Whisper's Edge (29 page)

Tristan didn’t look up until it was nearly time to meet with Mitch Monroe, but luckily his office was directly across the parking lot. With a long sigh, Tristan leaned back against the pillows on the sofa. His heart thumped as he thumbed through his notes one last time. “Wow…” It just might be possible to develop the surrounding property, creating jobs and opportunity with a marina that abutted but didn’t take the heart of Whisper’s Edge. And yet he could expand like Savannah suggested, adding more housing for more residents and improve the grounds. Damn…all he needed was some financial backing.

Was it going to be possible to have his cake and eat it too?

He would have to sell Mitch Monroe on his new proposal, but Tristan certainly hoped it would be the case.

After stuffing the notes into his briefcase Tristan picked up his laptop in case he needed it and headed out the door. A few minutes later he was in the elevator taking him up to Mitch’s office. When he stepped into the hallway he saw a tall man speed by him like the hounds of hell were after him.

“Benjamin, Daddy says to stop!”

Tristan saw a little guy dressed in a tiny baseball uniform tearing down the hallway.

“I mean it!”

The response was a wild giggle as he turned a corner.

“I’m warning you! Stop right there and bring Daddy the baseball.”

Tristan realized that the man in hot pursuit of the toddler must be Ty McKenna. He grinned. Triple Threat Ty McKenna was a baseball superstar who would likely end up in the Hall of Fame someday, and was having trouble keeping up with a towheaded little boy. Tristan had to admit that the little guy had some serious speed.

“Noah? Mia? Baby Ben is on the loose!”

“Again?” The feminine voice must belong to Mia.

“Catch him! He’s got my home-run baseball that won the National League playoffs.”

“I’ll try!”

“Gotcha!” Mia exclaimed with a laugh.

“No!” shouted Benjamin. “Let me go Meee-aaah!” he squealed but giggled.

“Oh, you can’t wiggle away from Mia. Don’t even try.”

Tristan headed down the hallway just in time to see Ty McKenna shake his finger at Benjamin, who was doing his best to look blue-eyed innocent, even though he had a baseball clutched in two chubby hands. “I want to play!”

“Benjamin, you have to use your own baseball, not Daddy’s. We talked about that.”

Benjamin pouted. “I like dis one bedder!”

Mia laughed. “He wants the real deal, Ty, not some plastic toy.”

“And he climbed his way up my bookcase to get it. Scared the crap out of me. I can’t take my eyes off of him for a second.” Ty sighed. “Don’t tell Jessica that he got away from me again. Baby Ben, you’re harder to chase than a line drive.”

Mia chuckled but then nodded toward the hallway. “I think you’re about to be relieved of your daddy duties.”

Tristan turned to see a pretty young blonde walking down the hallway.

“Maddie!” Benjamin shouted and managed to wiggle away from Mia.

The pretty blonde laughed. “You’re the only one allowed to call me that, baby brother.”

Baby brother? Tristan could see the resemblance but, wow, that was some age difference between them.

“Hi, Madison,” Ty said a bit sheepishly.

“Lose him again, did ya?” Madison asked with a grin.

“Don’t tell your mother. And for the record, it sucks that he’s figured out how to unlock doors. It’s a recent achievement.”

Madison hefted Benjamin up in the air, making him giggle. “What can I say, he’s smart like his big sister.” She gave Ty a look of sympathy. “Hey, Mom will tell you that it took a village to raise me. I was a wild child too.”

Ty smiled. “And look how good you turned out.”

“Ah, flattery will get you everywhere. Your secret is safe with me, Ty.” She gave Benjamin a kiss on the cheek.

“You wouldn’t want to take the little tiger to the park would you?” Ty asked and put his hands together in prayer. “I love my son but I have to get the lineup set for tonight.”

“I’d never turn down a playdate with my baby brother. It took me long enough to get one!” Madison tossed the baseball to Ty. “We might even get an ice cream at the Dairy Hut if you’re good for Maddie.”

“Ice caa-weam! Yea!” He clapped his hands and gave Madison a loud, sloppy kiss. “I lub you, Maddie.”

“I lub you too, sweet pea.”

“I’m not a pea. I’m a boy, silly.”

They all laughed, including Tristan.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Mia said when she noticed him standing in the background. “Benjamin tends to take center stage whenever he’s around. I didn’t see you standing there. My father is in his office, the last one on the left. He’s expecting you and said to go on in when you arrive.”

“Thanks,” Tristan said and then took the outstretched hand from Ty.

“Ty McKenna,” he said and of course had an iron grip.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. McKenna. I’m a big fan.”

Ty grinned. “Good, then you’ll keep it to yourself that I can be outrun by a toddler.”

Tristan laughed. “A future star, I’m sure.”

“I hope so,” Ty said, “but he likes to bang around in the kitchen at Wine and Diner with his mother. Whatever he wants to be is okay with me. And you’ll notice that Noah has stayed hiding in his office. Benjamin scares him,” he said loudly.

“I’m not scared, I’m busy,” Noah shouted from his office.

They all laughed once more.

“Sure you are,” Madison called to him and got a grunt as an answer.

“Hi, I’m Madison. I’d shake your hand, Tristan, but he’d escape again.”

“I understand,” Tristan said. “Nice to meet you…and you too, Benjamin.”

“Let’s go, Maddie!” Benjamin put his hands on her cheeks and forced her attention back to him.

“Okay!” she said and twirled him in a circle. “To the park we go!”

Tristan made his way down the hallway but smiled at the easy camaraderie and chatter going on behind him. When he reached the last office on the left the door was open but he knocked, getting the attention of Mitch Monroe, who sat behind a big desk.

“Come on in, Tristan.” He took off his reading glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“Hello, Mitch.”

“Have a seat.”

“Thanks,” Tristan said and sat down in a plush leather chair. Out of a picture window a nice view of the Ohio River spanned nearly the width of the room. To the left was the Cougars’ stadium. He opened his briefcase and took out his notes. “I know we talked about a couple of ideas for the
Whisper’s Edge property but I want to run something different past you.”

Mitch leaned back in his chair and nodded. “Well, before you go through all of that I want to make you an offer to purchase Whisper’s Edge outright.”

Tristan’s heart pounded. “Really?” Tristan really hadn’t expected Mitch to go that route.

Mitch nodded. “Look, if you sat on the property a little while it would go up in value because of the riverfront location, but if you want a quick turnaround I’m prepared to offer you five hundred thousand.”

“Oh…” Several thoughts went through his head. A half a million dollars was quite a haul no matter how you sliced it. He could make that much money work for him in so many ways. His mother could immediately retire, for starters. He could hang out a shingle in Cricket Creek and practice law at a leisurely pace. Oh, and not to mention that his grandfather would be livid that he’d sold Whisper’s Edge at a fraction of Tristan’s selling price.

“Well…” His heart thudded and a trickle of sweat slid down his back. How could he turn this down?
Because you love Savannah,
slid into his brain and calmed him down. Then he thought of Kate and Ben…Miss Patty and even the Camden brothers. This was their home. And all of them were Savannah’s extended family. “I’ve been doing some thinking about the property, and it’s worth more than that to me.”

“Ah…you drive a hard bargain.” At Tristan’s hesitation, Mitch said, “Okay, six hundred fifty thousand but that’s the best I can do. I’ve got a lot invested in the strip mall and don’t want to stretch myself too thin.” He grinned. “I’m not out there making money hand over fist anymore so I have to learn to be a little bit conservative.”

“Then why not listen to my proposal and invest instead of purchasing?”

Mitch angled his head. “Well, because I know for sure
that the land itself is a good investment that will eventually pay off. Anything else has a risk factor.”

“You don’t want to hear me out?”

“I want you to consider my offer first.”

“Okay,” Tristan said but couldn’t help but feel a bit deflated.

“You don’t have to answer me right this minute, Tristan. Sleep on it. Quite frankly, I’d like to have access to the land for my own purposes instead of a joint venture. At this point I don’t know if I could even consider anything else. As I said, I like to make money but taking a risk has lost the allure.”

Tristan nodded. “Okay, fair enough.” He stood up and leaned over to shake Mitch’s hand. But as he headed for the door he turned around and said, “To fully consider selling I’d like to know what you would plan to do with Whisper’s Edge.”

Mitch pressed his lips together and then replied, “At the moment I’m not entirely sure, but like you, I know that the property could be developed into something more than the run-down retirement community that it’s been for a long time.”

Tristan felt a flash of alarm.

“Is there something else you want me to know?”

Nodding slowly, Tristan said, “I hope you’ll consider that Whisper’s Edge is much more than a neglected piece of land. It’s a community of seniors enjoying their twilight years being active and productive in Cricket Creek.”

“I’ll certainly keep that in mind. And I’ll e-mail you the details of my offer. If you accept, I’ll have the official contract drawn up and we’ll go from there.”

“Thanks.” Tristan nodded briskly and then opened the door. As he rode down on the elevator he didn’t think he’d ever been so confused in his entire life. Mitch Monroe had just offered him a sweet deal and yet he just didn’t feel happy or even proud of the accomplishment. He cared
about Kate and Ben, and he was fond of Miss Patty, the crazy Camdens, and even Willie! Tristan inhaled a deep breath. And this was home to Savannah. He wished that Mitch had heard him out!

Instead of going back to his condo Tristan decided to head up into town for a bite to eat. After arriving at his car, Tristan slid behind the wheel and shoved his fingers through his hair. But just as he was about to start his car his cell phone rang. It was his mother.

“Hi, Mom, what’s up?”

“Sweetie, I have a bit of a legal issue concerning a piece of property I just sold. Do you think you could come home and take care of it for me?”

Tristan frowned. “Can’t you just e-mail it to me?”

“I could, but it’s an excuse to have you home for a few days. I won’t lie. I miss you, Tristan.”

“I miss you too, Mom.” Tristan smiled and felt a tug at his heart. “I’ll head up there later today.”

“Oh, it’s a long drive. I don’t want to rush you.”

“No, that’s okay. I could use a long road trip to do some thinking. I have something I’d like to discuss with you, anyway.”

“Oh, you have your mother curious, Tristan! Spill!”

“Not over the phone.”

“Okay, well in that case I’ll throw together your favorite lasagna.”

“Oh, that’s a deal I can’t pass up. See you tonight.”

“Have a safe trip.”

“I will, Mom. Don’t worry.”

“It’s my job to worry,” she said with a laugh. “Call when you’re close.”

“Will do.”

A moment later he called Savannah.

“Hey, what’s up?” she asked brightly.

“Savannah, I’m sorry but I have to cancel dinner tonight. My mother needs me to help her with a real estate contract so I’m going to have to head to Cincinnati tonight.”

She hesitated slightly. “Oh…How long do you think you’ll be gone?”

“A few days at the most.”

“Oh, okay.” She sounded confused, and he didn’t blame her one bit. “I’m sorry. This was unexpected,” he said lamely.

“Don’t be. Things come up. It’s fine.”

“Thanks for being understanding.” Guilt stabbed him in the gut, and he dearly wished he had been honest with her from the beginning.

“Will you be home in time for the Hoedown?”

“I would think so, but I’ll let you know. Damn, I’m going to miss you.”

“Me too,” she said softly. “A lot.”

“I’m really sorry.” Hearing the disappointment in her voice tore him up.

“Hey, you have to help your mother, Tristan. I’m going to be busy getting ready for the event. The days will pass in the blink of an eye.”

“Not fast enough but you always manage to look at the bright side of things. Another reason I’ve fallen in love with you.”

“And you caring so much about your mother is another reason I love you. Do what you have to do but get back here as soon as you can, okay? I miss you already.”

“I’ll do my best.”

When Tristan hung up the phone he vowed to get everything straightened out with the Whisper’s Edge property as soon as possible so he could come clean with Savannah. But, damn, he wasn’t kidding. He was going to miss her terribly.

B
EN LOOKED DOWN AT HIS CHEESEBURGER AND FRIES AND
frowned at the golden brown bun. Wine and Diner served up a bodacious burger, and he thought that ordering it would make his appetite return but he seriously didn’t know if he could get the sandwich past his lips.

“Something wrong, sugar?”

Ben looked at Sunny and attempted to smile. “No, Sunny, everything looks fine, but I think I’ll have a Coke instead of just water.”

Sunny gave him a wink. “Coming right up.”

It was well past lunch and the diner was nearly empty. Ben was glad. He didn’t want to run into anybody who wanted to make small talk. Hopefully, the fizz in the Coke would help to settle his stomach. He missed Kate so much that sleeping and eating were becoming damned difficult. He even snapped at sweet little Savannah when she stopped over to ask him to replace the mailbox in front of the office. After Kate broke his already battered heart he didn’t want to go anywhere near the woman. Deep down he knew that her reaction was out of some sort of misplaced fear, but Ben
was too wounded to muster up the energy to sort all of that out.