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CHAPTER2
Matt
Isat down on a plastic chair in the corner of the back yard, frowning as I typed notes into my tablet. Bess sat at my feet, gazing up at me. “I agree, girl. She’s very pretty.” Bess cocked her head inquiringly. “Well, you’re one to talk, you didn’t even pretend to play hard to get.” I scratched Bess behind the ear, trying to concentrate on my notes. “And you can look at me like that all you like. I’m not interested.” Bess dropped her head. “I’m not!”
Even if Zara did have the most amazing eyes. Deep blue, framed by thick dark lashes, they had struck me as sorrowful, uncertain, sweet and determined, all at once. Creamy skin, soft, kissable pink lips. A long, straight nose. A beautiful nose—
What the hell? I gave myself a mental slap. Remembered what I was there for and cursed. Stunning blue eyes aside, she was here to make a quick buck before hightailing it back to wherever she came from. That was it. “Get a grip, you idiot.” Bess dropped her head sorrowfully. “Sorry, Bess. Not you. Me. Come on, let’s get moving. The sooner this is done, the sooner we’re out of here.”
I went around to the patio at the back of the house and knocked on the sliding door and stepped back, waiting for Zara to come out. My belly clenched as she moved toward the door, pushing her arms through the sleeves of a dark blue hoodie and zipping it up, folding her arms across her middle, watching me with those mysterious blue eyes. Waiting. I looked down at my tablet for a long moment before beginning, trying to gather my thoughts.
“Ok, for the most part the main house and the guest house aren’t too bad. Your biggest expense is going to be replacing some of the foundation near the living room. The floorboards are warped in there too, so it would be a good idea to fix them at the same time.” I looked at her, swallowed, ran my eyes down the list. “There’s no sign of dry rot, rising damp or mold. I thought there might be some asbestos cladding, but there isn’t, so you’re okay there too.”
She smiled. “That’s good news.”
Dimples. She has dimples.
I swallowed again. “There’s still a fair bit to do to get it ready for market, though. Obviously, the kitchen and bathroom both need updating, the gutters need fixing. A paint job, and you’ll have to get the fireplaces cleaned out. You should consider what you want to do about the driveway. All that concrete sticking up is a hazard. Also, I found evidence of rats in the crawl space under the roof.” Her eyes widened with horror. “Don’t worry, I can take care of it.”
She lifted her chin determinedly. “That’s okay. I can do it.”
“They could be pretty big, judging by the disturbance up there.”
“Big? Really? Like, how big?” She shuddered.
I grinned. “No stress. I’ll set a trap.”
Her shoulders sagged in relief. “Great, thank you.”
“Right, well, here’s a suggested list of work… There’s a rough price estimate on the second page.” I handed her two sheets of paper covered in my neat, slanted writing. I watched as she flicked straight to the second page, her eyes skimming to the very bottom, looking for the dollar figure. I admitted to a twinge of disappointment. Yep, she was obviously money-minded. She returned her gaze to me. “This all looks great. When do you think you could start?”
“Can I ask what are your plans here? It’s a big property. You looking to subdivide, maybe put in some units or something?” I blurted, immediately wishing I could take it back. It wasn’t any of my damn business.
She seemed startled at the abruptness of the question but then she turned her head to look around at the gardens. I followed her gaze. There would be a mountain of work involved to clean it all up. It would be so much easier just to clear it and sell it off in chunks. Much more profitable, too. But you could see the years of Ruby’s effort in the winding, overgrown paths, in the groupings of fruit trees so haggard and wild they probably didn’t even bear fruit anymore, in the carefully laid out flower beds. She looked at me, an unfathomable sadness in her eyes that pulled at me, and shaking her head, said softly, “No. No, I couldn’t do that.”
Relief and confusion swamped me. Relief that she obviously wasn’t here for a cash grab, but confusion about exactly what she was here for. And why did I care? I had nothing to do with it. But there was no mistaking the sadness she had felt when looking around at the gardens. I cleared my throat awkwardly. “Okay, well, I need to shuffle a few things around, order the necessary supplies. I could probably make a start by early next week. I’ll have to squeeze you in around my other jobs, so I won’t be able to be here every day…”
“No problem. I appreciate you fitting me in at all.”
“Okay, I’ll get out of your way then. I’ll draw up a proper quote and send it over. If you’ve got any questions before then, give me a call.”
“Sure, okay. Great. Thanks.” She gave me a sweet smile, shy and warm at the same time. I turned away, whistling for Bess, breaking the connection I was already starting to feel for her.
CHAPTER3
Zara
“What a day!” I gratefully took the glass of pinot noir that Ally handed me and curled up in the recliner opposite her at the fireplace. We had a cheerful fire going, and Ally had laid out some nibbles on a coffee table between us.
“Sure was. We’ve made a good start, I think. The kitchen is much better. Oh, and you met the hottest guy I’ve ever seen in the flesh.”
I nodded, taking a sip of wine. “There’s a lot to do.” I hid my smile at Ally’s huff of frustration. She knew I was deliberately ignoring her reference to Matt.
“There is. Especially your contractor.”
Trying to take my mind off Matt, I started compiling a chore list in my mind, got as far as scrubbing out the bathroom, then gave up. I was painfully aware of Ally’s gaze on me and kept my own determinedly on the fire, wincing a little at her audible sigh. When she offered me a small plate of brie cheese and crackers I went to decline, then thought better of it. She’d made it very clear that she was concerned at how thin and wan I’d gotten lately and was making a concerted effort to fatten me up, starting with the tagliatelle in a creamy mushroom sauce she’d made for dinner. At least if I pretended to eat, Ally would lay the hell off. As quick as I had that thought, I berated myself for it, since it was hardly fair. I knew I really hadn’t been taking good care of myself and Ally was only being a good friend. The best, in fact.
“Okay, so if we aren’t going to gossip about Matt the Adonis, we’re going to have a conversation of a different sort.” Her voice was quiet, kind, a little demanding. “Tell me what happened in New York.”
