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Nodding, Brooke smiled. ‘Possibly. You’re not annoyed with me?’
‘For turning me into someone resembling a snack table?’ Max laughed and shook his head. ‘These things happen. At least you didn’t kick a pot of white gloss over a customer’s brand new grey carpet.’
‘You did that?’
‘Unfortunately. It was one of the first jobs I ever did after opening my own business, too. It literally could have ruined me before I’d begun, but luckily it was for a very laid-back elderly couple and they got a new one on their insurance. They even gave me a good review on social media.’ He shook his head. ‘Could have easily been a different story.’
‘Wow, yes, it could have been.’ She smiled. ‘I guess you could call this karma, then?’
‘Haha, yes, I guess you could.’ He rubbed his hair again and nodded towards the shirt in his hand. ‘Do you mind?’
‘Oh, sorry.’ Turning away, Brooke walked out of the kitchen, the heat rising across her chest and up towards her face.
Chapter Six
Brooke replaced hermascara wand in the tube and put it back into her makeup bag. This could be it. This could be the day she meets her soul mate. She grabbed her phone as it pinged.
See you in a min, babe. Looking forward to it xx
She smiled. If they did start dating, she’d have to have a word about him calling her ‘babe’, but he seemed nice apart from that. She tied her hair into a high ponytail and looked in the mirror. Yep, that would have to do. They were only going for a walk around the bay. Jeans and a nice t-shirt was a good choice.
Grabbing her bag, she walked out onto the landing. Music wafted out from the open living room door. Elsie had gone out with Ian, who Brooke had met at the dinner yesterday, so it must have been Annie’s grandson, Max, still painting.
Should she offer him a drink or something before she left? She’d only arrived herself yesterday, would it seem strange to offer him a drink? But if she didn’t, that would feel odd too. She’d offer him one.
Walking into the living room, she paused. He’d gone home and changed into a clean t-shirt—the same pale blue as the one he had been wearing before she’d split latte and cake all very him and he’d been forced to change into Ian’s garish bright floral shirt. Not that he’d kept this one clean, just as he’d promised her earlier, he’d managed to get paint over it. Only a little, mind.
Brooke cleared her throat. ‘You have a little paint on your shoulder.’
‘Oh, hi. I thought you’d gone out with Elsie and Ian.’ Turning, he smiled, paintbrush in hand.
‘No, I’m going on a date.’ Glancing down, she smoothed her top down.
‘Oh, right. Do you know someone from around here? I assumed you were just visiting, volunteering?’
‘I... umm... I met him on a dating app.’
