Page 4 of Those Who Are Bound

But what caught her rapt attention, nearly sending her to the floor, was the length of natural jute he was working in his hands, knotting and unknotting it. The action was methodical, thoughtless. He wasn’t paying attention to what he was doing, his arms in front of him, and his fingers toying with the thin rope as though it was second nature. He glanced up briefly

toward the structure, as though sensing her attention on him, startling her. She dropped her gaze back to the phone, cheeks blazing, swiping a hard right.

Elliott thumbed through a few pictures, mind back on track, even if her heart was thumping along faster than it should have been—really, she shouldn’t be drinking beer so soon after her workout. She scrolled past wedding receptions, graduation parties, kids’ birthday parties, and what looked to be fraternity or sorority event fundraisers. They weren’t bad. Elliott had

to admit some of them looked pretty darn good. She asked, “Have you done bat mitzvahs or bar mitzvahs? Corporate events?”

Lucy looked momentarily panicked, and then said, “Well, no, but a party’s a party, right? Give me a budget and a direction, and I am off to the races, so to speak. Oh, speaking of which, I did plan a Kentucky Derby-themed fundraiser; it’s in there somewhere. I raised a lot of money, too. And we looked fabulous.”

Elliott looked up at her, assessing. With a jerk of her head, she indicated the massive space to her right. “What could you do for Easy Street?”

Lucy’s eyes grew to saucers. “The possibilities are endless here! Are you kidding me? I mean, weddings would be the money-maker, but fundraisers get the word out. You get the tax break for donating the space, and people see it and remember the site. If they like it, they come back and book it.

“And what couldIdo? I have a lot of contacts, and I’m pushy as hell. But nice. You got a kid? I know a place to hold a birthday party. Is he graduating? Awesome—guess where you can have his graduation party? The girl scouts need a place to camp for the night to earn their camping badge? Well, guess what? I happen to know a place, and it has bathrooms.” Lucy grinned. “I know a lot of people. And I know about this space. I know it has a working kitchen and can accommodate a stage for a DJ or a mini-concert for a band starting out, either inside or outside. You can seat three hundred people inside; the place is climate-controlled. It’s so amazing, this place. It would be a dream come true to see people living out their fantasies here and knowing

I helped make it happen.”

Elliott tilted her head, considering.

“So, with your contacts and my contacts, and us working together…” Lucy tried to lead her into a commitment.

Shaking her head, she said, “I don’t do that side of it. I’m strictly on the business side. I’m not fond of the planning, the people, any of it. Every once in a while, if it looks interesting, I might come down and help behind the bar, but otherwise, I steer clear; you’d be on your own.”

Lucy blinked at her as though trying to understand how someone couldn’t love it. “Then why do you own an event space?”

“It’s lucrative when it works.”

Looking around the space again, Lucy asked hesitantly, “And why isn’t it working now?”

“I don’t have an event planner.”

Lucy looked at her questioningly.

Shrugging, Elliott answered, “The draw of a bigger city; she took her talents to Chicago. She was good and thought she’d outgrown this space.”

Lucy gave a little nod and then assured her, “I have no interest in Chicago. Well, maybe to visit. But I like KC. Total Royals fan. The Chiefs are growing on me now that we have our awesome quarterback. And I can talk about how KC bar-b-que is the best all day. I’m settled here. I want to settle here.”

Elliott felt a little sorry for her, putting her faith in a man who had a problem keeping his attention on his woman. Glancing out the window again, she mentally smacked herself for finding such a snake so attractive, so intriguing and alluring. He was squinting those gorgeous greens up at the sun, the bright light shining down on his chiseled features: strong jawline, straight nose, high cheekbones, lips that looked like he could devastate you with one kiss.

And he was still working the length of jute. So many images crowded her brain at once. It was disconcerting, like ghosts suddenly bursting out of crypts unchecked. Her heart banged against her ribs.

Elliott called herself all sorts of horrible names and looked back at Lucy. Maybe she knew he was a dog; perhaps she was okay with it because he was that amazing, and for the moment, he was hers.

Or maybe he was rich.

But, if he were rich, she wouldn’t be here, practically begging for a job.

And when the woman wised up to his antics and walked away, she’d need a job to fall back on. She was certainly enthusiastic. Elliott wanted someone who appreciated the space as much as she did, who was proud of it—this woman loved it. Her past events had been small but cute. She seemed capable enough. And pushy was right—she’d just waltzed right on up and demanded an interview.

Elliott handed her phone back to her. “Can you come back tomorrow? I wasn’t prepared for this today. I’ll show you around the property. We’ll talk HR stuff. The pay won’t make you rich.”

Lucy silently clasped her hands together. “Really?” It was almost a squeak.

Elliott shrugged. “You might change your mind after tomorrow.”

“No, I won’t!” She bounced in place twice. “What time? Jonah can bring me back again tomorrow.”

Jonah. The hottie baking in the sun now had a name. Elliott would’ve physically smacked herself if his girlfriend wasn’t standing in front of her; she determined neither a fiancée nor wife—no ring. Small blessings; Lucy still had time to wise up. “It’s Sunday, so how about one? I don’t like to be bothered much on Sundays, and certainly not early.”How’s whatever time he can’t join you because he’s distracting as hell, even when he’s kept outside?“Do you not have a car? You’ll need a car.”

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