Falling Fast (Falling Fast #1) - Tina Wainscott Page 0,11
in that.
I don’t blame you.
He did, and always would. Because, as much as he detested her snooty parents, they were right. He had lured her into danger with that first invitation, figuring out pretty quickly that she was sheltered and hungry for excitement. He’d been hungry, too. For her. She’d been so different from the easy girls who wanted nothing more than free beer and hot sex with the night’s winner. And that was often Raleigh. Before Mia, both had been his source of self-esteem.
Mia had been fresh and sweet and real. Watching her blossom was like blossoming himself. He hadn’t known about her cancer then, and he suspected that had been by design. When Nancy told him, it explained a lot.
He parked, checked his appearance in the rearview mirror, and walked inside. Marta was always his best bet, the loan officer he’d talked to on many occasions. She knew him from the time he’d been a twelve-year-old sneaking into the open-air bar to persuade his father to come home. She’d been one of the old man’s victims, a mousy woman with a big heart who thought she could save the charming ne’er-do-well. Luckily, she’d given up long ago. But she’d always been nice to Raleigh, dropping off some “extra” school supplies she happened to have lying around her office even after she’d dumped Hank.
Raleigh made a beeline for her office, turned the chair around, and plunked down backward, setting a sheaf of papers on her desk. “Try again.” He tilted his head. “Please? Come on, don’t give me that sympathetic smile. You haven’t even looked at the numbers yet.”
“Oh, honey, I love your optimism. I really do. But unless you’ve got”—she pulled out her drawer, took out a yellow notepad, and flipped to the back page—”forty-two thousand five hundred and sixty dollars, approximately, I’m afraid we can’t loan you the money.”
He could only blink. “How’d you know the ‘approximately’ exact number?”
“I ran numbers again for you last week, but unless you have that kind of investment, the bank isn’t going to take a chance.”
On him. That’s what she wasn’t going to say.
“Someone’s looking at the garage, Marta. They’re going to buy it and tear it down and put up a shopping center. I have to find a way to buy it.”
“I wish we could help you, honey, I really do. If I had that kind of cash, I’d loan it to you in a heartbeat. I know you’re good for it.”
“I appreciate that.”
Prettier now, with self-confidence and a stylish cut, she gave him a full smile. “I mean it.”
He pushed to his feet and flipped the chair back around in one movement. “Where’s Mr. O’Connell?” He turned toward the open door—and came face-to-face with Mia.
Mia looked as surprised to see him as he was to see her, her lush mouth in an O. Across the way, her father was shaking hands with Mr. O’Connell and thanking him for his help.
“Your mother was a fine woman,” the manager was saying. “We loved doing business with her. And, of course, if you’d like to keep her accounts here—”
“No, we’ll be closing them out by week’s end,” her father said, walking directly to the entrance with a folder full of paperwork. “Thank you for your assistance.”
Mia was clearly torn, looking her father’s way—thankfully, he hadn’t seen Raleigh—and then at him. With a chagrined smile, she followed her father, who was holding the door open for her.
Great. She’d heard him practically begging for a loan. And getting rejected.
“That’s the girl who was in your car that night, wasn’t it?” Marta asked at his shoulder, watching the two leave. “The one who was burned bad.”
“Yeah.” He was watching them, too, her father pointing to the Greek restaurant across the street. The breeze blew Mia’s brown hair across her cheek. How many times had he brushed her short locks back from her face on those warm summer nights?
“She doesn’t look like she blames you.”
He pulled his gaze from their Lincoln back to Marta. Nancy was the only person in whom he’d confided about Mia. Even with Marta’s piqued expression, he couldn’t say that Mia had uttered those very words. “Her parents do. They always thought I wasn’t good enough for her. They were right.”
Marta rubbed Raleigh’s arm. “It’s not what you come from; it’s where you’re going. People trust you with their cars. They respect you. Keep saving. Things will work out.” She winked. “I just know it.”