Chapter 2

What the fuck was he doing? Declan said the words even though he knew better than to mess with Renee. But there was part of him that couldn't help it.

Her crossed arms and arched brow reminded him of how little bullshit she was willing to put up with. But now she was waiting to hear his rules.

As if he ever had any rules?

He stood and took a step closer. "I work cheap, but beer in the fridge would be nice."

"Easy enough as long as you're not drunk while you work. Anything else?"

"Yeah." Another step closer. He studied her face. She was a beautiful woman. Her sharp brown eyes were so expressive. "I don't need you to take care of me. I'm all grown up."

They stared at each other for an uncomfortable beat. He wasn't sure what exactly caused the tension. It wasn't anger. But something was simmering. Something in the way she looked at him, like she had on the porch when she commented on his beard. He just couldn't pinpoint the feeling.

The corner of her mouth lifted and he thought for a moment that she was going to laugh at him. Instead, she said, "I'll try to remember that."

He shifted to step around her to go back to the kitchen, but she stopped him with a hand on his forearm.

He looked at her hand and then into her eyes.

"Ty told me you guys had a memorial for your dad. I'm sorry."

"It's all good. It was a long time coming." He brushed off her sympathy. Part of why he left Ronan's house was his need to escape thinking about his father. One stupid letter from a dead man had shifted everything he'd ever thought about his dad. He shouldn't have to think about it here. "Let's go see what we're working with."

He stepped through the doorway and back into the kitchen. He hadn't looked at anything on the way to the bedroom.

"Um, not to sound like a bitch, but how are you going to work without tools? All you brought was one bag."

Glancing over his shoulder, he said, "I have tools. I just don't carry them with me."

"You can use the garage or the basement if you want. I don't use either except for storage."

"Okay," he responded, but he was studying the cabinets. They had to be from the seventies. The doors were plain and had been repainted a number of times, but the cabinets themselves were solid wood. He opened and closed a few doors. The counter had to go. It was green Formica. He looked down at his feet. Yellowish vinyl tile that at one time had a design swirling through it but had been worn away. "Did the last owners do any work over the last fifty years?"

Renee leaned against the counter and blew out a breath. "I don't think so. They were an old couple. I had the place inspected before I bought. The guy said the house was in good shape. It mostly needs cosmetic stuff."

He reached over and unlocked the window above the sink and gave it a shove. It was a wood window. Old, like everything else, and it barely budged.

"Have you thought about what you want to do first?"

"I'm hoping you can help with that. I'm sure there are things that should be done first. Things that are more important than a pretty kitchen."

He should've known better than to think Renee would be anything less than practical. "If all the windows are like this one, I suggest you start there."

"Yeah, I already got an estimate for the windows and that's gonna have to wait. Maybe by spring, I can get that kind of money together."

"You'll lose money this winter with these. Who gave you an estimate?"

"I Googled window companies and called three. They were all out of range."

He shook his head. "That's because they're marking up the cost of the window and screwing you on the labor. I can get the windows wholesale for about two hundred each except the picture window in front."

"What?"

"I don't have an account set up, but I'm sure Ronan does." He smiled at her. "It pays to know people."

"And you know how to install windows?"

"If you don't believe I know how to do anything, why am I here?" He was used to people underestimating him, but this was getting ridiculous.

"I thought you would paint and maybe put in some tile or something. I don't know what's required to replace windows."

"Once I measure the windows, I'll get an estimate. You'll have to pay someone to do the capping. I don't have the tools or experience for that. Plus, it's too tedious for me." Based on the look of confusion on her face, he explained. "The metal around the outside of the windows. I spent one miserable summer with my brother doing windows, and while I don't mind the installation, the capping is frustrating. We can find someone to do it as a side job, so it'll be cheaper."

"Okay. Windows." She opened a drawer and pulled out a small notebook and pen. "What else? I want to get a list and figure out a budget."

"I'm not a plumber or HVAC guy so if you have anything more than a clogged toilet or a furnace filter that needs to be replaced, you need to pay a professional."

"The furnace and AC are newish. Certainly not as old as the kitchen."

"Cool. Then let's do a walk-through."

They went from room to room, Renee scribbling notes on everything he said. Sadie joined them on the tour and insisted on showing him all the cool parts of her room. Then she followed along as he checked the avocado-green bathroom. "Why exactly did you fall in love with this house?"

Renee laughed. "The price was right. I wanted Sadie to have a house with a backyard. Ugly can be fixed. It'll just take time."

"What about your ex? Couldn't he do some of this for you? I thought he was a plumber."

Silence greeted him and he turned to Renee. Her face was tight and her lips pinched. Note to self: don't mention the ex.

He looked at Sadie and said, "What color do you think we should paint your room?"

"I can pick? Any color?"

"Uh..." He was afraid to look at Renee. He'd probably fucked up again.

"Within reason," Renee cut in. "One color. No rainbow stripes or polka dots."

Sadie giggled.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Declan said. "I think rainbow stripes and polka dots and maybe a unicorn!"

"Yeah!" Sadie yelled.

He scooped her up and flew her down the hallway, trying to think of ridiculous things kids liked. "Maybe a mermaid?"

"Or a superhero?"

"Anything is possible."

He set her down at her doorway.

"You know you created a monster," Renee said. To Sadie, she said, "You can pick one color."

"It's only paint, and if it makes her happy, what's the big deal?"

"I can't cave to every whim." But there was something in her expression as she watched Sadie pull books off her small bookcase and flip through pointing at colors and pictures, getting more excited with each page.

"But sometimes kids need a win," he said.

Declan's words hit home. He should know nothing about raising kids, but since he spent most of his childhood without a father, he had some insight.

"We'll see," she grudgingly agreed. "Are you staying for dinner?"

"Is that an invitation?"

"Just a question so I know how much to make."

"Can we have pizza tonight?" Sadie asked from her floor.

"We can't have pizza every night."

"Pizza is pretty much the perfect food," Declan said, and Sadie's eyes lit.

Renee sighed. "Fine. But you need to have a salad or fruit with it."

"Okay," Sadie answered excitedly.

"On that note, since I now have extra time because I'm not cooking, I'm going to get some work done. Do you need anything from me?" she asked as she headed back toward the dining room which was acting as her office.

Declan shook his head. "I'll measure the windows and see if I can get a quote. It's kind of late in the day, so it might be tomorrow."

"That's fine. Just let me know when you get a price and I'll figure out the finances." She paused in the living room. "Remote is on the table if you want to watch TV. Or there's a TV in your room if you prefer. No cable, but I have streaming services."

"Hey, sorry about bringing up your ex. Ty never mentioned not to."

"It's not that the divorce was bad." She looked over her shoulder toward Sadie's room. "He's just unreliable. When I asked him if he would come look at this house with me to inspect it, he refused. Said I wasn't his problem. Since I wanted to be on my own, I should learn to handle things."

The memory of the conversation still burned her. She'd spent years with him, helping him build his own business.

"Asshole. Even if he didn't want to do it for you, his kid lives here."

She blew out a breath. Pretty sad that someone who was barely a friend was more concerned about her daughter than Graham was. "Anyway, I do my best to not talk about him in front of Sadie. He loves her and she adores him. I don't want to get in the way of that."

She went to the dining room table and opened her laptop. Declan disappeared into the bedroom and returned with a tape measure and one of her notepads. He moved around, measuring and scribbling.

Even though she was keenly aware of his presence—she was so used to being the only adult here—she focused on work. She'd been dreading working on this client's account. He was old school and had been fighting her on using spreadsheets. Instead, he continued to use a ledger—like an honest-to-God green book with accounts payable and receivable. They met once a month at a coffee shop and he handed her the book. She shouldn't complain, but it never failed that in transcribing the information, she made mistakes and had to comb through the pages multiple times. At least he paid well. He was one of her first clients as a freelancer.

"Sorry to interrupt," Declan said.

She looked up from the ledger and checked the time on her laptop. Damn she'd been at it for over an hour. She raised her eyebrows at Declan.

"I can't get to the windows in here. I did all the rest in the house."

"Sorry. I was absorbed in work." She pushed back from the table and stood.

"I know you said windows, but are you sure you don't want me to price a new patio door? The one you have going to the back yard has seen better days."

"That's for sure a next-year problem." Closing her laptop, she added, "I'll go order pizza while you do this."

He glanced down at the ledger. "That's a lot of numbers."

"I'm an accountant. Numbers are kind of my thing."

He shifted the table a little and leaned toward the window. "So you really were one of those math-loving weirdos, huh?"

She laughed because Ty and Declan had always teased her about being a nerd. It never bothered her because it was true. "Yeah, I guess I am."

"Ronan's girlfriend Chloe manages a bar. She probably does the same kind of stuff."

"I'm not that kind of accountant. Present workload aside. This has been paying the bills. I'm a forensic accountant."

"I have no idea what that means."

"I'm kind of like a financial detective. I figure out why the numbers don't add up."

His arms stretched across the window and he scribbled in the notebook. Then he measured the height. She watched as his muscles rippled through the thin T-shirt he wore. As long as she'd known Declan, having him here now felt almost like having a stranger in the house. She wasn't uncomfortable, but something was off—different. Not necessarily bad, either. She went to the kitchen to call for pizza.

By the time the pizza arrived, she was bleary-eyed from creating the spreadsheet from Larry's small, blocky writing. If she powered through, she might have it all done tomorrow. She carried the pizza to the kitchen table and yelled for Declan and Sadie.

They each emerged from their rooms and ran toward the table as if they hadn't eaten all day. Maybe Declan hadn't, but she knew Sadie had. If she kept this up, the girl was going to outgrow the new school clothes they just bought.

"Smells delicious," Declan said.

"It's my favorite," Sadie said earnestly as she climbed into the chair beside Declan. "Mom gets extra sauce and pepperoni."

"Pepperoni? No way. That's my favorite, too. Corner or inside pieces?"

"Inside. I don't like the crunchy crust."

"Dude. We're like a match made in heaven. I love the outside pieces."

Renee listened to the conversation with a smile. She had no idea if Declan was telling the truth or just entertaining Sadie, but it was nice for Sadie to have someone new to talk to. When he took a plate, Declan loaded it with edge pieces.

Sadie leaned over and whispered something to him.

He scoffed. "If your mom wanted the little triangle pieces, she should've moved faster. You snooze, you lose." To prove his point, he shoved one of the corner pieces in his mouth.

Sadie's eyes popped wide.

"Since you're a guest, I'm going to let that slide. This time."

He smiled and took a bite of another slice. His phone buzzed and he pulled it from his pocket. "Why does Ty think he needs to check on me?"

"Why are you asking me?"

"I told him he was buying tonight, but he's making sure everything's okay."

She dropped her pizza on her plate. "How is it that you move into my house, but he's buying you drinks? Shouldn't he be taking me out?"

"I think he's worried you'll scare me off, and I'll end up back on his couch." He shot off a text and returned his attention to his pizza.

"Am I really that bad?" Graham had been telling her for years that she was too strict, too bitchy, too stubborn—too everything except fun.

"Nah." He paused. "Well, when we were younger, yeah. But you've mellowed in your old age."

"Old, huh?"

He straightened in his chair and looked up over her head. She turned to see what he was looking at.

"I think there's some gray hair. Definitely a sign of old age."

"Shut up! I am not going gray already. I'm not that much older than you."

Sadie sucked in a breath. "You said shut up."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. I wasn't saying it in a mean way, though. Declan knows I was kidding." She glared at him. Having Declan in her house might make her regress to her angsty teenage attitude.

"That's right, Sadie. Sometimes your mom has a hard time holding her temper. We'll help her by reminding her when she messes up, right? She should be nicer to me." He winked at Renee.

At this rate, being told to shut up might be the nicest she could offer.