CHAPTER7
TANNER
On Friday afternoon, I left the city early to arrive at the lake house first. It was a property owned by Jeremiah’s company that I was renting for the weekend, and as the tall canopy of trees overhead opened up to a clearing and I caught my first glimpse of it, I grinned.
Fuck yes. I did good. The place was amazing. I’d known the guy for as long as I could remember, but I was still surprised sometimes by the places he owned. I couldn’t believe I’d never been to this one before, but as I crept forward, ducking my head to get a good look at it out the windshield, I already knew I would be coming here again.
The structure was all glass and wood, built to have a view of the lake from as many rooms as possible and with as little obstruction to that view as possible. A large deck overlooked the lake at the bottom and there was a huge upper-level balcony on the side.
After a slow start in deciding about what to do for the weekend, I’d approached Steph for help. She’d put together an information packet for me on a few of the properties the company had available that could work, and as soon as I’d seen this one, I’d chosen it.
I rolled up to the front door, admiring the house. Then I climbed out of the car and shouldered my overnight bag. The weekend could be all right, but I just wished I wasn’t spending it here with a married woman.
This place had the potential to make for the most romantic getaway of someone’s life, but unfortunately, this weekend would be light on the romance front. It was definitely a place to keep in mind if I ever met someone I wanted to get romantic with, though.
Soft digital beeps pierced the quiet air as I keyed in the passcode to the lockbox on the wall. When it dropped open, I extracted the key to the front door. Making my way inside, I pulled off my sunglasses with my free hand and adjusted my grip on the bag with the other, slinging it over my shoulder instead of keeping the strap where it had been digging into my collarbone.
The air inside was still, but there was a faint whiff of cleaning products clinging to it. Exploring the lower level first, I opened windows and the wide sliding doors facing the lake. Down here was an open-concept kitchen with the stove placed in the center island to overlook the lake instead of having to stare at the wall while cooking.
Brown leather sofas had been placed in a loose semi-circle in the center of the large, double volume living area. A multicolored rug was spread out on the floor underneath them and there were throws strategically placed on top of them to cuddle with.
There was a gas fireplace on one wall with a huge, flatscreen TV nearby. I couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to watch TV with a view like the one this place offered, but the beauty of the layout was that even if someone was watching TV, they’d still be able to see the lake.
I didn’t know much about interior design, but it was obvious even to me that a lot of thought had gone into it so that nothing would detract from the view. The remainder of the ground floor consisted of a few bedrooms and bathrooms, but the master suite and the larger guestrooms were upstairs.
I went up to drop my bag off before heading to the basement, where there was a fully stocked bar, along with a pool table and a home theater. I can’t believe he’s been keeping this place all to himself all this time.
In fact, I was already starting to formulate a plan for coming back here as soon as I could, and for staying for at least a couple weeks when I did. It wasn’t really a place for a guys’ getaway, but Shawn and Bart would love it, too.
Bart can just bring his computer and work from here if he has to.There was even a private dock outside with a boat we had access to, which could also be fun. Yeah, I’m not waiting until I finally meet a girl, if that ever happens, to come back here.
Pulling my phone out of my back pocket, I snapped a few pictures of the place for the guys. We could easily spend a week or two unwinding here someday soon.
As I turned to leave the basement, my gaze snagged on a standing clock in the corner. More time had passed since I’d arrived than I’d thought, which meant that I had to hurry the hell up and finish having a look around upstairs if I wanted to get it done before Brit got here.
I sighed, taking the stairs two at a time. Why the fuck would a married lady have made a bid on a weekend away with a guy who wasn’t her husband?
Generally, I was in the live-and-let-live camp, but this just didn’t make sense to me. While we’d done that search on Brit, we’d seen pictures of her with her husband on social media. I knew things weren’t always what they seemed, but she and her husband looked genuinely happy. They were always smiling. Always touching each other somehow in the photos. Every second one was of one of them staring lovingly at the other.
Her social pages were filled with them checking in together all over the place and tagging each other in funny posts as well as sappy ones. All evidence pointed to them being a happily married couple, which was why this was confusing the hell out of me.
Whatever her reason for raising that paddle—multiple times—she would be here in about ten minutes. One way or another, I would find out once she arrived what she was after, but I didn’t think Jeremiah was right about it only being one thing.
Since I’d already chosen the room I would be staying in, I went to check out the master that I’d left open for her. On the nightstand next to the bed, there was a bowl of condoms with a note from him saying, Just in case.
The sound of a car door closing outside drifted up to me, and my eyes went as wide as they could go. I lunged for the bowl, stashing it away in the nightstand before slamming the little door shut. I hoped she wouldn’t open it while we were here. If I’d had more time, I’d have hidden it properly, but she was a few minutes early and I definitely wasn’t eager for her to catch me running around holding an entire bowl filled with condoms.
Thank God I came to check in here before she arrived.
Stepping back, I cast one last gaze around the space to make sure there were no more surprises hidden anywhere. Then I turned and jogged downstairs to meet her. On my way down, I caught sight of the car through the window and frowned when I spotted someone with brown hair instead of blonde standing next to it. Her back was to me as she looked out at the lake.
Did I get the dates wrong somehow?I didn’t think I had, but that definitely wasn’t Brit. I supposed she could’ve colored her hair, but she was also quite short and built like an ironing board, whereas whoever was out there was taller and curvier.
My eyebrows knitted together, but I kept going. Maybe whoever that was had gotten her dates wrong.
When I opened the front door and she turned at the sound, a wave of recognition slammed into me. It wasn’t Brit, it was her. The friend. The one I’d wished had bid on me instead, but she hadn’t and yet she was here.
Sunlight was glinting off the windows of the car, but as far as I could see, there was no one else in there. She was alone, which meant she wasn’t just here to drop off her friend.