For the most part, Elle hadn’t changed. Except that she was even prettier, but he wondered if that beauty came from an air of being a bit more self-possessed and worldly than she’d been. She wasn’t a tough chick, but it seemed like she wouldn’t put up with anyone’s crap. Back in the day when she’d been with Roger, she was naive. That guy had a way of manipulating situations to make girlfriends believe he was faithful, parents think he was the Second Coming and friends eager to do his bidding.
Now Elle seemed sassier and maybe even just this side of jaded. Even though she’d been the quintessential good girl in high school—the cheerleader, the homecoming queen, the honor student, the artist—he’d always sensed a passionate side to her, lying dormant like a sleeping volcano that was waiting for the right man to stoke it. The thought of being the one to make the untouchable Elle Clark erupt was still his sexiest fantasy. And he had been around the block a few times.
“I live here now,” he said. “My grandmother passed away a couple of years ago. My brother, Aidan, and I inherited her house over on Barnard Street. We run our business out of it. I rebuilt her place for her...after the accident.”
The fire had been an accident. The unfortunate result of teenage boys with too much time on their hands and too little common sense to understand that certain fireworks were illegal for a reason. By the grace of God no one had been hurt, but his grandmother’s house had been destroyed. Hell, if anything good had come of it, it had been his wake-up call. It had been the catalyst that had knocked the chip off his shoulder and made him start getting his act together.
“I heard about your grandmother’s passing,” Elle said, sympathy softening her blue, blue eyes. “I’m sorry.”
He nodded his thanks and shoved his hands in the back pockets of his jeans, wracking his brain for something else to say.
“How’s life in Atlanta?” he asked, wanting to keep the conversation going. Her blue eyes darkened a shade and she bit her full bottom lip. He wondered if her mouth still tasted as sweet as it had all those years ago—
“Life in Atlanta is fine, thank you.” Elizabeth’s brow furrowed. Her expression and clipped words hinted that might not be the truth...or maybe she’d read his mind. “Thanks for stopping by. May I help you with something else?”
A list of ways that she could help him—such as finishing what they’d started back in the day, before Roger horned in—pinged through his head, but good sense kept the request from falling off his tongue.
“Not today. I’m here to see your grandmother.” He nodded toward Wiladean Boudreau, who was descending the big staircase that spilled into the lobby. “But thanks, anyway. I’ll let you know if I think of something.”
“Oh.” He couldn’t tell if Elle was more surprised by his meeting with Wiladean or his comment. He hoped it was a little of both.
Elle’s head turned in the direction of her grandmother, who was now walking toward them.
“Actually, I did think of something,” he said. “Want to grab a drink sometime while you’re home?”
Slim chance. But one thing he’d learned over the past few years was if you didn’t ask, the answer was always no.
* * *
“Well, good,” Gigi said. “Good! I’m glad you two have had a chance to say hello.” There was a certain gleam in her grandmother’s eye that made Elle uncomfortable. “If you didn’t run into each other this morning, I was going to make sure Daniel knew you were home. So you two could get reacquainted.”
Gigi’s eyes glinted with mischief, but the way she was surreptitiously glancing around the lobby didn’t escape Elle’s notice. “But right now, you’ll have to excuse us, Elle, dear. Daniel and I have some business to discuss.”
“What kind of business, Gigi?” Gigi’s entrance had provided a reason to pretend like Daniel hadn’t asked her out for a drink, but it was eclipsed by the fact that he was there to see her grandmother. “Did you forget the breakfast meeting with the Society Ladies is this morning?”
Wiladean’s gaze flitted toward the dining room, where the women were beginning to arrive, and then back to Elizabeth and Daniel. “No, I didn’t forget. But now that you mention it, why don’t you go help your mother greet everyone, dear? I’m sure they’ll be delighted to see you.” She motioned for Daniel to follow her. “This shouldn’t take very long.”