The Cowboy Who Got Away. Nancy Thompson Robards

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СКАЧАТЬ said, “It sounds like they’re playing hardball, Jude.”

      He shrugged. “You know, that’s just how it goes in business.”

      “What kind of a business is the buyer in? Is it another rancher? Did Zane tell you that he sold his ranch to Bridgemont Farms? They’d been after him for a while to sell and when Dorothy got sick he needed the money to help her out with her medical bills.”

      Zane Phillips was engaged to Jude’s little sister, Lucy. The pair was expecting a baby in a few months. If Juliette was a true romantic, Lucy and Zane’s story might have made her believe that there was still hope for her and Jude. Lucy and Zane had been lifelong friends and had finally taken that friendship to the next level. Now they were expecting a baby.

      But they had done things the right way. They had been friends before they became lovers. They knew each other inside and out and understood each other. Sure, she and Jude had history, but they also had a whole lot of standing water underneath their own bridge of years. Too much water, Juliette feared, to be able to bail themselves out and get to the other side without drowning if they decided to shed the superficial and dive into everything that had gone wrong.

      When they got to the concrete slab, Jude stepped up onto it and then offered his hand to Juliette, helping her up onto the foundation. The block was weathered and cracked as expected for something that had been exposed to the elements for nearly a decade.

      “It’s not ideal, but it’s not going to cost them twenty thousand dollars to remove it,” Jude said.

      “Twenty thousand dollars? Are you kidding me?”

      “Like I said, they’re playing hardball. They’re saying that because the lake dried up it shouldn’t be considered lakefront property. Since I don’t live in Celebration anymore, I guess they thought I wouldn’t check, which is pretty ridiculous.”

      “The lake is perfectly fine. Who are these con men?”

      “I’m not altogether sure. My Realtor is dealing with them through their Realtor. She’s the one handling the specifics. It’s some corporation I’ve never heard of. I haven’t had a chance to check them out because I’ve been so busy. I just haven’t gotten to that point yet. And I wanted to check out their claims before I invested too much energy. But now that I’m back, once I get settled in and I can take a breath, I’ll do my research.”

      Juliette nodded. At least he wasn’t 100 percent set on selling to this buyer. She knew it was crazy, but the thought of him letting go of the property made her sad. It would feel as if he was divesting himself of the last bit of them. And that was selfish. Because if he had no use for the property, he still had to pay property taxes and such. Even so, the thought of it made her heart feel heavy. This was their place.

      “Let me pull up the email from my Realtor.” Jude took out his phone. “I think she mentioned who they are.”

      He tapped and scrolled the screen, then handed Juliette his cell.

      “Here it is.”

      She took the phone, ignoring the way their hands brushed.

      The email said:

      Hi, gorgeous, the offer for the Celebration, Texas, property is attached. Call me if you have any questions. Or call me, even if you don’t have any questions. Just call me. Smooches, Afton

      “Smooches?” Juliette said before she could stop herself. “What kind of real estate professional signs her email ‘smooches’?”

      Jude laughed. “That’s just Afton.”

      “Oh, well, Afton sounds like she likes you. Isn’t there some sort of professional code of ethics she’s violating? Like how doctors aren’t supposed to get personally involved with their patients?”

      “Afton and I are not personally involved.”

      “Really? Sounds like she thinks you are, gorgeous.”

      He laughed. It was a full-bodied belly laugh. “You’re jealous.” Even though the familiar sound of his laughter soothed her, she still felt heat blooming on her cheeks.

      “I am not jealous.” She raised her chin. “Why would I be jealous?”

      “Because you still love me.” He was teasing. She knew he was, the same way he used to always tease her. Since every word that came out of her mouth seemed to make it worse, she didn’t answer him. Instead, she turned her attention to his phone. “Do you mind if I pull up the attachment that Smooches sent?”

      “No, go ahead.”

      “So, wait, is she representing you or the buyer? Because it doesn’t seem like Smooches has your best interests at heart.”

      “Why do you say that?”

      “Because she should advise you not to let them undercut you with bogus claims.”

      He was smiling at her like she was adorable. And then he laughed. “I’m aware of their bogus claims. Afton is an old friend. She knows, too. She also understands that I’m on the fence about selling the property. I wasn’t actively looking for a buyer. But she brought me the offer.”

      “But she knows you well enough to know you own the property. Is she an old girlfriend?”

      “You are jealous.”

      Juliette handed him his phone. “Never mind. Forget I asked.”

      “You didn’t look at the attachment.”

      Juliette shook her head. “I’ll let you do the honors of opening it. Especially since you haven’t looked at it yet. That has nothing to do with jealousy and everything to do with self-preservation. Who knows what other surprises Smooches might have in store for you.”

      His gaze flickered to hers. For a split second he looked like he wanted to say something, but he didn’t. He honed in on his phone. “The offer is from an outfit called the MAG Holdings Limited Partnership. Never heard of them. Have you?”

      Juliette shook her head. “Do an internet search and see what you can find out.”

      “It says here that MAG Holdings is the parent company for Metro Arrow Homes.”

      That didn’t sound very good. “Jude, they build houses. Like those cookie-cutter shoeboxes that all look alike. If they want to put a subdivision in here, they can’t. It’s not zoned for single-family housing.

      “They must have something up their sleeve,” Juliette said. “Because I doubt that they’d be willing to fork over a lot of money to turn the property into a nature preserve. It’s a nice idea, but I don’t think so.”

      His brows knit together as he read the information that was on the screen. “This isn’t okay. In fact, it’s not going to happen.”

      He shook his head as he continued to read. “No, this is no good at all. Besides, with the way they’re trying to undercut the asking price...I think this deal is off.”

      Both of them were silent, watching a couple of sandhill cranes fly in and land in the lake’s shallow water near the shore.

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