Seduced By A Steele (Forged of Steele #12) - Brenda Jackson Page 0,8
“No problem,” he muttered. “Like Galen said, we were raised to respect women and rescue damsels in distress.”
“In that case, you have a very kind mother.”
“She is definitely that and I wouldn’t trade her for all the tea in China.”
Sloan heard fondness in his tone, and she wished she could say the same about her own mother, but she couldn’t. It was not that her mother was a bad person because she wasn’t. She’d just never made her daughter her priority. Her father hadn’t been much better. He never failed to let Sloan know she should have been born a boy, and because she hadn’t been, he’d treated her like the disappointment she’d been.
“You’re okay?”
She glanced back over at Mercury. They had reached his car. A serious frown marred his forehead. “Yes, I’m fine.” He nodded and then opened the car door for her. “Thank you.”
She slid onto the car’s leather seat and then glanced at him. Their gazes met, and when he stood there a moment, she lifted a brow. “Is something wrong?”
As if her question made him realize he’d been staring, he frowned and shook his head. “No. Nothing is wrong.”
He then closed the car door and walked around to the driver’s side to get in. He had removed his jacket earlier and she liked the way the dress shirt fit him. It was obvious he worked out. A man didn’t get those kinds of tight muscles by doing nothing.
“Your address?”
She blinked. “My address?”
“Yes. If I’m to take you home, then I need to know it, don’t you think?”
She swallowed. “Yes, of course.” She then rattled it off for him. When he started the car, she asked, “Aren’t you going to put it in your GPS?”
He glanced over at her before backing out of the parking space. “No. I’m familiar with the area. How long have you been in Phoenix, Sloan?”
She sighed deeply. “One week tomorrow.”
He didn’t ask her anything else during the car ride and she was fine with him ignoring her all the way to their destination.
“You’re having a yard sale?”
His question made her look at him. “A yard sale? No, of course not. Why would you ask me that?”
“Because of what’s going on at your address.”
She glanced out the car’s window and drew in a sharp breath. Her belongings—the little she’d brought with her—were laid out on a table for everyone to see, and it appeared as if someone was having a sale with her stuff. As soon as Mercury stopped the car, she was out in a flash.
Four
Mercury called out to Sloan, but she ignored him and marched with indignation toward the older woman who was still placing items on the table. Shaking his head, he quickly followed while wondering what the hell was going on.
“How dare you do this!” he heard Sloan yell at the top of her voice, while placing her hands on her hips. “These are my things.”
The woman, who looked to be in her late fifties and several inches shorter than Sloan, didn’t cower. Instead she placed her hands on her own hips. “I do dare. I am not selling anything, although I should since you’re being evicted.”
“Evicted? But why?”
“Like you didn’t know the check Priscilla used to pay her rent this month wasn’t good! It bounced like a rubber ball.”
Mercury felt Sloan stiffen beside him and immediately realized she hadn’t known what this person named Priscilla had done. “You got a bad check? I didn’t know. I’m sure there’s a mistake.”
“Ha!” the lady said. “No mistake. Take your stuff and go.”
“But you can’t make me leave with no place to go,” Sloan implored. “I’m sure if I call Priscilla, we will have this cleared up.”
“Nothing is going to get cleared up. Besides, I already have someone interested in leasing this place and ready to move in. I want you gone.”
“Who is this Priscilla and where is she?” Mercury asked Sloan. Personally, he didn’t want to get