His grip tightened, one hand going to her butt as he stood, her legs wrapping around his waist. “I should have said you’re mine. And I want to be yours. That you’re all I can see. The only one I want.”
His kiss consumed her, sweeping away the last ashes of uncertainty. There was no room for it in the way he touched her, the words he whispered against her skin. They were all in. Together.
34
Chris tossed a crumpled straw wrapper at Wes, pulling his attention from where Hailey was laughing with a customer.
“It’s about time,” he said, looking over at Noah. He and Noah exchanged a look.
“What?” Wes looked between them.
“That you fell flat on your ass in love,” Noah said.
Wes frowned, leaned forward. “We’ve been together for a week.”
Noah shrugged. “I knew with Grace the minute I looked at her.”
Chris gave a quiet, almost shy smile like he was remembering something. “Same for me.”
Wes stiffened. “Well, that isn’t this. I’m very happy. I care about her a great deal but as I said, it’s been a week.” Though, he was quite certain he could feel what they did and that thought kept him up at night.
“Just remember that doesn’t matter on Valentine’s Day. Whether you’ve been together twenty minutes or twenty years, you know to get her something, right?”
Wes crossed his arms over his chest, looked down his nose at his brother, his lips quirking. “I’m older and smarter than both of you. Of course I’ll get her something. I’m not a complete idiot.” He was quite proud of the Tiffany’s diamond bracelet he’d already bought. Fine, the idea had technically been Ari’s. She’d sent him a picture of one she’d recently bought and Wes immediately thought the shimmer of diamonds would look lovely on Hailey’s wrist.
Noah held up his hands. “I’ll back off.” He stared at Wes a moment longer. “It’s nice to see you happy.”
Wes didn’t know what to say to that. In general, he was a happy person and always had been. He enjoyed his job, most of his family; he’d had a predictable but enjoyable social life in New York. But Noah meant something more than that. He was a different kind of happy now, and it must show. Like it did on his brothers.
“Where are we at with Vanderben?” Chris asked, pulling something up on his iPad.
Noah shook his head, his expression darkening. “We’re not. I think we need to pull the plug. He’s in over his head but still trying to play hardball.”
Wes’s stomach cramped. “I don’t think we should be hasty about walking away.”
Chris frowned, set his tablet down. “We’re not. But we shouldn’t jump into something just because we like the area or the property. I agree with Noah. We should bow out of this one. I have a bad feeling.”
Wes nodded. Two against three. It was done. Except it didn’t feel like it was when he looked over at Hailey again. He was so proud of her determination and success. He’d seen CEOs with everything at their disposal who didn’t put in a tenth of the heart and effort she did. She didn’t deserve to have it ripped out from under her before she’d had a chance to soar.
“I actually have something I’d like to talk to you guys about,” Noah said.
Wes picked up his coffee, putting a mental pin in his worries. “What is it?”
“The area around the community center needs new businesses. It got me thinking about this place, the high rent, and how it impacts the tenants. What if we purchased the strip of buildings across from the rec center? We redo it, offer cuts on the rent to local business owners based on their willingness to give back to their own community.”
Wes turned the idea over in his head. “I’ve checked those places out. It needs updating. Possibly a lot.”
Noah nodded. “I didn’t come without information.” He flicked his finger across the screen, opening his own tablet.
Wes saw Hailey watching him. When their eyes connected, she winked at him. The muscles around his heart tightened but his smile grew wider.
Noah snapped his fingers, smiling widely. “Hey. Flirt later.”
“You’d look good with coffee all over you.” Wes arched his brows.
“How about we focus so I can get back to work?” Chris leaned over Noah’s shoulder.
“It definitely needs updating. It’ll cost us some money but I’ve made a lot of connections so far. I can get a lot of deals on the supplies and labor. Even giving a reduced rent, we’ll earn a profit and be able to return the investment.”