“This place is amazing
,” I said, mostly to myself.
“Thank you. I have two hundred acres of seclusion right by myself. I built it
myself too, from the ground up. I even cut and cleared the timber with a little help from some heavy machinery,” he said with a sense of pride in his voice that I couldn’t help but admire.
“You should be very proud. That’s a great accomplishment.”
"Enough about me, tell me a little about you," he said to me, wearing that sexy smile and looking me over like it was the first time he noticed what I was wearing.
"I borrowed some of your clothes, I hope you d
idn't mind," I said a little embarrassed.
"They look much better on you than they do on me." We had finally reached the end of the road and he pulled on the highway heading
north.
"So, where are we exactly?" I asked, once again avoiding the subject of me.
"South of Hattiesburg, just on the Forrest County line."
“
Have you lived here all your life?" I asked, trying to steer the conversation away from me. He let out a light laugh.
"I know what you
’re doing Dallas and it’s not going to work. Tell me about the woman who is responsible for this smile on my face." He said, pointing at that face that I had become infatuated with.
"There's really not a lot to tell
," I said, turning to look out the window. I didn't like feeling exposed. I didn't want to open up and get too close to this man when I had no idea how long this, whatever this was, was going to last.
"I don't believe you. Tell me, I would really like to know you better." The
sincerity in his voice and stare instantly put me at ease.
"I was born in Atlanta, Georgia to Herman and Kay Knox. My father was a real estate investor and my mother ran a clothing boutique downtown." I smiled to myself, remembering how graceful she looked sashaying from one customer to the other
.
"She would always let me sit in a chair facing the dressing room applauding the ladies that came out in an elegant evening gown or cocktail dress. She had such a way with fashion. My dad always wanted her to take it further. He even offered to open up her very own exclusive line, but she said her happiness was right there, in that little boutique she had dreamed of having since she was a child. I can still see my dad walking in there, sweeping her off her feet and kissing her like they were sixteen again. I don't think love like that exists anymore," I said, my eyes glossing over at the memories. The aching I felt in my chest was heavy. It had never ceased. Even after all these years the pain was still there.
"What happened to them?" Luke asked, breaking me from my thoughts.
"My mother was closing late one night. There was a charity ball that weekend and most of the locals shopped there, so she had been pretty busy all evening. I was in Panama City with some of my girl- friends for spring break, so she was alone. A group of men were later seen leaving the store on foot. She had been shot and killed. The police wrote it off as a robbery, but my father knew better. Most of her customers used a charge account and only a small amount of money was taken. After that, my father spent weeks trying to solve the mystery. He kept saying that it was an inside job. I never knew what that meant and I never asked because he had distanced himself completely from me. Six months later he was found dead in his office. The autopsy revealed it was the result from a brain aneurism, but I think it was a broken heart."
Luke reached over, grabbing my hand and bringing it to his lips. He didn't say
anything; he just held my hand and let me cry. I had never opened up to anyone like this before. I knew in that moment, that I felt something for this man.
"After that I moved to Mississippi to live with my grandmother in Collins. I left everything
; my friends, my life, my hopes and dreams. I was seventeen and I had nothing. My grandmother tried as hard as she could to raise me, but at only nineteen, I lost her too. So, I got my shit together, went to college, got a degree in business, and took after my father investing in real estate. That's it. Now you know more about me than anyone I’ve met," I said, my tears subsided and my impassive face back intact.
"I want to know everything about you. I have somewhere I have to be tonight. I would love it if you would join me
," he said, looking at me and making my heart melt.
"I'd love to, but you have to feed me first
," I said smiling at him.
He
laughed, picking my hand up and kissing my fingers once again, "For you miss Dallas, anything."
We pulled up outside a run-down building just off the highway. The outside was painted blue with Christmas lights strung from one end to the other, even though it was September. Beer signs covered the front, helping to hide the wear and tear of the structure. A huge sign stretched across the top giving the place the name, Donnelley’s.
“Don’t judge the quality by the outside. This place has the best steak around
,” Luke stated, pulling the truck up to the front door.
“I don’t have any shoes
,” I said, even though by the looks of this place they were not rendered necessary. I was hoping my lack of proper attire would be enough to convince him of a drive thru rather than the outlandish place he had brought me too.
“Do you really think I would take you looking the way you do in public? I ordered out
,” he said winking at me and letting me know that he was joking. I sighed in relief, which must have been obvious because he laughed as he got out of the truck and walked inside giving me a view of his great ass.
Bored, I turned the volume up on the radio to hear it tuned to a country station. Funny, I placed him in a hard rock genre
, definitely not country. Not only was it country, but it was classic country. I often listened to that myself. Merle Haggard was singing about the good times being over and I sang along with him word for word. My concert was ended when Luke suddenly appeared carrying a large brown sack that smelled so good it made my mouth water.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I just ordered you what I always get. I promise you won’t be disappointed.”
I had not realized until that point how hungry I was. It took a tremendous amount of will power to keep me from digging in like a savage.
“Well it smells wonderful
,” I said smiling. “So, where do you live babe? I figured we could take this picnic to your place. Unless you have a boyfriend you’re hiding there,” he said without making eye contact.
“The only man in my life goes by the name of Neo. He
’s a seven year old black lab who loves me unconditionally no matter what,” I replied. “And to answer your other question, I live on the Flemming Plantation. It’s off of highway ninety-eight.”
“Are you serious?”
he asked, looking at me like I had lost my mind.
“Yes I’m serious and don’t go telling me that I’m crazy.” I knew what it must look like. After the massacre of 1993 where all four family members were brutally murdered by the wife’s secret lover, the plantation was put on the market
, but never sold. A small real-estate company bought the plantation in hopes of selling it off piece by piece. They were only able to sell the acreage that surrounded it leaving the ten gated acres along with the house and barn, where the family was found dead, to be overgrown and neglected. I bought out the company about two years ago and have since restored the magnificent house to its former glory.
“I wasn’t going to say you were crazy
. It just surprised me that you would own something with such a tragic significance,” he said, still looking at me like I had lost my mind.
“Well I think it’s a lovely place and when I purchased the company
, the house came as a bonus. When I went to look at it I couldn’t help but feel like it was a part of me. If it makes you feel any better I learned of the tragedy only after I decided to keep the house,” I said defensively.
“I’m sorry if I offended you. If it’s a part of you I’m sure it’s amazing
,” he said, smiling and knocking down my walls once again.
“I’d really like to get my car first,
and then you can just follow me out there.”
“You don’t need your car
,” he said with finality in his tone that let me know the subject was not negotiable.
“Yes I do
,” I replied. Not wanting him to think he had complete control over me, although I knew he did.
“No, you don’t. I’ll get someone to bring it to your house later. You already agreed to be with me this evening anyway.”
“I don’t want someone I don’t know driving my car and coming to my house,” I said, getting more than a little aggravated at his proposition.
“Do you not trust me babe?”
he asked, giving me a daring look. “Well, I really don’t even know you,” I snapped back at him.
Where had that come from?
“Well we will just have to work on that won’t we
,” he said, never letting his eyes leave the road.
For some reason, I didn’t argue. I had agreed to join him this evening and just the thought of not seeing him caused my heart to ache. So, if that meant giving a complete stranger access to my car and home, then it was a risk I was willing to take, because I did trust him. I just didn’t want him to know how much. Not yet, anyway.
We drove the rest of the way in complete silence. Luke never asked for directions. He knew exactly where we were going, which wasn’t uncommon considering the history of the place. We pulled up to the gate and I gave him the key code to let us in. Not wanting to ruin the rest of our evening, I turned to face him.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you. I’m just use to always being in control. I do trust you
,” I admitted.
“It’s cool babe. I’m sorry too. I just assume responsibility and control over everything. It’s my nature. I’ll try to be a little more lenient in the future
,” he said with a heartwarming smile that made my chest swell. “Wow, this place looks amazing,” he said looking out at the property.
Most of the property had been cleared of any trees giving you a full view from just inside the gate. The left side looked much like an open field which ran all the way to the tree line adjoining the
neighbor’s property. The massive black wrought iron gate stood tall all along the edge of the field. The grass was a lush green color and cut short. The right side, where the paved driveway curved around, was landscaped with seasonal flowers and shrubs. A stone garden patio equipped with a fire pit, swing and small fountain sat near the fence. It was slightly hidden from view by crape myrtle trees giving it the feel of a secret garden. The house loomed big before us. The red brick was slightly faded and the weathered shutters gave it an old look. We pulled under the open carport at the back of the house and Luke’s eyebrows shot up at the sight of the old Ford pickup truck parked next to us.
“To haul things with
,” I said. He still looked at me quizzically, not fully convinced. “Seed, mulch, fertilizer, the dog… Did you think I would put that stuff in my
car
?”
“You just don’t appear to be the type that would do all this on your own
,” he said, almost like a question. I could tell he was trying not to offend me.
I laughed. “Yeah? Well you don’t seem much like the
hard core biker type either. I’m not even fully convinced you are a biker. Don’t they usually ride motorcycles?”
“True
,” he replied, laughing with me, but not elaborating further. We got out and were immediately greeted by Neo.
“Hey big boy!” I said, patting his head and allowing him to jump all over me. He soon left me to go sniff out Luke. Trader. I got my things out of the truck
, digging the keys out of my clutch to unlock the door. As soon as I walked in I closed my eyes and inhaled the scent of the room. It was covered wall to wall in old books. It had originally been a library and when I bought the house, I couldn’t change it. The only piece of furniture was an old couch that sat in the corner and swallowed you when you sat in it. The overstuffed cushions were a tan color and homemade quilts and pillows were piled high all over it.
“I spend a lot of time in here
,” I said to Luke when he made his way inside. Neo had gotten bored with him too and was now inside exploring. I was sure I would find him asleep on the couch by the time we made it to the living room. “Most of the books were already here when I moved in. I added a couple hundred more from my own collection,” I said, not being able to contain the smile that formed on my face every time I looked at it.
“I can see this room makes you happy
,” Luke said with a low voice that caused me to turn and look at him. Before I knew what was happening I was in his arms. One of his hands held the back of my neck, while the other lifted my chin. We were so close I could feel his heart beating through his shirt. Suddenly his lips were on mine. His tongue invaded my mouth, kissing me harshly. The taste of him was overwhelming. The smell of him was intoxicating. I fell limp in his arms allowing my hands to slowly explore all over his chest and arms. He deepened the kiss, stroking his tongue over and over mine.
Man this guy
knew how to kiss
. My nipples betrayed me by hardening through my shirt and the sheer pleasure I got from them rubbing against his chest made me moan into his mouth causing him to kiss me harder. I could feel him hardening through his worn jeans, and at that moment all I wanted was him. He must not have wanted the same thing. He pulled away from my body, but still holding my face planted sweet tender kisses on my mouth.