I clear my throat again, tempted to pull on my tie, to loosen it, but I hold strong. “And what was she right about?”
“Excuse me for being forward, but that your relationship with Lottie wasn’t real.”
Yup, there it is.
Shame and embarrassment flow through my veins, heating up my body. Damn it, I wish I’d thought to take off my suit jacket for this conversation. It’s too late now.
I go to say something, but Dave continues, “She told me after the dinner at our house. She suspected you two were faking it. I thought maybe it was some crazy pregnancy hormone at first, because I couldn’t fathom why you’d lie. Especially about a relationship. Ellie pointed out the stiffness in your shoulders when Lottie touched you, the robotic way you talked to each other. There was something missing, and even though you were quite convincing, there were things here and there that gave you away.”
I drag my hand over my face. “Listen, Dave. I can explain.”
“I found the whole thing quite comical, to be honest. How far would Huxley Cane go? Just how unethical was the man who wanted my business?” He pauses, and I think I’m going to be sick.
Unethical.
He’s not wrong. God, I feel ashamed. Especially that he’d known.
“Ellie kept finding these crazy things to do and thought it would be fun to drag you two along.”
I sit a little taller. “You mean, you invited us on purpose?”
Dave laughs. “Oh yeah. You’re probably the most uptight man I know and, granted, it’s gotten you very far in business, but there’s more than making a deal, Huxley, and I wanted you to see that. I thought that maybe if we carried on with the charade, that maybe something would come of it. There was a connection between you and Lottie, and Ellie and I were hoping to see it grow stronger.” He smiles. “And it has.” He laughs. “I can assure you, had I not met Ellie, I may have never known what true love was either.”
“Wh-what?” I ask, trying to comprehend and process everything he’s saying.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but you love her, don’t you?”
My teeth roll over my bottom lip, and I stare down at my connected hands. I nod. “Yeah, I do.”
“I knew it.” Dave slaps his leg. “Ellie thinks Lottie was the one to crack first, she seemed to be more into you, but I told Ellie you’re a professional at masking your emotions, and if I had to bet on it, I’d say you developed feelings sooner than she developed feelings for you.”
Since this is the conversation we’re apparently having, I say, “I think it started the minute I ran into her.”
“Which wasn’t in Georgia . . .”
I shake my head.
“Ellie was also struck by that. Lottie wasn’t very convincing about knowing much about Georgia.”
I wince. “She’s never been.”
“Then how exactly did you meet?”
“On the sidewalk in my neighborhood. She was lost; I was blowing off steam. Just so happened we both needed each other.” I grip the back of my head. “A not-so meet-cute.”
“You know, I beg to differ. Meeting on the sidewalk has its charm.”
“Not if you add in what we were both after. I needed a fake fiancée, and she needed a rich husband to impress someone. That doesn’t really scream romance.”
“Sometimes it’s not the beginning that screams romance, but rather the journey. And I have to say, your journey has been quite interesting to watch unfold.” Dave scratches the side of his face. “I do wonder, though . . . why did you do it?”
Sighing heavily, I lean back in my chair and say, “Because I’m a dumbass.”
“Well, this much is true, but give me the real reason.”
The real reason. Wasn’t that enough? That I was a dumbass? But Dave had taken every answer in stride so far, so even though this showed how manipulative I could actually be, how much of a liar, I was now all-in here.
“Breaker and JP said I’d never succeed in making a deal with you because you were a relatable guy. You honored the connection in a business deal, not just the money. They said I wasn’t relatable to you. I wanted to prove them wrong. When I saw you outside the deli and you introduced me to Ellie, the lies just poured out of my mouth before I could stop myself. I thought that maybe if we could connect on another level, you’d consider a deal with me.”
“And what happened if we did make the deal . . . what would’ve happened to Lottie?”
“We would’ve gone our separate ways. I probably wouldn’t have mentioned anything to you.”
“I see.” His smile fades. “Seems very untrustworthy.”
“I know.” I drag my hand over my forehead. “Trust me, I fucking know. My brothers, from the very beginning, told me it was a bad idea, and when I was able to look past my determination, I knew what we were doing was wrong, but I was so inflexible that I couldn’t look past the deal. I ended up hurting my brothers, and even worse . . . I ended up losing Lottie.”
“What?” Dave asks, looking concerned. “She left you?”
I nod. “Last night. I, uh, I spoke with someone who off-handedly told me you knew we had a fake engagement. I couldn’t possibly understand how you’d know, so I blamed Lottie, thinking she was the one who let it slip to Ellie. I said some shitty things, and she left.” I shake my head, completely disgusted with myself. “I fucking blew it because I was so caught up in my image, my reputation, that I forgot one thing—none of that matters if I don’t have someone to share my life with. She took off for her sister’s.” I pinch the bridge of my nose. “She chose sleeping on the floor over sleeping with me. If that doesn’t tell you how fucked I am, I don’t know what does.”
“Let me ask you this, and look me in the eyes when you answer. If you could choose one, Lottie, or the acquisition with me, what would it be?”
“Lottie.” I look him straight in the eye. “Lottie. She is everything. I don’t know how it came to this, how I fell for a girl so fast, so hard, that I actually feel physical pain from losing her, but here I am, a desperate asshole willing to do anything to get her back.”
That brings a smile to his face. Dave leans forward and holds his hand out to me while he says, “This might surprise you, Huxley, and in some ways, it surprises me too, but you have a deal.”
“What?” I ask, awkwardly taking his hand, unsure what we’re shaking on. Dwayne said he was developing the land with him. How is this happening?
Dave stands from his chair and buttons his suit jacket. “Your brothers were right. I wasn’t sure I wanted to make a deal with someone I didn’t quite know. I wasn’t sure you were going to develop the lots into something I could consciously be okay with. I’ve been incredibly disappointed in deals I’ve made in the past, promises that weren’t kept. It’s why I spoke with Dwayne. I knew you’d be working with him. I wanted to see if your plans were feasible. I wanted to see if he knew about you and Lottie. I wanted to see what kind of deal I might be getting myself into. But when Dwayne genuinely looked surprised to hear about you and Lottie, I knew, even though you were lying, you weren’t making me into a laughingstock.”
“Fuck, I would never. If anyone is going to be laughed at, it’s me. I had all my employees sign an NDA—even Lottie was under an NDA. And those who didn’t have an NDA believed we were actually engaged. She moved into my home and everything. Trust me, I didn’t want this getting out.”
“I believe you,” Dave says confidently. “It’s why the lots are yours. I’ll have my lawyers work with your lawyers on the details. I’m trusting that you’re not lying to me now, and that you’ll follow through on the terms of our agreement.”