Whispered Secrets by Elizabeth Lennox

Chapter 10

The knocking was really annoying!  Oliver rolled over, fully intending to ignore whoever was rude enough to pound on the door at…he cracked his eyes far enough open to look at the time…eight o’clock in the morning.  No one who arrived before nine o’clock was significant enough to worry about.  More importantly, anyone who arrived unannounced should be shot.  Or at least stopped by his doorman. 

Rolling over, he pulled the pillow close, intending to go back to sleep.  But when he pulled the pillow close, he realized that the pillow wasn’t who he really wanted to pull close. 

He looked around.  “Where the hell are you?” he asked of the empty room.  Unfortunately, a reply wasn’t forthcoming.  Maggie was gone!

That woke him up a bit more.  The banging was becoming more impatient.  There was shouting now, on top of the pounding.  Rubbing a hand over his face, he sighed and dropped his feet to the floor.  A cursory look around revealed his jeans, in a heap, right where he’d left them.  Right next to Maggie’s purple panties, he noticed with a smile. 

The banging was really starting to piss him off.  He was reminded of how much he loved the security in his penthouse.  No one got through to his front door.  Not without his permission, he thought with a grumble as he pulled his jeans on.  He didn’t bother snapping the top though, fully intending to get rid of whoever was pounding, then drag Maggie back to bed and make love to her all over again. 

With that in mind, he came out of the bedroom and looked around.  The sofa still looked sad, but there was an interesting zebra striped print fabric hanging over the back.  Even from across the room, he could tell that the fabric was thick.  Upholstery fabric?  He certainly hoped that Maggie wasn’t going to cover that tacky green sofa with the zebra stripped stuff.  That would be pretty hideous. 

Another bang, followed by, “Maggie!   I know that you’re in there!  You can’t avoid me forever!”  Then more banging.

Oliver found Maggie in the kitchen, wearing only the tee shirt he’d discarded last night.  It came down to the middle of her thighs and she was still barefoot, dancing with a spatula in one hand as she listened to music with her ear buds.  Every few moments, she let out a squeak, as if she were singing along.  But she was completely oblivious to the knocking. 

With a chuckle, he walked over to the door to her apartment and pulled it open, fully intending to disperse whoever was rudely banging at such an early hour.

But before Oliver could say a word, the idiot stormed into the apartment.  “Who are you?” the guy demanded.

Oliver looked him over, noting his expensive suit and four hundred dollar haircut.  The guy was slick, Oliver thought.  But still a pansy.  A bully.  Several inches shorter than Oliver and without any muscle tone to fill out the suit, the guy clearly thought he was someone to be reckoned with. 

Before Oliver could tell the ass to go away, the man lifted his hand in the air, palm out, stopping the words.  “Forget it.  I don’t care.  Where’s Maggie?  My business is with her.  So you need to leave.”

Oliver’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline, stunned at being dismissed so completely.  It had never happened before, so it took a moment for him to fully grasp the stupidity of this man’s tone and meaning.

“Excuse me?” Oliver stated as calmly as possible.

The man didn’t even bother to repeat his order.  He started towards Maggie, who was still in the kitchen, dancing and singing.  Well, sort of singing. And still entirely unaware of the scuffle behind her.

Oliver wasn’t having it.  He might be wearing only a pair of jeans, but he didn’t care.  Maggie, on the other hand, was only in his tee shirt.

Stepping in the man’s path, he glared him down.

The other man’s eyes narrowed, as if he were trying to intimidate Oliver somehow.  “Buddy, you don’t know who you’re dealing with!” the shorter man said, dropping his voice as if that would make his presence more threatening.

Oliver snorted.  “Sure.  Quite the tough guy, aren’t you?  But you’re going to have to wait until Maggie is dressed.”  And with that, Oliver took the guy by the back of his shirt and, because he was pissed off, shoved him out of the apartment.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” the guy bellowed. 

“When you can behave like a gentleman, then you may speak to Maggie.”  Oliver leaned down, one hand on the door as he got in the sputtering jerk’s face. “That’s only if she wants to speak with you.”

With that, he slammed the door and turned to look for Maggie, who was…still dancing.  Oblivious to the minor altercation happening in her living room.  Or what would be a living room, he thought as he looked at all of the boxes piled up around the edge of the plywood floors.  Damn, the woman didn’t even have carpeting?  What the hell?

Oliver tapped on Maggie’s shoulder, startling her into yelping as she spun around.  “Oh!” she laughed, putting her free hand to her chest as she leaned back against the counter.  “Sorry. I was…making breakfast.”  She blushed and glanced over her shoulder at the simmering pancakes.  “I don’t even know if you like breakfast.  Or if you work out in the mornings.  Or if you even like pancakes.  I just…well, I guess I meant to–”

“You have company,” Oliver said, interrupting her and pulling her closer so that their hips pressed together. 

Maggie pulled the second ear bud out, peering around at the empty room.  “I do? Where?”

“Yeah.”  His hands slid underneath her tee shirt.  “He was being rude, so I kicked him out.  Plus,” he leaned in to tease her neck, “I don’t like strangers seeing you like this.”  He slid his hands underneath the satin of her panties so that he could cup her bare bottom, squeezing to emphasize his point. 

The banging started up again and Oliver glared daggers at the door.  Looking down at her, he pulled his hands away as he suggested, “Why don’t you go get dressed and I’ll explain to that idiot that he needs to remember how to act like a gentleman.”

Maggie tilted her head.  “Who’s out there?”

He shrugged.  “Some ass who wants to talk to you.”  He patted her bottom again.  “Go get dressed, Maggie. I need to have a few words with the guy.”

Maggie smiled, feeling oddly protected.  She hadn’t had anyone look out for her since her grandmother’s funeral.  And boy, what a miserable day that had been!

Walking into her bedroom, she quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and, reluctantly giving up the wonderful scent of Oliver’s tee-shirt, she snapped a bra on, then one of her own tee-shirts. 

Oliver stepped out of the apartment, pulling the door firmly closed behind him and, when the shorter man attempted to push past him again, Oliver rudely shoved him back, making him stumble. 

“That’s assault!” the man spat, his hands still out in the air as if he needed assistance balancing himself.  “I’ll have you arrested!”

Oliver crossed his arms over his still-bare chest and frowned down his nose at the man.  “Assault?” he scoffed.  “Prove it!”

The guy snickered as he straightened up, jerking his jacket back into place.  “You really don’t know who I am,” he said in a softer tone.  Oliver suspected that the guy thought that the tone was more threatening, but in reality, he sounded foolish.  Oliver knew that he could take him down with a single punch. 

But because this guy needed to speak with Maggie, he refrained from breaking his nose. 

“You’re going to lower your voice and be more respectful,” Oliver explained, his own voice becoming more gravelly and that was threatening.  “When you speak with Maggie, you will treat her with respect and dignity.  And you will conduct your business with Maggie in a calmer tone of voice, without disturbing the other residents in this building.”

Oliver had no idea if this guy was Maggie’s boss or someone else important to her.  If the putz was Maggie’s boss, then Oliver would protect her.  Hell, he could give her a job at any one of his properties at a higher salary.  If the shorter man wasn’t her boss, Oliver still wasn’t threatened. He’d protect Maggie no matter who the jerk was, or what he threatened. 

The shorter man’s features smoothed out, becoming more assessing.  “So, you’re the boy toy?” the putz asked, looking smug.  It took all of Oliver’s control to not wipe that revolting smirk clean off his face.

“I’m Oliver,” he replied, extending his hand politely. 

The guy took Oliver’s hand, tightening his grip more than necessary.  Oh, he wanted to play that game?  Oliver jerked him closer and squeezed. The putz blinked in surprise and finally started to understand he was in danger. 

But the shorter man rallied quickly, puffing up his chest like all bullies tried to do.  “I’m Jerry Trevino,” the guy sneered, glaring up at Oliver.  “And you’re going to regret what you’ve done this morning.  I’ll make sure that you’re fired from whatever pathetic job you have and that you’re kicked out of the cave you came from.”

Oliver chuckled.  “Think you’re that powerful?” he asked.

Jerry jerked his hand away, stepped back, then nodded, adjusting his jacket again.  “Yeah.  I am.”

Oliver shrugged dismissively.  “Okay, Jerry Trevino.  I consider myself adequately warned.” 

“I’ll start by having your ass arrested,” the putz threatened.

“For what?” Oliver asked, once again crossing his arms, his feet braced wide as he shrugged casually.

“For assault, you idiot!  You pushed me!”

Oliver laughed, shaking his head.  “Prove it.”

The guy looked around, and found Louise and Nora standing on the sidewalk, watching the altercation with wide, curious eyes. Obviously the elderly ladies had been roused by the noise because they were still in their nightclothes, slippers and robes covering their old-fashioned nightgowns.  “I have witnesses.”

Louise shook her head. “Honey, all I saw was you making a ruckus outside of Maggie’s apartment.  I didn’t see anyone push anything.”

Nora nodded in emphatic agreement.  “I definitely didn’t see Oliver push some weak, pathetic excuse for a maggot away from Maggie’s door.”  She turned to Louise.  “Should we call the police and report this guy for disturbing the peace?”

Jerry’s jaw went slack.  But he pulled himself together.  “Right.  If that’s how you want to play this.  Fine.”  He shook himself and tried again.  “I need to speak with Maggie.  She and I have business to discuss.  So, get the hell out of my way.”

The door to Maggie’s apartment opened. Maggie stepped around Oliver and frowned. “What’s going…?” she stopped when she spotted the putz.  “Jerry?” 

Oliver’s gaze swung from the putz to Maggie, stunned at the change in her tone.  “You know him?”

“She’s my damn fiancée!” Jerry snapped.  “Now get the hell out of my way before I have you arrested!”

Oliver stepped back, too shocked to retort.  Then his anger built as he watched that short, annoying man walk over and kiss Maggie.  Well, he went for her lips, but Maggie turned away at the last moment so he just caught her cheek.  But he managed to wrap his arms around her before she could move out of reach. 

He could barely think straight as he watched the man, that insufferably smug expression back on his doughboy face.

“Maggie, do you want me to get rid of this…person?” Oliver asked, praying she’d give the right answer.  He needed her to say that she wanted “Jerry” gone, out of her life, and off of this property.

Instead, he watched as she rallied, straightened her shoulders and…shook her head.  “No.  Thank you, but I’ll be fine.  I’ll speak to him.”

Oliver worried he might crack a tooth, clenching his teeth in frustration.  After last night…hell, after the past several weeks…Maggie was seriously going to push him away in favor of this putz? 

Granted, the putz was her fiancé!  What the hell was going on here?!  Less than an hour ago, she’d been in his arms! 

He watched as Maggie flinched away from Jerry’s touch, but she didn’t tell him to leave. “Fine.  I just need my shoes,” he snapped and pushed past her to go back into her bedroom.  Oliver didn’t look around as he grabbed his shirt and shoes, not bothering to put them on before turning to walk right back out. 

Without hesitating, or even looking back at her, he brushed past her back out the door and walked the two doors down to his own place. 

Maggie watched Oliver walk away and wanted to call out to him.  She wanted to run over to him and tell him that…what?  That she loved him?  That was crazy!  She’d known Oliver for barely three weeks!  There’s no way her feelings for him could be that strong.  Good grief, she’d known Jerry pretty much all her life and it had taken him over a year of dating before she’d felt comfortable around him.  And then she’d been with him for another year before he’d convinced her that she loved him.  After which, he’d proposed. 

So no, there was no way that she was in love with Oliver.

Still, she should have listened to her instincts about Jerry during those two years before he’d proposed.  She’d known, deep down, that they weren’t right for each other.  But Jerry was pretty insistent.  Besides, Jerry had flattered her.  He’d teased her and told her that she was the best thing in his life. 

He’d convinced her that he needed her.

The slime ball! 

As those painful memories came flooding back, she turned and glared at the man.  “What do you want?” she demanded flatly.

“Let’s not have this reunion in public, my dear,” he said softly, but there was a hard glint in his eyes that warned her that Jerry was up to no good.

She pulled back when he reached for her arm.  “I think I’m fine right here,” she said.  “In fact, let’s go sit over there,” she pointed towards the benches around the fire pit.  “I think that it’s safer if we have our conversation in public.”

He laughed, but it wasn’t an amused sound.  “Need your pit bull close by?”

She swung around, fury in her eyes.  “Don’t call him that!” she snapped.  “In fact, don’t you even speak about Oliver!  You’re not worthy of even speaking his name!”

Jerry pulled back, lifting his hands up, palms out.  “Right!  Damn, woman!”  Then his lips curled up into a smarmy grin.  “You should know better than to give me a weapon like that.”  He snickered and Maggie narrowed her eyes as he sat down next to her.  When he did that, she stood up and moved to a different seat. 

“Don’t you dare try to hurt Oliver,” she whispered with hatred in her voice.  “You’re slime, Jerry.”

He laughed and leaned back, pretending to be unconcerned.  “Yeah, I know you think that.  But you also know how much power I have.  If you cross me, I’ll get him fired.”

Maggie went still, remembering that first day she’d seen Oliver.  He’d been…hung over?  She wasn’t sure, but Oliver had appeared pretty bedraggled.  He was better now.  He was wearing new clothes…well, newer clothes and shaved most mornings.  He had transportation, even though Mick had mentioned needing to fix something on it.  Oliver was finally getting his life back together.  He was pulling himself out of the hole that he’d gone into prior to moving here to Rose Gardens. 

“You leave him alone!” she snarled, pointing a finger in his direction.  “This is between you and me!”

Jerry laughed, more relaxed now that he had the power.  “Ah, little Maggie!  You’ve changed.  You used to be such a snobby pain in the ass.  What happened to you?”

Maggie pressed her lips together and didn’t respond. 

“Found Jesus or something?” he mocked.  “Whatever,” he waved his question away and leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees.  “Thing is, I want your land.”

“No.”

“You’re going to sell it to me,” he continued, ignoring her reaction. 

“Why do you think I’d do anything to help you?”

“Because I want your land. I’m willing to pay for it.”  He looked pointedly around, still sneering.  “You obviously need the money.”  He locked eyes with her.  “And if you don’t sell me the damn land, I’ll get your pretty boy toy fired.”

He stood up and pulled a card out of his pocket, and threw it at her.  “And because you’re being such a stubborn little bitch, I’m cutting my offer in half.  Call me when you start thinking with your brain instead of your...” his eyes dropped to her groin area, then snickered.  “Well, whatever it is that women have that is the mediocre equivalent of a dick.”

Jerry laughed heartily as he walked away. 

Maggie stared after him, wondering why he’d come all this way just to threaten her.  Goodness, she hated that man!  She hated Jerry and everything he stood for.  She hated him for how he’d hurt her, how he’d degraded her, humiliated her, and she hated him now because he dared threaten someone she lo…cared very deeply for.

Glancing over at Oliver’s door, she stood up, wiped the despised tears from her cheeks and walked back into her apartment. 

Staring at the mess, she sobbed once before she caught herself.  Gulping back the anger and emotions that she refused to let loose, she took the stack of pancakes that she’d so happily cooked this morning and tossed everything into the trash.  She wasn’t hungry and she’d only made a double batch because she knew how much Oliver could eat.  He had a metabolism that never seemed to stop. 

It was all trash now, she told herself.  Plus, her perfect little world, her oasis from the reality of her past life, all that shame had broken through the protective walls she’d built up around herself.  Jerry’s visit had tarnished her world, made her feel filthy all over again. 

Oliver stomped around his apartment, packing up everything that he’d brought from his penthouse.  No way was he sticking around now.  Maggie was engaged?  That’s twice that he’d trusted a woman and been lied to.  Damn it, when was he going to learn?  Why was he such a sap when it came to women? 

No more!  He was done!  Finished!  He’d get the hell out of here and get back to his real life.  A place where the damned light switches worked and there was unlimited hot water!  And where the cabinet doors weren’t falling off the hinges!  Damn he couldn’t wait to get the hell out of this apartment.

A knock on his door drew his attention and snapped him out of his contemplation of a long swim in his heated pool.  All by his damn self!  No neighbors sneaking over to ‘check in’ on him.  No girls asking if he’d show them a few more soccer tricks.  No…no one to deliver cookies when they thought he was having a rough day. 

Another knock, this time more urgent, pulled at his attention.  He opened his eyes, unaware of having closed them.  He glare at the offending door and, with a growl because he assumed it was the putz coming back for another round, he opened his mouth to threaten the little bastard if he didn’t get the hell away from the door.

“Maggie needs help,” Eddie announced through the door, wringing his aging hands together.  He glanced at Maggie’s door, then back to Oliver, who opened his door.

“She’ll be fine,” Oliver sighed.  “She’s tough.  She can handle anything.”  Which was the truth, he thought.

Eddie shook his head.  “Not that guy, she can’t.  And he didn’t really threaten her so much as you.”

It took a moment for the Eddie’s words to sink in.  Threaten?  Who was threatening Maggie?  No, not Maggie.  The putz was threatening him?  That was new!  “Me?  How did that ass threaten me?  If he calls the police, he’ll just–”

“No!  It has nothing to do with that shoving match earlier, the one which no one saw any way,” Eddie said quickly and with a pointed look that warned Oliver that the whole apartment complex stood behind him.  “The guy that came by this morning and woke all of us up, he threatened you, Oliver. He told Maggie that he’d get you fired from your job if she didn’t sell him something.”

That wasn’t what he’d anticipated.  And it didn’t make any sense, either.  What could the man have over Maggie? What did Jerry want from her that he wouldn’t get as soon as they were married? 

Maggie’s door was still closed.  “Is he still here?”

Eddie shook his head.  “Maggie wouldn’t let him inside her apartment.  I heard her say that it was safer if she and the stranger talked out in public. She brought him over to the fire pit.”

She didn’t feel safe with her fiancé?  “Why would she…?”

But Eddie wasn’t finished.  “And when he sat down too close to her, Maggie jumped up as if he’d stabbed her and changed seats.”

Oliver stared at the elderly man, stumped.  Maggie had moved away from Jerry?  That didn’t sound like something she’d do with a man she’d promised to marry.  And she didn’t feel safe alone with Jerry in her apartment?  Maggie was willing to risk everyone in the entire apartment complex hearing their conversation?  And Maggie had to know that they’d be listening.  These people loved to know each others’ business. 

“He’s trouble, Oliver!  You have to fix this!  Maggie is terrified and I’m afraid she’s going to do something stupid to try to protect you!”

Oliver’s head snapped up, as if Eddie had slapped him.  His eyes swung over to Maggie’s door. This didn’t make sense!  And there was only one way to find out what was going on. 

“Thanks, Eddie,” he said patting his shoulder.  “I’ll take care of it.”

Eddie visibly relaxed and Oliver stepped out of his apartment.  He had shoes on now and walked down the sidewalk towards Maggie’s apartment.  Knocking softly on the door, he waited.  But Maggie didn’t answer.

“Maggie, open up.  We need to talk.”

Maggie appeared in the doorway and sniffed. He could tell that she’d been crying although she tried to hide it.  She’d wiped her tears away, but her eyes were red from the tears.  Plus, the smile she bestowed upon him didn’t light up her eyes.  Nope, something was seriously wrong.

“What’s up?” she asked.  “I’m sorry if you’re hungry.  I ate all the pancakes.”

Oliver pushed the door wider and stepped into her apartment.  “Is he gone?” he demanded, closing the door when Jerry didn’t appear.  Damn it, he was going to get someone in here to carpet her place.  The idea of Maggie getting a splinter from this particleboard flooring….  And he was angry enough now to make it an issue. 

“Yes.  Jerry left,” she replied, crossing her arms protectively over her stomach and backing away.

Oliver paced through the kitchen, reeling with questions.  But when he looked down, he noticed the full trashcan.  “You threw out your pancakes?  You just told me you ate them.”

Maggie shrugged, rubbing her forehead.  “Well, I…Oliver, you need to go.”  She stared down at her bare toes.  “Just…I don’t…it isn’t a good idea for you to be here.”

He watched her carefully and something clicked into his mind.  But he needed more information before he could make a plan.  “I think you owe me an explanation, Maggie.”

She turned away and he saw her blinking back more tears.  “We’re engaged.  What’s more to say?”

He felt the slash of pain at the thought of that putz touching Maggie.  But…no, something didn’t feel right.  He kept watching.  Open, honest, and wonderful Maggie….no, she wasn’t engaged.  Maggie would never flirt with him, much less share her body with him and make love with him so completely like she’d done last night if she were engaged.  It just wasn’t the way she was made. 

“You’re not engaged.”

Her shoulders stiffened and, instantly, he knew that he was right.  “I…was.”

Okay, he could see that.  Well, maybe not.  Maggie was just too sweet and kind and generous.  A guy like that would have crushed her spirit.  This was not a crushed woman.  “What happened?  Why aren’t you still engaged to him?”

She pulled her arms tighter across her body.  “I…uh…discovered that I wasn’t in love with him.”

He waited.  Because he knew that there was more.  “And?”

Maggie stared out the window, but he doubted that her eyes took in the beauty of the courtyard. 

“Two years ago, my grandmother died,” she began.  “My mother died right after giving birth to me and my father vanished at the same time.  It was just my grandmother and me.”  Maggie sighed.  “My grandmother was one of those amazing women who grew up under the hot, Texas sunshine and only got tougher with age.  She took over her father’s cattle ranch and built it into something…” she sighed.  “Incredible.” 

“She sounds like a wonderful woman.”

Maggie looked up, blinking quickly in an attempt to manage her tears.  “She was.  My grandmother spoiled me rotten.  Anything I wanted, she’d give me.  One of the ranch hands built me a princess bed and a castle in my bedroom for my fifth birthday.  When I turned twelve, I wanted a pool, so my grandmother installed one in the backyard.  When I turned sixteen, I got a car.”  She laughed.  “I didn’t have a driver’s license because I’d failed the test.  But I wanted one, so she gave it to me.” 

“You were spoiled?” he repeated, startled.  

Maggie peeked at Oliver through her eyelashes.  “I was an absolute brat,” she confirmed. 

“What happened?”

Maggie wished that this had never come up.  But now that Jerry had shown up, now that Oliver’s job and success were in danger, Maggie knew that he deserved the truth. 

“Then, my grandmother died.”

“And you inherited everything?”

Maggie nodded.  “Every last debt.”

Oliver cringed as he grasped the meaning of her words.  “She was out of money.”

“And hiding it from me.”  Maggie paced around the small space.  “My grandmother was a proud woman.  She didn’t want anyone to know how badly her financial status had changed.  But on the day she died, I took over everything.  Her lawyer told me that she had no cash on hand, the house was heavily mortgaged, and she was in debt up to her eyeballs.”  Maggie took another deep breath.  “That was also the day that Jerry found out about my grandmother’s lack of wealth.  He immediately broke off our engagement and demanded I return the three carat diamond ring.” 

She laughed softly and slumped down onto the sofa.  “I had to grow up fast.  I also realized that all of the people I thought were my friends, actually hated me.  With a vengeance.”

“I doubt that.”

She shook her head sadly.  “No, they really did.  And I can’t even blame them.  I had to take a good hard look at my grandmother’s finances. I realized a lot of the debts came from keeping me happy.  I grew up a lot that day.  It was difficult, but I took on the responsibility of selling off anything that I could in order to pay my grandmother’s debts.  All of the cattle were sold first.  The entire ranch staff were let go, which only caused more animosity from the townspeople, because my grandmother employed several dozen people.  It took me over a year to sell the house because there really aren’t that many people that could afford a house that big.  I sold my car, my grandmother’s jewelry, all of the furniture, and anything else that wasn’t bolted down.”  She sighed.  “I managed to raise enough to pay off every debt.  But I was broke.  Broke, homeless, and hated by everyone I knew.”

“And then you came here?”

She nodded.  “Yep.  I needed a fresh start.”  She turned and looked at him.  “I needed to prove to myself that I wasn’t a bad person.”  She looked down at her hands, noticed the scrapes and bruises.  Years ago, she would have been horrified by the way her hands and nails looked.  But now, she felt every scrape and bruise, every scar and cracked nail, was a badge of honor.  She put in an honest day’s work and she’d turned these buildings around.  And even ran the place at a profit! 

“I’m good at my job, Oliver,” she told him, defensively.  “I’m good at my job and I’m trying so hard to be a good person.”

He pulled her onto his lap.  “I think you’re a beautiful and incredibly wonderful person, Maggie.”

She sniffed and blinked back a fresh wave of tears.  “But you thought I’d have sex with you when I was engaged to someone else.”

He pressed a kiss to the top of her head.  “Only because you didn’t deny the guy’s claim on you.”

She shivered and he tightened his arms around her.  “I was in shock.  He said we were engaged and, well, I didn’t immediately deny it because I never expected to see him here, on my doorstep. I felt as if his presence here would rightfully ruin the happiness that I’d found.  I’d hurt so many people in my life, and maybe I don’t deserve to feel this way.  Maybe I’m still the selfish, horrible person I was then.”

“I don’t think you’re selfish or horrible.  You’ve built a good life for yourself here.  You’re good, kind, and very generous.”

She sniffed, shaking her head. “I’m not.  And even if others think I am now, I have so much more to make up for.  My past still haunts me, Oliver.”

He pulled her closer and Maggie leaned into him, absorbing his goodness and strength. 

“You’re a good person, Maggie.  You’re doing amazing things here.  Everyone loves you.  I think you should stop beating yourself up for your past and start accepting that you’ve changed.”

“It’s not enough.  If it was, then Jerry wouldn’t be here, messing things up.”

There was silence after that and Maggie took his silence for his agreement.  She tried to slip off of his lap, not allowing herself the comfort of his embrace.  But he wouldn’t let her go.  Instead, he tightened his arms around her.

“What does Jerry have over you?” he asked softly.

She froze, confused.  “What do you mean?”

“Eddie came to me and told me that he threatened you.  He said that if you didn’t do something, then he would get me fired.”  He pulled away and looked at her.  “What was Jerry threatening you with?”

Maggie stared at him for a long moment, then laughed, shaking her head.  “It’s nothing that I’ve done,” she promised.  “It’s actually something I won’t do.”  She slipped off his lap and stepped away, again wrapping her arms around her waist.  “I sold off everything of value I inherited in Texas in order to pay off the debts from my grandmother’s estate.  But there was one thing that I couldn’t sell.  It’s a strip of land along a river.  At the time, it wasn’t valuable.  In fact, I was pretty frustrated that I couldn’t snip that last tie to Texas and move on with my life.  I’ve been paying the property taxes on that stupid piece of land for a while.”  She sighed, rubbing her forehead.  “Actually, it’s not a stupid piece of land.  It’s beautiful.  It’s a large strip of land out in an area that some might call the middle of nowhere, but there are hundreds of big, graceful trees and a beautiful river meanders through.  Lots of animals come for water there and it’s pretty idyllic in a quiet, peaceful kind of way.”

“And Jerry wants you to sell him that piece of land?” he asked. 

Maggie laughed bitterly.  “Yes.  Apparently, he’s bought up all of the land around mine and wants to develop it.”

“I thought it was in the middle of nowhere?  What’s the point of developing land and building on it if the land isn’t close to anything?”

She smiled, leaning her head back and closing her eyes.  “I’ve heard through the grapevine that someone came through several months ago and worked with the state.  They agreed to pay for the roads leading into the area if the land could be rezoned for residential and retail use.  Jerry heard about the offer from the state, which would incorporate my former small town to the Dallas county limits.”  She smiled ruefully at Oliver.  “Another little tidbit that I discovered was that the town doesn’t want the development.  They don’t want the land to be turned into yet another suburban sprawl with all of the golf courses and strip malls that are so bad for the environment.”  She sighed heavily.  “So, not selling to Jerry is my way of paying the town back for all of the horrible things that I put them through when I was a kid.”

Oliver looked around at her apartment, again noting the lack of furniture except for the pieces she was trying to refinish herself.  Suddenly, it came together.  The puzzle pieces connected in his mind and he felt something pop deep down inside himself.  Standing up, he asked, “You’re using all your salary to pay the taxes on that land, aren’t you?”

Maggie shrugged and nodded slowly.  “Yeah.  I am.  And Jerry has put the screws in by convincing the county financial office to increase the taxes on that piece of land.  He’s trying to make it so that the land is too expensive for me to keep.”  She sighed, pulling her lips into a cringe.  “He’s actually closer to winning than he knows.”

Oliver pulled her back into his arms.  For a long moment, they just stood there.  Maggie closed her eyes and wished that this morning had gone differently. 

“He’s threatening to make my life miserable if you don’t sell him the land.”  It was a statement, not a question.  Oliver understood what was going on.  He never played that way when working his development deals.  But he knew that his competitors played dirty when necessary.  Oliver preferred to go a more ethical route by only developing in areas where the landowners were willing to sell.

However, he’d rarely considered the neighborhoods in which he’d planned to develop.  And his thoughts came back to what he was doing to this neighborhood.  His team had approached each of the land and building owners in the area with offers to buy their property.  Every one of them had been eager to sell.  But what about the residents in the neighborhoods?  What about the Community Center down the street?  And the smaller homes along the residential streets?  Yes, their property values would increase.  But for these people, that only meant that their property taxes would increase.  Many of them wouldn’t be able to afford it and would be forced to sell out and move. 

What would that mean for their lives?  How would it impact their friendships?  Their kids?  The schools?  The spirit of community that had built up over the years?  This entire community had worked together to make this area their own oasis. 

That wasn’t something that Oliver had considered over the years. 

But now that he knew what might happen, he was going to fix it.  He wasn’t sure how, but he’d figure something out.

“Don’t sell out to Jerry the Putz,” he urged.

“I might have to,” she whispered back, hiding her face against his chest.  Oliver could tell she was crying again.  For him!  Damn, that felt really good!  Little Maggie, fierce and fearless Maggie, was going to sacrifice something important to her because…hell, because he was more important to her! 

Aw hell!  Damn, he…loved her!  Really loved her!  He’d been fighting that knowledge for too long, but now that he’d accepted it, a feeling of rightness washed over him.  Peace? Yes.  There was a feeling of peaceful rightness. 

“You don’t have to sell.  Let me make some calls.”

She pulled back and looked up at him.  “But what about…?”

He kissed her.  It was a soft kiss of promise and it silenced her worries.  When he lifted his head again, he smiled down at her.  “My job is secure, Maggie.  Don’t you dare sell out to Jerry the Putz just to protect me.  I guarantee that he can’t affect my job in any way.”

“But–”

His eyes hardened at her continued skepticism.  “Maggie, I need you to trust me, okay?” 

Oliver watched as she processed his words.  He saw the moment she understood and he felt relief surge through him.  He suspected that Jerry could become pretty desperate.  Oliver knew that he’d have to get his team to look into the situation in Texas.  It shouldn’t be too difficult to get information.  Once he had the facts, he’d ensure that Jerry’s threats were neutralized.  Even more, he planned to do a bit more than simply neutralize the man’s mischief.  After all, Jerry the Putz had threatened Oliver’s woman. 

Oliver was going to crush the bastard!