Ivy drew in a sharp breath not believing Damien Fargo had the audacity to call after all this time. “Too late for an apology now, Damien,” she said and hung up.
* * *
“HELLO, NOLAN. I saw I missed a call from you.”
“You missed several, Victoria,” he said, frowning. “Where are you?”
“New Orleans. I flew here for a job interview and I’ve been busy preparing. What’s up?”
Nolan’s frown deepened. “New Orleans? You’re thinking about moving to New Orleans?”
“If I get the job.”
“Why? There’re plenty of job opportunities here in Houston.”
“Yes, but in New Orleans I won’t have to worry about being treated differently because my last name is Madaris.”
Nolan didn’t say anything, not sure he liked the idea of his sister taking a job in another town. Another state.
“And before you say anything, Nolan Madaris, remember you moved to Chicago after college.”
“That’s different.”
His sister chuckled. “Always is when it comes to the guys in the family. I always get treated differently because I’m a female.”
Her words reminded him why he’d called. “Well, there is one person who intends to treat you as an equal.”
“Who?”
“Mama Laverne. I went to see her yesterday and she informed me that after she marries me off, instead of moving on to Corbin, Adam, Emerson or Chance, that you’re next.”
“Me?”
“Yes, but don’t worry about it. I plan to call a family meeting to deal with her meddling.”
“Hold up, Nolan, call one on your behalf if you’re so inclined, but not mine. I have no problem with our great-grandmother finding a husband for me. It frees up my time in doing so because I know Mama Laverne is going to vet him to the nth degree.”
Nolan couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You want a husband?”
“Not really, but if Mama Laverne says I’m next, then I’m not going to buck the idea. Hey, she has an astounding track record.”
“That’s not the point.”
“Maybe for you it’s not but for me it is, so if she wants to find a husband for me, let her at it. I have no problem with it. I welcome her doing so. And if I were you, I wouldn’t buck her either. Lee tried and look what happened. We all thought Lee would best her at her own game and we were wrong. Besides, Lee is madly in love with Carly. They are a perfect match. Remember that.”
Nolan didn’t need to remember anything. He’d just returned from Paris, where he’d spent time with the happy couple. It was obvious to everyone Lee adored his wife, but like he’d told Victoria, that wasn’t the point. If she wanted Mama Laverne to control and manipulate her life, then that was her business. However, he had no intentions of letting her control and manipulate his. As far as he was concerned Victoria had been duly warned.
A short while later Nolan ended the call with his sister, knowing he needed to get away more so than ever. Although there was no need to call a family meeting for his sister’s sake, he still needed answers as to how to handle his great-grandmother. Unlike his sister, he wasn’t satisfied to let Mama Laverne make decisions on his life. Earlier, he’d got a call from his property manager to say his house on Tiki Island was ready for his arrival. Marlene had cleared his calendar, which wasn’t hard to do since he’d originally planned to remain in Paris for an additional week anyway.
He was about to head out and grab lunch when his phone rang. He recognized the ringtone. He smiled as he picked up the phone. “Hi, Gramma Bessie.”
“Hi, Nolan, how are you doing?”
“Fine. What about you?”
“I’m doing fine as well. However, I need a favor.”
“Anything for you, Gramma Bessie.”
“Can you take me to visit your great-aunt Caroline? All I need is to get dropped off there. Your granddaddy will pick me up on Sunday evening.” Caroline was his grandmother’s sister who lived in Andrews.
“Sure. When?”
“Friday. We can leave that morning.”
That’s was the opposite direction from Tiki Island. If he dropped his grandmother off at his great-aunt Caroline’s, that meant he wouldn’t get to the island until late that evening. He sighed. “No problem. I’ll take you.” This was family after all.
* * *
DAMIEN FARGO LEANED back in his chair and snapped the pencil he’d been holding in half. Ivy intended to be difficult, which meant he had to come up with another plan.
“I hope you don’t anticipate any problems.”
He glanced at the man sitting across from his desk. For a moment, he’d forgotten about his presence. His mind had been reeling with the fact that Ivy Chapman had hung up on him. He’d figured she would still be upset. Most women would. But hadn’t he begun the conversation with an apology?
He thought it best to give the man his undivided attention and answer his question. “No, I don’t anticipate any problems. She might be a little mad with me now, but I know how to work her. She’ll be putty in my hands again in no time.”
The man nodded slowly. “See that she is.”
IVY STEPPED OUT onto the huge porch and stretched. She’d finally unpacked and was ready to relax. The porch swing looked inviting, and she could see herself sitting in it a lot during the next week while reading. This time it would be pleasure reading and not for business. In fact, she didn’t want to think about business at all this week. She was here to enjoy herself and intended to do just that.
Tessa couldn’t come with her since this was the weekend she was to go visit her aunt in Austin. More than once Ivy had taken the drive with Tessa to share the driving and for company. However, lately Tessa had found it a lot easier to fly. Her best friend had racked up a lot of frequent-flier miles doing so, especially now since her aunt was showing signs of dementia.
Ivy had felt a little bad about not inviting Nana, so she had called her a couple of days ago to see if perhaps she wanted to join her this week. However, Nana had made plans to join a group of senior ladies for a weekend trip to attend a gospel revival in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Her grandmother had been taking such trips for a couple of years now. At first Ivy had been concerned about a group of older women traveling alone together. The families of the other ladies voiced the same concern and decided to pool their moneys together and hired female chaperones to travel with the group. Nana and the ladies didn’t like the idea of chaperones and often referred to the younger women as their traveling companions.
Ivy glanced around, deciding she liked the place. It was on a private road and secluded from the other homes. It looked just like a beach cottage with its wooden frame painted a pristine white. What she liked the most, besides the huge front porch, was the stone walkway that led to a private area of the Galveston Bay.
The inside of the house was gorgeous with its two bedrooms, both king-size suites with private baths. It was a split bedroom concept and both faced the ocean with floor-to-ceiling windows. There were marble floors throughout, with a cozy living room and an eat-in kitchen with a wide breakfast bar.
When she’d arrived that morning, a huge gift basket that included bottles of wines, an