Page 43 of Ask for Moore
The fact that he felt the need to hide his offer from my cousin was even more odd than him making it in the first place. But his motives—however bizarre they were—didn’t matter at the moment. And I had no doubt that Baxter would eventually figure out what his father was up to.
“I’ll work on getting you that answer as soon as possible.”
As soon as my uncle left my office, I called Waverly. “Any chance you can swing by my office?”
“Sure, I’m done with my depositions for the day and was just getting in my daily fix of kitten cuddles.”
My lips curved into a grin as I thought about how openly affectionate Waverly was with Gracie. Even though she still insisted that she was only fostering the kitten until the case was over, I had a strong feeling she already considered the animal to be hers. I only hoped she would find it as difficult to walk away from me as the fluffy gray kitten if her client accepted my uncle's offer and her business in Mooreville ended abruptly.
“Want me to stop at Leaves & Pages to pick you up tea and a cookie?” she asked. “I can grab a chocolate chip for Ivy, too.”
I loved how she thought to include my assistant in her offer, showing how sweet she was once she let someone in. “Maybe after we talk.”
“Oh, is something wrong?”
I realized how my vagueness could be misinterpreted and rushed to explain, “No, but this visit is about business instead of pleasure, unfortunately.”
“Ugh, if I’m coming into your office as opposing counsel and not your…girlfriend, I guess I have to change. And I just got comfortable.”
Her pause before describing herself as my girlfriend made me smile. We hadn’t labeled our relationship yet, and the timing was awful since the reason she was in Mooreville could be resolved today, but I already thought of her that way. “My girlfriend, huh?”
Her voice was strangled as she said, “I didn’t know how else to make the comparison.”
“Don’t worry, queenie. I’m just teasing you.” I chuckled. “It’s part of my job as your boyfriend, after all.”
“My boyfriend, huh?” she echoed my question.
“Yes,” I confirmed, feeling a little more settled now that we’d put a name to our relationship. “Which means you don’t have to dress up on my account.”
“Then I guess I’ll see you soon.”
When she walked into my office about twenty minutes later, I was happy to see that she hadn’t donned her usual lawyer armor. Instead, she had taken me at my word and gone more casual, still looking fantastic as always.
Ivy fussed over her, insisting upon making her coffee, and the soft look in Waverly’s eyes when she set the mug on my desk in front of her had me deciding my assistant needed another raise. Especially when my girlfriend let out a little hum of pleasure when she sipped at the dark brew.
“We better get business out of the way before I decide to say to hell with the ethical wall and spread you out on my desk.”
“I suppose we should since that’s why you asked me to stop in,” she purred, a sensual gleam in her blue eyes.
Willing my dick to behave, I handed her the purchase offer my uncle had given me. “There’s a real estate investor interested in the land your client is fighting so hard to turn into a subdivision.”
She scanned the details and asked, “Franklin Moore?”
I nodded. “One of my uncles.”
“Why is he willing to pay so much for the land?”
“The answer to that question is complicated. My uncle Franklin spent four decades staying as far away from Mooreville as he could. But then, Weston passed away.” My chest tightened as I thought about my cousin who had lost his life while doing what he loved. “Soon after, Baxter moved to Mooreville, met Skylar, fell in love, and they had baby Franklin last year. The risk of not being able to know his grandchild seems to have…changed him for the better.”
Waverly looked down at the offer I had written up on my uncle’s behalf. “It must have been a huge change of heart to do something like this when he stayed away from Mooreville for so long.”
“It would certainly appear that way.”
“I’ll take it to my client. But as generous as the offer is, I can’t guarantee that he will accept it.” Her lips pinched together. “As much as he’s been going on about wanting the purchase rescinded, it was really permission for the subdivision that he’s been after.”
“Hopefully, my uncle’s offer has enough zeroes tacked on the end for him to walk away.” I tapped the number on the document. “I could have just as easily gone into court and told the judge that we no longer objected to his request to rescind the sale, told her my client would pay all of Burkhart’s legal expenses, and then had him make the deal with my uncle instead.”
Her gorgeous features tightened as she squinted at me in irritation. “I’m well aware that was an option, and I plan to share with my client that I believe it would be in his best interests to take the deal. But it’s well within his rights to drop his case against Mr. Sanderson and only move forward with his claim against the planning commission.”
