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A moment later, the music turned down. Then the door swung open and there she stood in a slouchy t-shirt and cutoffs, her feet bare, her hair gathered up in another of those messy buns. She looked good enough to eat.
“Hi.” Brilliant, McNamara. She should throw herself into your arms immediately.
Her lips curved into a smile that was a little bit shy around the edges, but seemed genuine. “Hey.”
Maybe the whole text exchange hadn’t been as much of a thing as I feared? We didn’t know each other that well yet. Maybe I read a bunch of irritation into her tone that wasn’t there.
“I saw your car and thought I’d come over to check in.”
She rocked a little on those bare feet, drawing my attention to her toes. They were painted chili pepper red. For some reason, I found that tiny glimpse behind the curtain unaccountably sexy. I loved knowing that behind that usually reserved demeanor, she had sassy toes. Could toes be sassy?
“Um… do you want to come in?”
I yanked my focus back to her face to find her mouth pursed in amusement. Damn if that didn’t just make me want to kiss her. “Yeah.” I stepped inside. “How’s the painting going?”
“It’s finished.” She waved a hand.
Finally dragging my attention away from her lips, I glanced around the room. Then I did a double take and straight up stared. The floors were still a scarred mess that needed refinishing, but all the walls had a fresh coat of paint in a pale, buttery yellow. The trim was a crisp, bright white. Even the ugly ass kitchen cabinets had been painted a deep turquoise that I wouldn’t have thought would work with the yellow walls but still somehow did.
“Holy shit.”
“I’m so sorry. I should have run paint colors by you before I went and did it.” She caught her lush bottom lip between her teeth, her eyes turning worried.
“No, no. I’m not upset. It looks cheerful and happy. I’m just amazed at how much you managed to get done in the last few days. Are you secretly Wonder Woman?”
The distress melted away, and she laughed. “No. My brother’s friends are back on-island for the summer, so between all of them and Gabi, I had a full painting crew. None of us have slept much, but everything is painted.”
“Shit. Do y’all hire out?”
That laugh rolled out again, rich and easy. “Sadly, they’d charge you more than the beer and pizza they charged me.”
I moved further into the room, examining their work. They hadn’t half-assed it. “I think it would be worth it.”
“If you really want, I can ask.”
She’d used a big wooden wire spool with one side removed as a kitchen table. It, too, had been painted that deep turquoise. A quartet of wooden crates was tucked beneath it for stools. The jar of wildflowers in the center of the table made me smile as I thought back to our date the other night.
“This is great. Really clever—what’s it called?—upcycling?”
“I’m gonna turn the other round into a coffee table, but I’ve still got to find something for legs.” She stood with her hands shoved into her back pockets. “We’re still working on picking up furniture. Starting with air mattresses on the floor for now, and shelves made out of cinder blocks and wood planks. It’s not much, but it’s a start. It’ll do until the next payday when we go pick up the sofa Beachcomber Bargains is hanging onto for us and see what else we can come up with. Gabi’s making it her life’s mission to dumpster dive on the rich side of the island.”
I met her gaze, and her golden cheeks deepened in color, as if the admission embarrassed her a little.
“Hey, they throw out some good stuff.”
“They do. And it’s fun to see what you can find and turn into something new.”
It struck me then that she looked happy in a way I hadn’t seen before. As if a weight had slid off her shoulders. If I’d had any doubts about offering this place to her, they died a swift death. Being able to take something off her plate was worth it. She’d nested so fast into having her own home, and I was fascinated to see what other little touches she added as things progressed.
“So is the move still in progress, or are you really here?”
“Officially here. This is the first night in the new place.”
I realized I hadn’t heard anyone else since I’d arrived. “Is Gabi not here to celebrate?”
“Oh no, she ran away to hang out with her friends. I think she was afraid I’d put her back to work.”
I didn’t want to do anything to dim that happiness, but I had to ask. “How did your dad take it?”
