling...and maybe there was a part of me that became a workaholic to get his attention and respect.

I turn my thoughts to Noah as I stand back and watch him walk around the restaurant. He glances out the window at the gorgeous view of the water below and it strikes me that he’s now the one looking out, and I’m the one looking in.

“Nice,” he says, and puts his hands into his pockets. I stare at his suit, loving the fit on his big, athletic body.

“Come on.” I wave my hand, gesturing for him to follow me, and begin to show him around the rest of the resort. We visit the pool, the weight room, the outside patio and rooftop bar, which he seemed rather impressed with. “How about we head to the family estate out back?” I suggest.

He nods and I have the strangest feeling in my gut as we walk to my family’s home. The second he enters, standing there with authority and confidence, like he owns the place, it becomes glaringly apparent that life as I’ve always known it is going to change drastically. My chest flutters, and as I swallow against a gritty throat, I turn my head to wipe the tears in the corners of my eyes. This is all happening so fast, and I’m clearly not prepared for it.

“This is where you grew up?” he asks. I quickly pull myself together and turn back to him.

“Yes,” is all I manage to get out.

“You still live here, Brighton?”

“The house is broken into wings,” I explain, working to keep my voice from cracking, as I point to the two staircases that lead upstairs. “My father lived in the west wing. And I live in the east. There are numerous guest rooms on the main level here. There’s also a kitchen and everything a guest could want down here. We have staff on hand for meals and cleaning.” As those words spill from my mouth, I can only imagine how much of a princess he must think I am. “Which wing do you want to see first?”

“Why don’t you show me what you want to show me, Brighton.”

I gulp, as my thoughts go south. What the hell is wrong with me? Why are my thoughts constantly heading down a very personal direction around Noah? Sure, he has residual scars on his face but they don’t detract from his good looks. The man is handsome and big and his dominant presence overwhelms me, but the way my body is warming is ridiculous.

I force my legs to move. “Let’s start in my wing. It hasn’t been emptied yet, but I’ll get on that right away.”

“When you’re ready,” he says quietly, warmth and understanding in his voice. “We’ll have to reassign them,” he says, as I start toward the stairs.

“Excuse me?”

“The staff here, in the family home.” I glance over my shoulder and eye him. He scrubs his face, his gaze meeting mine. “I prefer privacy.”

“Yes, of course.” My mind races. While I’m happy that he wants to reassign staff and not fire them, it definitely means he won’t want to rent me my wing as I’d hoped. That would invade his privacy. Not that I think it’s a good idea either. Do I even have any friends I could stay with until I find a place? I suppose I could ask someone on staff to help me out in the interim.

I hurry up the stairs ahead him, and when I hear a sound, like a groan, I glance over my shoulder again and realize my ass is perfectly aligned with his face, but surely to God, he’s not groaning because he’s admiring my backside. Right?

“This is my…or rather, was my wing.” I walk down the hall and open the door leading to my wing. I stop inside and wave my hand around my living room.

He gives a low slow whistle. “Very nice.”

“My father’s wing is larger, and it has three bedrooms. You’ll probably want that for you and Camryn.”

“Three bedrooms, huh?”

“Yes, I only have one. That’s all I ever needed.” I walk through the living room and open a door leading to my bedroom. Noah follows me in and steps up to my bed. He runs his finger down the long oak bedpost, admiring the wood and craftsmanship. My entire body tingles as I think about checking myself into the hospital for some much-needed counselling, because yes, I’m suddenly jealous of a bedpost.

He turns back my way as he hovers near my bed. “Gorgeous piece of work here.”

“It is,” I agree. I gather up my courage. “Noah, if you do buy the resort, are you going to keep it running as a resort?”

“That would be the plan.”

Relief washes through me. “Thank you.” He angles his head, confusion in his eyes. “It’s important to me.”

“Okay.”

“The staff are important too. They all do their jobs very well and I don’t want to see anyone let go.”

“I understand.” He goes quiet for a moment as he takes another look around. “Will you stay on?”

My heart jumps. He wants me to stay on? I’m not sure if this is a dream or a nightmare. “Why…?” is all I can manage to get out. “Why would you want me to?”

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