again.
Collin slid the phone into his pocket. “Either way, that was rude of me. My assistant knows she can call me any time if there’s a problem, but that doesn’t mean I have to answer.”
“Oh. Uh. Okay.” She wasn’t sure what else to say, so she changed the subject, hoping she wasn’t coming across as too nosy. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes.” There was a beat, and then he huffed out a wry laugh. “Well, no. We’re trying to build a shared space development and we’re getting some pushback from the local zoning authorities.”
“Oh! I didn’t even…I mean, I don’t know what you do. For a living. What’s shared space?”
Collin pulled out a chair next to her and fell into it. Behind the counter, Bill was pretending to sleep, as though he were implying that the conversation was boring. She turned in her chair, just enough so that Bill was no longer in her direct line of sight.
“I’m a real estate developer. Mostly housing developments, that kind of thing. But I took a custom project recently from a group of folks who want to build a community living neighborhood. It’s a cluster of houses that surround one large building that’s kind of like a church hall. The big hall has a living room, a huge kitchen, and a couple of half bathrooms, and then the houses around it have just bedrooms, full baths, and a kitchenette. It encourages communal living and saves on energy costs. But the planning commission thinks it’s a bad idea in case they try to resell these places in the future, so they’re using that as an argument to stall the process.”
“Wow. That sounds pretty cool. I mean, not the part about the stalling, but—” Marnie made the mistake of letting Bill’s movements catch her eye again, and she looked over to see him pretending to play a weeping violin.
Stop it! She wanted to scream. Collin didn’t deserve that kind of mockery. Maybe Bill had tried to help her with the way her father had treated her this afternoon, but he’d also suggested that she try to kiss Collin. And now he was making fun of him?
She’d finally met someone who made her feel comfortable in her own skin, who made her think that she might be worth listening to, just for being herself and not because of anything she could do for him. He fit so easily into her life, protecting her, talking to her, and caring about her in small ways that she didn’t even think about, and some asshole of a ghost was making fun of him…
Oh.
Oh goodness.
She liked Collin. Like, liked him. And despite the nearly transparent spirit of a dead man from a century ago, it was that realization—that she didn’t just want to kiss Collin, but to be with him—that scared her.
Because Collin was handsome and important, while she was average-looking and insignificant. It wasn’t realistic to think anything could come of her attraction to him. It simply wasn’t realistic. He might be sitting here, talking to her now and treating her like she mattered, but it wouldn’t take long before he realized how boring and drab she was.
And then he’d leave, just like her father had.
Heck, she was literally going to drive him away from her in just a few more minutes.
She put her hand on the surface of the box, pressing against the bumps and ridges of the carved surface. “The actual development sounds like a fantastic idea. I hope it works out for you, too. But even if it doesn’t go though, it sounds like you’re a really busy man. There’ll be other projects, right?”
He shrugged. “I am busy, I guess. Lately, though, I’ve been feeling like I’m a fool for being so occupied in things that matter less and less. That’s why I want this development to work. I feel like, for the first time, I’d be doing something that’s about community. Family and togetherness and building a real life. Not just making money or superficial connections.”
He sighed, and it nearly killed her not to reach out and comfort him, but she held herself
Collin slid the phone into his pocket. “Either way, that was rude of me. My assistant knows she can call me any time if there’s a problem, but that doesn’t mean I have to answer.”
“Oh. Uh. Okay.” She wasn’t sure what else to say, so she changed the subject, hoping she wasn’t coming across as too nosy. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes.” There was a beat, and then he huffed out a wry laugh. “Well, no. We’re trying to build a shared space development and we’re getting some pushback from the local zoning authorities.”
“Oh! I didn’t even…I mean, I don’t know what you do. For a living. What’s shared space?”
Collin pulled out a chair next to her and fell into it. Behind the counter, Bill was pretending to sleep, as though he were implying that the conversation was boring. She turned in her chair, just enough so that Bill was no longer in her direct line of sight.
“I’m a real estate developer. Mostly housing developments, that kind of thing. But I took a custom project recently from a group of folks who want to build a community living neighborhood. It’s a cluster of houses that surround one large building that’s kind of like a church hall. The big hall has a living room, a huge kitchen, and a couple of half bathrooms, and then the houses around it have just bedrooms, full baths, and a kitchenette. It encourages communal living and saves on energy costs. But the planning commission thinks it’s a bad idea in case they try to resell these places in the future, so they’re using that as an argument to stall the process.”
“Wow. That sounds pretty cool. I mean, not the part about the stalling, but—” Marnie made the mistake of letting Bill’s movements catch her eye again, and she looked over to see him pretending to play a weeping violin.
Stop it! She wanted to scream. Collin didn’t deserve that kind of mockery. Maybe Bill had tried to help her with the way her father had treated her this afternoon, but he’d also suggested that she try to kiss Collin. And now he was making fun of him?
She’d finally met someone who made her feel comfortable in her own skin, who made her think that she might be worth listening to, just for being herself and not because of anything she could do for him. He fit so easily into her life, protecting her, talking to her, and caring about her in small ways that she didn’t even think about, and some asshole of a ghost was making fun of him…
Oh.
Oh goodness.
She liked Collin. Like, liked him. And despite the nearly transparent spirit of a dead man from a century ago, it was that realization—that she didn’t just want to kiss Collin, but to be with him—that scared her.
Because Collin was handsome and important, while she was average-looking and insignificant. It wasn’t realistic to think anything could come of her attraction to him. It simply wasn’t realistic. He might be sitting here, talking to her now and treating her like she mattered, but it wouldn’t take long before he realized how boring and drab she was.
And then he’d leave, just like her father had.
Heck, she was literally going to drive him away from her in just a few more minutes.
She put her hand on the surface of the box, pressing against the bumps and ridges of the carved surface. “The actual development sounds like a fantastic idea. I hope it works out for you, too. But even if it doesn’t go though, it sounds like you’re a really busy man. There’ll be other projects, right?”
He shrugged. “I am busy, I guess. Lately, though, I’ve been feeling like I’m a fool for being so occupied in things that matter less and less. That’s why I want this development to work. I feel like, for the first time, I’d be doing something that’s about community. Family and togetherness and building a real life. Not just making money or superficial connections.”
He sighed, and it nearly killed her not to reach out and comfort him, but she held herself
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