of red hair, matching beard, and those piercing green eyes. The man was hotter than a Texas summer—and a hundred times as sexy—but he was also a player of the highest order, and I’d already left one of those back in Mississippi. “Nope.”
“Liar,” she accused, because I was a horrible liar and because no one knew me better than my kid sister. “Fine; if you’re living the life of a nun, tell me how the shop is doing?”
Now that was something I could talk about all day and night. “It’s going so great, Rocky. Thanks to all the tourism, sales are even better than anticipated and the online sales have doubled in the past month, which is probably thanks to Hope’s lingerie line.” When I’d first moved to Tulip, it felt a lot like running away—which I was—but now, things felt different. “I think this move was the best thing for me.”
“Gee, thanks sis,” she snorted.
“You know what I mean, Rocky. The business is doing well, and I have some new friends—real friends who actually give a damn about me and don’t care one bit who Daddy is or how much money he has, and they don’t care how far back Mama’s lineage may go.” Because despite her proclamations, there was some doubt.
“I really am happy for you Mikki,” she said on a wistful sigh. “I guess that means I can kiss goodbye to any thoughts of you coming home anytime soon?”
My head began to bob automatically at her question, even though she wasn’t here to see me. “Yep. My last visit was a little too much for me, but you’re welcome to come for a visit anytime. The people are really friendly.” And gossipy, but I’d let her find out that part on her own.
“This has nothing to do with Mama’s snarkiness on your last visit?”
“Oh, it has everything to do with her suggestion that maybe if I’d lost a few pounds, that cheating bastard might not have taken up with Charla. I’m done with her and with Daddy for a good long while.” It was disheartening to know that a business deal—namely the one Mitchell had been working on for the past year and a half—was worth more than my feelings. “But you’re always welcome. Only you.”
“Maybe I will, but right now, I have to stay close to home. I picked up a few summer classes hoping I can finish both degrees at the same time.” Rocky was an art history major and two years ago had picked up an interest in business—at least, that’s what she told our father. “Daddy’s so happy about the business degree he hasn’t said a peep about me getting married all summer.”
“Well, thank goodness for small favors.” Daddy had no idea that Rocky wouldn’t be marrying anyone to help out the family business, and since he’d always reminded us both how disappointed he was to have no male heir to pass the company on to, I almost wished I would be around to see his face when he learned the truth. “How long until graduation?”
“Next semester, as long as I don’t flunk any classes.”
“That was one class your freshman year, Rocky. Stop beating yourself up about it. And it was math.”
“A crucial part of business, unless Pretty Feathers does some other kind of business I don’t know about?”
That pulled another laugh out of me as I turned onto the block where my bungalow sat, with its newly repainted yellow door. “And since then you’ve aced all your classes, smart ass.” I shoved the key into the door and kicked off my wedge sandals the moment I was inside. They were beautiful, but they weren’t meant to be worn for twelve straight hours.
“You’re right but still, I worry.”
I smiled at Rocky, the perfectionist. Despite her bookish tendencies, she was gorgeous and bubbly—a double whammy that would take this world by storm, I was sure of it. “It’s an open offer when you need a week or two off from thinking about tests and papers and projects.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. But what I really want to know about is that big ginger hottie you were locking lips with on Facebook.”
Her words stopped my feet halfway between the front door and the living room. “How on earth did you hear about that?”
“Are you kidding?” she asked on a far-too-amused-for-my-liking laugh. “Your new hometown puts everything on Facebook, honey. Everything.” She drew the syllables out for emphasis, and I knew she was telling the truth.