She anticipated his move and pulled back before he kissed her. “But no more lies or secrets between us. I won’t be with someone who isn’t honest with me. Got it?”
Meeting her demand wouldn’t be a problem. “You know everything, Taylor. And I promise there’ll be no more secrets. Ever.”
“Then I think we’re okay. But I should go.” She kissed his cheek and moved farther away.
“Stay. It’s still early.”
She shook her head. “I want to change. I’ve had these heels on all day and my feet are done.”
When she arrived, he’d been too preoccupied to notice her outfit. Now he took in the navy-blue skirt, matching jacket, and blue heels. He’d never seen her dressed in business attire. “Come back after. I can cook dinner on the grill for us. Bring your mom and Reese if you want. She can give me another soccer lesson.”
The quicker things between them went back to the way they’d been before this chat, the better.
She appeared torn, so he went in for the kill. “I’ll go over to the Java Bean and get a pie for dessert.”
Finally, he got a genuine smile from her. The kind that made the dimple in her right cheek appear. “Let me check with Mom and Reese and get back to you. I don’t know what Mom’s plans are for tonight.” She moved closer and kissed him. A brief press of her lips against his, but it still qualified as a kiss. “I’ll let you know.”
Chapter Twelve
Taylor walked into an empty house. Even Stripes was lying outside on the back patio, soaking up the sunshine. A note on the kitchen table informed her Mom and Reese went to the grocery store and the mall but would be back before dinner. In her note, Mom mentioned sending Curt a text and inviting him over for dinner. Under Mom and Reese’s names, her niece had added a large heart with eyes and a smiling mouth.
Just wonderful. Mom invited Curt for dinner.
She left the note behind and took her cell phone upstairs. At least having the house to herself gave her some time to think. To really process the bombshell Curt had dropped on her. For almost two months, she’d been living next to and dating billionaire Curt Sherbrooke. A member of the wealthiest family in America. A guy who called powerful politicians and business tycoons family. Crazy.
“His aunt and uncle live in the White House.” Taylor spoke aloud as she walked upstairs. She still couldn’t get her head around that particular detail. “How did I miss the clues?”
She considered herself a good investigator. She picked up the little details most people overlooked. The more she considered their conversations, the more clues she realized he’d dropped and she’d missed.
Taylor left both her cell phone and jacket on her bed. Today’s weather definitely called for a T-shirt and shorts, not pantyhose and heels.
The cell phone beeped as soon as she walked back with more comfortable clothes.
Priscilla invited me over. Should I say yes or no? the message from Curt read.
“At least he asked me first,” she muttered.
Did she want him over tonight? Would waiting to see him again change anything? Make the truth any less odd? Nope. And she had already stuck her neck out there when she agreed to overlook the secret he’d kept. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t rescind her decision. She cared too much about him. As her mom had said weeks ago, Curt was a keeper. Perfect in every way, or at least he had been until today. Even in this instance, he hadn’t so much lied to her as omitted details. He’d never once said he was Curt Hilton. Both her and Mom assumed as much when he said he wrote Fatal Deception. Everything he’d told her about his family was true; he’d merely failed to mention some of the finer details. Pieces of information she hadn’t inquired about either, and maybe she should’ve.
She picked up the cell phone and typed back a message. Say yes.
A message immediately cam
e back from him. Okay. See you soon. I’ll bring pie.
She smiled at his message. Of course, a lot of the things Curt did made her smile; just one of the many reasons she was willing to move past his faux pas this one time.
***
“You’re pulling my leg. It’s not possible.” Mom adamantly shook her head while she spoke.
What did she have to say to convince her mother? “Mom, I’m telling you the truth. Curt is a member of the Sherbrooke family. Why would I lie about something like that?”
She’d decided to fill Mom in on everything before Curt arrived for dinner. So, right after they put away the groceries, she sent Reese outside to play and asked Mom to sit down. She’d expected Mom to be as shocked as she’d been. She hadn’t thought Mom wouldn’t believe her.
“And why would someone like Curt Sherbrooke buy the house next door? People like him live in Manhattan or Los Angeles. Maybe Boston. Certainly not Pelham, New Hampshire.” Mom pointed in the direction of Curt’s house, even though they couldn’t see it from their kitchen. “The man living next door is an author. That’s what he told us, remember? You and Reese were sitting right here when he did.”
Okay, she’d try one more time. If Mom still refused to believe her, she’d leave it to Curt to convince her. He’d created the problem… he could solve it.