Chapter 24

24

NIALL

T he Hallow’s Eve Festival kicked off tomorrow and I was mighty excited for it to start. All week long, my marketing team had been working on a social media campaign to build the hype surrounding the event, Tallulah had put the finishing touches on the Carmichael Plantation, and so far, it really was shaping up to be the biggest festival yet.

It was Thursday afternoon, and even though we had twenty-four hours to go, for the first time ever, I felt like we were completely ready for it. Sitting in my office, I looked over the plans one final time, but I just couldn’t find anything to add or even question.

I grinned, shaking my head as I wondered how the hell she did it. Tallulah had a way of thinking about everything, planning for every contingency and then some. I was still marveling at the depth of her well of natural talent.

My office line rang and I plucked up the receiver, pressing it to my ear expecting it to be another member of the press calling for a statement about the festival. “This is Niall Morrison.”

“Mr. Morrison? This is David Harper calling you from the Brookside Collections Agency. I was wondering if I could have a minute of your time.”

I frowned deeply. “The Brookside Collections Agency? I’m afraid you must’ve made some kind of mistake. To my knowledge, I haven’t skipped any payments due to anyone.”

“No, sir,” the guy said quickly. “This isn’t about you. It’s in connection with one of your employees, a Ms. Talullah Pruette?”

My stomach dropped to my knees. “What about her?”

“We recently received notice that she’s started in a position of employment with you,” he said crisply. “As a special projects manager, we believe?”

“Yes. What about it?”

“Well, sir.” He cleared his throat nervously. “Under the Wage Garnishment Laws of Louisiana, we?—”

“Let’s cut to the chase.” I leaned back in my chair, knowing I was sticking my nose in where it didn’t belong, but that knowledge didn’t make me any less confident in what I was about to do. “How much does she owe?”

“Excuse me?”

“The credit card debt,” I snapped. “I know that’s what this is about, so just give it to me straight. How much does she owe?”

“In total, sir?”

I grunted in frustration. “Yes, in total.”

“Twenty-two thousand, four hundred and seventy-four dollars, sir.”

My eyes widened. It was no wonder she’d been so stressed about it. What I paid her was a generous salary, and since what she had been paying in rent had now become disposable income as well, it wasn’t an impossible amount to pay off, but it was still a lot.

Rage boiled in my veins at the thought that her ex-husband had saddled her with that amount of debt. As a graduate with no previous work experience when she’d left him, he must’ve thought she’d never become debt free, and frankly, he’d had a damn good point.

I had half a mind to send the collections agent after him instead, since I knew he’d been the one to rack up all that debt, but then I remembered her saying that he’d saddled her with it in the divorce. Legally, I assumed that meant she’d accepted responsibility for repaying it all.

“Who can I make the payment to?” I asked as I shook myself out of my thoughts about how unfair this was.

“I’m sorry?”

“Don’t be sorry. Just give me the details. I’ll ensure that payment is made in full today.”

“Today, sir?”

“That’s what I said.” Exasperation coursed through my veins, making me feel all itchy and bottled up. “The details, Mr. Harper. Now, please.”

He rattled off all their information and I took it down, then logged into my bank account while he was still on the phone and made payment electronically. I didn’t even want to fuck around with a check right now.

“You should have the proof of payment in your emails,” I snapped once the deed was done. “Send me confirmation that you’ve received it and that she’s debt free before the end of the day.”

As I slammed the receiver down in the cradle, I blew out a heavy breath, honestly not understanding why anyone would do that to a person they supposedly loved. It was vile. Disgusting.

I fumed as I sat there quietly, drumming my fingers on the glass top of my desk and contemplating what to do about it. Part of me wanted to track down this Carter guy and give him a piece of my mind, but doing so might result in him finding out where she was, who she worked for, and trying to weasel his way back into her life.

After everything he’d done to her, the very last thing I wanted was to invite him back in. While he wasn’t a threat for her affections, I simply detested the possibility that he might cause more trouble for her.

My door opened and my glare darted toward it, apparently confusing Jake when he walked in. He threw his hands up immediately, arching an eyebrow at me as he crossed the room. “Whoa. That doesn’t look good. What happened?”

“Tallulah’s ex-husband,” I said gruffly. Sighing, I dropped my head and massaged my temples, focusing on my breathing in an attempt to regain control of my heartbeat. “The fucking asshole racked up a small fortune in credit card debt after she told him she was leaving, and then he left it like a hot potato in her hands when they got divorced.”

Jake’s features contorted. “That’s terrible. I hate people like that, don’t get me wrong, but I just don’t understand why it’s made you look like someone took a leak in your Corn Flakes.”

“I’m seeing her,” I confessed harshly. “Have been for a couple weeks now.”

A slow grin spread on his lips and he dropped into the chair across from me. “Finally, the truth comes out. Congratulations, man. I’m happy for you.”

“Yeah, well, I just got a call from a collections agency about the debt and I’ve paid it off on her behalf. I just don’t think she’s going to be thrilled I did it.”

He groaned. “It was a pretty disgusting thing for her ex to have done to lay the blame at her feet in the first place. All you’ve really done is to restore balance to the universe. I know she might not appreciate the interference, but you only did it to protect her.”

I inclined my chin in a nod. “I’m not sure that’s going to make any difference. It helps her get her fresh start. A clean break. I wanted to give her the opportunity to live her own life without being shackled by the asshole in her past, but she’s a proud woman and she has every right to be. She’s overcome a lot to get to where she is.”

Jake looked back at me, his head slowly tilting to one side. “You have real feelings for this woman, don’t you?”

“I do,” I admitted without hesitation. Leaning back in my chair, I held his gaze and finally came clean with him. “There’s something about her, Jake. I can’t shake this feeling that she’s my match. Somehow, everything is different with her. There’s a connection unlike anything I’ve ever felt before.”

His eyebrows shot up, then he put his hands together and gave me a round of applause. “It’s good to finally hear you admit it. Shit, I’ve known there was a connection between you since I first brought her into your office. The chemistry is that obvious.”

I exhaled a deep breath through my nostrils. “I know. I really did think she was crazy at first, though.”

“Again, all the best people are,” he said, smacking out a drumroll on his thighs before he stood up. “I’m headed over to the plantation this evening if you’d like an excuse to come. The vendors are already there setting up for the festival and I need to go make sure they’ve got everything they need.”

“I’m coming with you,” I said, immediately getting up myself. “Let’s go now. We can do a full walkthrough before the sun starts setting. I don’t need an excuse, though. If I want to see her, I go see her.”

He chuckled. “I’m sure you do, bro. Never let it be said that Niall Morrison needs an excuse to see a woman. Got it.”

I smacked my palm over my face as I shook my head at him. “I knew you were never going to let me live any of this down. God knows why I even told you.”

“Because we’re bros,” he said, winking as he strode across my office and opened the door. “Let’s just go. If you’re so eager to get there, I wouldn’t want to have you blaming me for any hold-ups.”

I followed him out but took my own car to the plantation. I didn’t know how long Jake planned on staying, but I wanted the freedom to be able to leave when I wanted as opposed to when he did.

When we got there, the property was a bustling hive of activity. Tents had been erected and thousands of strings of lights had been strung up in them, in the trees, and between the main house and where the festival would be taking place.

Dozens of vendors were setting up, making it difficult to even find parking that was out of the way. Eventually, Jake and I parked behind the guest house, wandering back to the main area in the gardens and stopping to check on things along the way.

The mini mazes were being constructed for the kids and a few fairground rides had even been brought in. Vendors were putting tables and chairs under awnings and a makeshift stage had been built, a sound crew hard at work with the equipment.

The atmosphere was already festive, with music blaring from somewhere and people laughing and talking as they worked. I strode with my hands in my pockets, just taking it all in and eagerly searching for the person responsible.

When I finally found her, Tallulah was behind the stage, her hair swept up into a high bun that had become messy during the day, a plain pair of black cotton shorts, and a faded gray off-the-shoulder T-shirt covering her curves. I smiled, deciding that I was taking her out to dinner tonight.

She’d worked damn hard and everything was perfect. She deserved a break and I wanted to be the one to give it to her.