“If I find out that you broke in, I’ll call the police,” I warn him.
“Good luck with that,” he winks, and it’s not a flirty wink. It’s more like a you’ll-never-catch-me-alive wink. “That’s besides the point. We both know the rent could help you hire a couple of people.”
I doubt six thousand will be enough to hire anyone when I have to use the money on more important things.
“I can manage it on my own.”
“But if you hired more people, you could finish faster. You could also plant more lavender and double your production—you can spend more time in your lab.” He draws quotes in the air.
He’s an arrogant asshole who doesn’t know shit.
If I say yes, it’ll alleviate some of my debt, but it won’t solve all my problems.
But it’ll help.
And why haven’t I jumped at the chance of leasing him the main house?
I have a bad feeling. My gut says no, but my bank account says don’t be stupid.
Okay realistically speaking, this isn’t doable. “I don’t have time or money to move my things from the main house to storage—or money to pay for the storage.”
“I’ll pay for it.”
“Who are you? Some lost billionaire who’s trying to find himself in Luna Harbor, or a mogul planning to destroy the town?”
He gives me a humorless chuckle. “Neither. This place wouldn’t be my first choice to find myself. Listen, I don’t plan on destroying the town or finding anything because I know who I am. We just need a house for the next couple of years. Let’s assume it’ll just be two and if we need it for more, I’ll let you know.”
“The lot next to the farm is up for sale, you could buy it and build a house.”
“That’ll take nine to twelve months and I don’t have time to spare.” He reaches for his messenger bag and pulls out a tablet, tapping it a few times. “If you sign this contract today, we can have your things out by tomorrow and we’ll start fixing the security and furnishing the house.”
“I like my privacy.”
“No one will mess with you. You won’t even notice there are people in the house.”
I twist my mouth to the side and add, “They’re only allowed in the house.”
“Well, lady, we’ll probably want to exercise or…you can’t expect us to be in the house all the time.”
I smile because I can see a couple of kids running around. “Fine, but they have to be careful with my plants.”
“No one will touch your flowers or go into the guesthouse.”
“Or the other two buildings.”
“That’s fair,” he agrees and says, “So it’s six thousand a month?”
“Sixty-three hundred, but I can’t take off tomorrow to move my things.”
“I’ll hire people.” This guy is insanely rich, and he doesn’t take no for an answer. He’s an overachiever.
“My family’s heirlooms are in there. I can’t let just anyone handle them.”
He sighs. “How about the weekend?”
“I work.”
“Do you take any time off?”
“Mondays, but I need to go to Seattle every morning. So…no. I don’t. You might want to keep looking for another place to lease while I keep going with my life.”
“How long do you have left? Three, four months?” he asks.
I frown. “Left for what?”
“I haven’t looked into your finances but from the looks of it, you need money to run your business and fix this farm. I bet your mortgage is behind a couple of payments. In just a few months you won’t be able to pay. Your shop doesn’t sell that much.”
My mouth opens slightly. Did he spy on me? He’s not wrong, and I hate that someone knows about it. I work hard so people think I have my shit together. Obviously not hard enough.
“You don’t know anything,” I argue.
“I observe. I’ve been watching you since Saturday. You worked a shift at the sports bar, I’m guessing you need that little extra cash just to get by. I’m your only hope.”
He is and I hate that he’s right.
I crinkle my nose. “Is this what you do, find some desperate person to take advantage of?”
“Lady, I’m not taking advantage of you. I’m offering to help you. I’ll pay you sixty-five hundred dollars a month. I’ll have a team to help you pack and to help with your harvest. I’ll even have a team to help with your store.”
“In exchange for what?” I ask, glaring. He’s going to try to screw me. I know guys like him.
“I already told you, leasing me your house for two years with the possibility of a third.”
I glare at him. “You’ll do all that just because you want to lease my house.”
“There’s a lot riding into getting a big house, my pride included.”
I laugh. “Your pride?”
“Listen, all my life I make things happen. I hate to fail. We could commute every week. I could rent three houses. I could do many things, but no one believes I can get a house big enough to accommodate everyone, but I will.”
“That is ridiculous and expensive.”
“Probably, but I can afford it. I have the luxury to prove to everyone that I’m the best at what I do.” He taps his tablet again and hands it to me. “What do you say? Fill out this form for me?”
I take the tablet and look at the form. It asks for my name, legal address, and birthday. I submit the information. There’s a second page that asks for my social security number, I add that too. The next screen asks me to place my finger on a scanner. When I look up to ask what that means, the guy is already holding a small device.
“You’re prepared.”
He nods. “It’s part of my job.”
He connects the small scanner to the tablet.
While he’s doing that I ask, “Why do you want my information?”
“So, I can pull your report, get the contract going, give you the first and last months’ rent, and the deposit.”
“A report?”
“It’s a detailed background check,” he corrects. “My company is pretty accurate. I’ll even get your bank information. I can wire you the money as soon as we’re done signing the contract that my lawyer will have ready within the next five minutes.”
“I should be pulling your information, not the other way around. And how do I know you’re not going to steal my identity.”
He shakes his head. “You have problems trusting people, don’t you?”
“It’s the best way to survive in a world where everyone is out to get you.”
“Not everyone.” He hands me his wallet.
“You can keep that until we finish the transaction.”
I open it. His driver’s license is there, his name is in fact, Byron Alasdair Langdon. I place the wallet inside my tote bag.
He suddenly stops and says, “You know I’m about to find out your darkest secrets. Are you okay with that?”
“There’s not much to find out, really. I doubt you can say the same for yourself.”
He grins, pulls out his phone, and says, “Give me a second.”