Chapter 10

Ryder

“So it seems like you and my Nana hit it off.”

“She’s sweet. But she gives off that whole ‘don’t screw with me’ vibe. I love it.”

“Yeah, she’s definitely a tough old lady.”

“Thanks again for being such a good friend to me last night,” she says.

“It was nothing. What are you going to do today?”

“Getting ready for the hot date I’m supposed to have tonight.”

“Oh, so do I know the guy?” I tease.

“You might. At first, I thought he was a complete douche nozzle. But now I think he’s kinda nice. Anyway, can you give me a ride to my house? I can call Annabelle to come and get me if it’s easier.”

“I can give you a ride home. Let’s just go inside and grab my keys and stuff.”

She smiles. “Okay, thanks.”

My dad’s car is in the driveway when we get back. He must be home from his business trip. He’s standing in the kitchen when we come in.

“Who is this pretty thing?” he asks.

“Dad, this is Scarlet. Scarlet, this is my dad, Greer.”

Scarlet sticks her hand out to him. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Abbott.”

“Please call me Greer. Nice to meet you, too. What have you guys been up to?”

I fill him in on last night’s events and our visit with Nana.

Dad laughs. “So Scarlet was lucky enough to meet the famous Pearl Abbott?”

Scarlet smiles. “She was very sweet.”

Dad and I both laugh. I tug her arm. “Come on, let me get you home.”

The drive to her house is quiet. She turns to me as we get close to her house. “Sorry we talked about your mom so much at breakfast. I could tell it made you kinda sad.”

“No, it’s okay. It’s just I haven’t heard Nana talk about her in years. She really loved my mom, as if she were her own. Nana always wanted a daughter. When my mom came along, she fell in love with her as much as my dad did.”

We pull into her driveway. “That’s so sweet,” she says. “Thanks again for everything. So what time do I need to be ready?”

“I really want you to rest. How about I pick you up at six?”

“Sounds great.” She steps out of the car. “Oh, how should I dress?”

“However you want. Comfortable.”

She smiles. “Okay.”

~*~*~

I make my way back home and find my dad in his office. “Hey, how was your trip?” I ask.

He looks up from the paperwork he’s staring at. “It was somewhat enlightening.”

“Sounds interesting.”

“Yes. While we are on the subject, we need to discuss our business and your plans.”

“I really don’t want to,” I argue.

“Son, it’s not about what you want. This is part of growing up. I can understand if you don’t want to live the day-to-day office life. I really can. But you need to at least have an idea as to what’s going on. So you’ll know if your money is being taken care of or stolen from you.”

“Why? Is something going on?” I ask.

“Well, this last trip to Atlanta was very interesting. Let’s just say I had to let a vice-president and his secretary go. He was doing a great job; technically, he did nothing wrong. His secretary, whom he was diddling on the side, however, got ahold of his company credit card and was living a rather lavish lifestyle on our dime.”

“Damn. Are you pressing charges?”

“Against the secretary, yes,” he says. “She admitted he knew nothing about it. So he was only fired for fraternization and basically not keeping up with company funds. But I’m sure he’d probably rather be in jail. Now he’s got a hell of a lot of explaining to do to his wife.”

“That’s some crazy shit. Look, Dad. I promise I’ll try to take more of an interest in this stuff with the business.”

“That’s all I’m asking. I’m trying to protect you, but I won’t be around forever. I know you’d rather work with Nelson on the farms and believe me, I respect that and I’m proud of you for it. But I would really like for you to think about taking some classes in business and learn a little more about this side of the farm as well. Okay?”

I know he’s right, as much as I hate the business side of things. “Yes, sir. I gotta go help Nelson move some of the equipment around here today. Then I have a date later, so I have to get a move on.”

He smiles and nods. “Sure. By the way, Scarlet seems like a lovely young lady. Where did someone with your ugly mug find her?”

“We met when we were both doing community service at that Habitat house. She pretty much told me to F off within the first five minutes of meeting her.”

He barks out a laugh. “Well. Now I know I like her. What on earth did she have community service for?”

“Um, well, Dustin Scott is her ex and she bashed up his car with an ax handle. I don’t know all the details, but I know he deserved it.”

“I guess she’d have no trouble keeping you in line. Are things serious?”

“Dad, it’s just a date.” Of which I hope that there will be many more of. What the hell am I thinking? Why in the hell do I want her so much? Maybe it’s just the challenge. Maybe it’s the fact that she’s a virgin or that she never gave it up to Dustin. Yeah, that has to be it.

“All I’m saying,” he continues, “is I saw the way you were looking at her. Not to mention that my mother liked her, which is… well, you know how Pearl is.”

“I know. Nana even said she reminded her of Mom.”

My dad has a shocked look on his face . “Really? So what else do you know about her? I’m intrigued now.”

I laugh and start to tell him about Scarlet. I don’t realize until I’m done talking how much I actually do know about her, but then how much I don’t.

“She sounds like a headstrong hellcat. That’s good for you. You can be a pain in the ass sometimes. You need someone who’s a challenge. Someone who will call you on your bullshit. But now that you talk about her mother, I do remember meeting her at the museum. Kind of a free spirit but overall, a nice lady. ”

“Again, it’s just a date. You have us married already.”

“I’m just saying I’ve seen that look before,” he says. “I remember it all too well, staring me back in the face from my mirror when I met your mother. It’s a mixture of fear, lust, admiration, love, and adrenaline.”

Damn. Holy shit, he might just be right. I find myself wondering what she’s thinking, what she’s doing. I can’t get her out of my head and every time I think of her, my pants tighten almost uncomfortably.

Shaking my head and trying to clear my thoughts, I go out to the barn to help Nelson.