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  Madeline scoffed remembering her brother’s sneer. She’d defended herself, saying she didn’t want their money, only advice about getting a loan. He didn’t believe her. Of course, to add further insult, Peter had gone to their father only a few days later and asked for money for some harebrained scheme. He’d given Peter the money immediately and praised his ingenuity.

  As she dropped the last travertine tile onto the floor in its position, she sat back on her knees and admired her work. It was a condo, not a palace, so she’d kept the materials less expensive and more neutral. Maybe down the line, she could afford to put a little more personality into her houses. ‘Her houses.’ She liked the sound of that. This may only be the first step, but she was finally officially on her way.

  She stood up and looked in the mirror. A shower was definitely the next order of business before she met with the real estate agent that’d be brokering the sale for her. A nervous fluttering began in her stomach as she stripped off her clothes. Soon she’d have to put her little condo into the hands of a stranger and hope they could sell it and sell it quickly.

  xXx

  Kayla Barrows Garrity walked up the path and toward Unit #4 of the Limestone Avenue Condos and did a quick mental appraisal. She’d only had her real estate license for a year, but she was sharp and honest. So far, it’d worked in her favor. Now, she liked what she saw: A freshly painted door and a bucket of bright pink impatiens overflowing out of it, welcoming her.

  She knocked and let herself it. “Hello? Ms. Roberts?”

  Madeline bee lined downstairs and around the corner. “Hi!” She hollered as she made the final turn while pulling her wet hair up into a pony tail.

  “Please, call me Madeline.” Madeline announced as she finally had the woman in her view. Standing before her was her exact opposite. She was petite; probably only reaching about 5’2” and beautiful in a way that Madeline knew she’d never be. She had hair the color of bright sunlight and it was styled into a perfectly cut bob that swung in a shiny curtain just above her delicate shoulders, without a single errant hair. Her bright, summer green business suit fit her impeccably.

  Madeline watched the woman giving her the ‘once over’ and wondered what she was thinking. Madeline had tried to fix up a little, as opposed to her normal uniform of t-shirts, jeans or cut-offs and boots. Now, she had on khaki capris with a blue blouse and sandals. Grandma Elise had bought her the shirt and told her that blue looked good with her coloring. It was the first compliment that she’d ever received on her appearance, to her recollection. It had left her feeling oddly pleased and a little embarrassed.

  “Please, come in.” Madeline gestured.

  “These floors…oh my. This is hand scraped oak, right?”

  Madeline raised an eyebrow, impressed. “Yes. I know it’s a bit extravagant for a condo, but—“

  “No, I think you’ll attract a higher end buyer. And the crown moldings…very nice.”

  Madeline could hear the excitement and the reverence in her voice and despite her best efforts to stay detached, she was starting to like this woman.

  “Come on back. Let me show you what I did in the kitchen.”

  Madeline led the way toward the back of the condo and around the corner. She was about to launch into her descriptions when Kayla interrupted.

  “Custom cabinetry…glass tile backsplash, stainless steel appliances, and what is this countertop? Is it granite?”

  “It’s honed marble.”

  Kayla ran her hand along its cool surface. “It’s stunning, but this…this is magnificent.” She moved toward the range with its modern hood and inlaid detailed backsplash. “Very modern.”

  Madeline could feel the slight blush creeping up her neck and into her cheeks. “Thank you.”

  “You have a clear vision and I think I know exactly how to pitch it.”

  “Oh?”

  “Well, this home is for the young professional. Someone that’s looking for turnkey and upscale, modern conveniences.”

  “Yes, that’s what I had in mind.”

  “When would you like to list it?”

  “Um, well it’s not done yet. We’re having a slight problem with the archway.” She gestured toward the wall separating the living room and dining room.

  “I wanted to modernize it, but Jerry, my contractor, he’s having some trouble with it. We might just blunt it off and be done.”

  “Jerry Oppenheimer?”

  “You know him?”

  Kayla laughed. “He’s a family friend. You’re in good hands.”

  “He’s been doing a good job, but we need to fix this arch. I want to get rid of this hexagon style.” Madeline gestured to the 1970’s style angled archway above their heads.

  “I see what you mean.”

  “Anyway, other than this, we should be ready in a matter of days.”

  “I’d like to get it on the market before Memorial Day.”

  “That’s next Monday!”

  “I know, but the market is hot and I think I might already have a buyer for you.”

  “Wait! Don’t you want to see the rest first?”

  “Definitely, but based on the kitchen, I have a good feeling about the rest.”

  Madeline laughed despite herself. It was a nice change of pace to have someone share in her passion for home renovation. Maybe she’d let Kayla handle this deal and then take it from there.

  xXx

  “I met the new girl.” Kayla announced loudly over the noise of the table saw. She tried not to let her nerves shake her voice as she watched her brother push lumber through a spinning blade, knowing he couldn’t see it clearly.

  Knox finished the last piece of lumber before he turned the saw off and removed his safety glasses. He turned and crossed his arms over his chest.

  “What? What new girl?”

  “The woman that moved into the Lester place!”

  He loved listening to her get all worked up. “Is that the reason you came down here? The population report?”

  “Har har. She’s selling it and I’m handling the deal.”

  Knox could hear the pride in her voice and he was genuinely happy for her. After three kids, and staying at home for several years, his big sister was beginning anew and making a name for herself in real estate. She seemed happier lately. Knox knew that Kayla had taken their mother’s death especially hard. His mom had barely gotten to meet Kayla’s youngest, Skylar.

  “She’s selling already?”

  “She’s flipping it.”

  “Hmm.”

  “What?”

  “Nothing. Just not a lot of profit in condo flipping.”

  “Well, that’s where I come in.” She smiled. “C’mon. The kids are with Dad tonight. Let’s go grab a burger and beer.”

  He didn’t want to resist her. The excitement in her voice was contagious, but still, he hated venturing out and she knew it.

  As if reading his mind, she added, “Please, Knox. I almost never get to see my brother alone. Let me enjoy this kid-free evening.”

  “What about Ted?”

  “Working late.”

  The tone in her voice was his undoing. Her husband Ted was a partner in a big law firm in the neighboring town. He’d worked hard for that partnership and now when Kayla had expected him to reduce his hours he was doing the exact opposite. He knew his sister wasn’t exactly happy. Ted never seemed to be home helping out with the kids, despite his many promises.

  “Yeah, let’s go.” He grumbled as he shut everything down for the night.

  xXx

  “So, this isn’t so horrible, right?” She teased as she tapped her full mug against his.

  He looked at his sister. She was like a little pixie, perched on her bar stool. They’d gone to the local pub, now owned by his childhood pal and his wife. The dim light inside was giving him some grief, but at least he didn’t need to re
ad a menu; the burgers were killer.

  “No, not horrible.”

  “Dad said you finished that mantel piece for the hotel in Virginia.”

  “Yep.”

  “Any new projects?”

  “Nope.”

  “Jeez Knox, stop chewing my ear off.” She said in mock annoyance.

  “Sorry. I’m just…tired.” He smiled.

  She watched him carefully. He’d been different since he came home from Iraq, so quiet and reserved. Of course what had happened to him…she swallowed hard, willing away the tears that gathered whenever she thought about his eyesight. Kayla had understood, but the truth was she missed her little brother. They’d always been close. Only eighteen months apart, they’d been mostly inseparable throughout their childhood. Their parents, Ed and Sheryl, had tried to be engaging and fun, but they’d been “later in life” parents and had been happy enough to sit back and watch their children go off on adventures rather than join them.

  When Knox left for college and then directly into the Army, she’d missed him. She’d been in love with her high school sweetheart and they’d gotten married as soon as they’d both finished college. She’d helped put Ted through law school; assuming that he’d be more available as a husband and father once his career was firmly established. That, of course, was not turning out to be the case.

  “You haven’t seen the kids in a while. I think they miss their Uncle Knox.”

  Knox smiled. Kayla had been pregnant with her daughter Skylar when he left for Iraq and he knew he had some serious catching up to do with his twin nephews, Taylor and Trevor.

  “I know. I miss them too. Maybe we can all meet up at Dad’s next week.”

  Kayla smiled. “Sounds like a plan.”

  “Well, this is just like old times, right? K and K! The Barrows kids.” Julie the waitress dropped off their burgers. “Except that back in the day, I’d be sitting here with y’all and not serving up the food!” She laughed as she winked at Knox and left.

  “She likes you.” Kayla teased.

  “She’s about as married and in love as they come.”

  “Doesn’t mean a woman stops looking.” Kayla answered as she fiddled with her lettuce.

  Knox stopped at the tone in her voice. “You okay, sis?”

  She nodded and looked away just in time to see their waitress plant a kiss on her husband, Knox’s high school pal and also the man currently manning the grill in the center of the bar.

  “I can’t see you. Did you nod?”

  That brought her up short. Knox usually didn’t make any reference to his vision problems and became irritated when anyone else did. “Sorry. Yeah. I’m fine.” She quickly took a big bite of her burger.

  Knox surprised himself with his statement. He tried to never reference his vision; or lack thereof. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it and he sure as hell didn’t want anyone to treat him different because of it. He chalked the slipup to his concern for Kayla.

  “So, what else about the new girl.” He said as he polished off his burger and began on the pile of curly fries.

  “Oh. You know, I’ve been thinking about something. She has this archway...”

  “Archway?”

  “Just listen. Do you remember it from when Mrs. Lester lived there?”

  “I haven’t been there since we were kids.”

  “Well anyway, it’s angled, like the top half of a hexagon. Jerry was trying to put in an arch. You know, much more modern—“

  “Jerry Oppenheimer?”

  “Yeah. But the thing is Madeline said he doesn’t think he can do it so they’re gonna just make it into right angles.”

  Knox frowned. “Arches aren’t hard. You just need to scribe it right.”

  “She wants the condo on the market ASAP, so I don’t think there’s time to do the arch.” Madeline waited and watched his brain in motion.

  “You want me to take a look at it, don’t you?”

  “It was a thought…”

  “Fine.” He grumbled as he stole her pickle.

  “I’ll call Madeline and see if we can get in tomorrow.” Kayla excitedly pulled her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Madeline’s number.

  Chapter 2

  Damn his sister, he thought, as he loaded up a few supplies into his tool bag. How the hell did she always manage to talk him into shit like this? Well, it didn’t matter. Soon enough, he’d talk to Jerry about the damn arch and get the hell out of there before he managed to embarrass himself. He dealt with his “low vision” as the docs liked to describe it and half the damn town knew about it, but he still hated meeting new people and having that awkward moment when they figured out there was something “off” about him.

  His musings were cut short by the double honk of Kayla’s BMW SUV; a gift from Ted to appease her when she complained that he was never home to help take the boys to their little league games.

  Kayla watched him as he came through the door and then turned to lock it up. His dark blonde hair was streaked with lighter blonde highlights that made her envious. His didn’t require twice monthly appointments at the salon to cover the gray. Now, with his aviator shades firmly in place, he made his way to the car. She noticed the careful way he ran his hand along the passenger side looking for the door handle. He opened it quickly and climbed in.

  “C’mon, let’s get this over with.”

  She smiled and patted him on the knee as she took off the short distance to Limestone Avenue.

  xXx

  The transition saddle between the hardwood floor of the hallway and the carpet to the master bedroom wasn’t lying flush and it was starting to drive her crazy. She’d been jimmying it for almost an hour and finally decided that she’d need to go back to the hardware store and see if there was an alternative that would work better. She was walking down the stairs, cursing under her breath when the doorbell rang and then immediately opened. She smiled: Kayla. The fact that Kayla didn’t seem to wait to be invited in somehow added to her irresistible charm. Well, this was still a trial sale, she reminded herself, and if it went well, then she might consider using her on her next flip.

  She was about to call out a hello when she saw a man coming in the doorway behind her. He was tall with hair almost as blonde as Kayla’s. His wide shoulders and lanky frame made her swallow a little harder than she intended and she hoped no one heard the gulping sound it made.

  “There you are!” Kayla squealed.

  “Yes.” Madeline mumbled as she attempted to drag her eyes away from the stoic, handsome stranger in aviator sunglasses standing in her entryway.

  “This is my brother, Knox. He’s going to take a look at the arch.”

  “Knox? You’re Knox.” She felt like her tongue was suddenly too big for her mouth. “I mean, Ed mentioned someone named Knox. I guess that’s you.”

  Now, he smiled slightly as he removed his sunglasses. “That’s me.”

  If she’d been tongue tied before, now she was downright speechless. His face was all long planes and hard edges. Cheekbones and a sharp jawline that led to a set of eyes the color of moss. His slightly tanned skin set off his eyes and hair and made the butterflies in her stomach dance a jig.

  “Ah—“she pointed toward the dining room. “The, um…the um…arch.” She quickly walked forward and dumbly gestured toward the ceiling.

  Madeline stood and watched as Knox quickly grabbed a tape measure off his tool belt and measured. Then, on a notepad, he calculated something and then measured again. Finally, he spoke.

  “It’s not the arch, it’s the header. It’s in the way a little. I can see why Jerry doesn’t want to mess with it.”

  “Oh.”

  “It can be done, though.”

  “How?”

  “We just need to reduce the angle so that it doesn’t impact the header. You need a softer angle.”

  Madeline felt
mesmerized by his mouth. “Okay.”

  “I can talk to Jerry about it.” He offered.

  “Um, he’s not here.”

  She watched a small smile pull at the corners of his mouth. “Yeah, I can see that.”

  “He’ll be back, I mean. He’s picking up the hardware for the bathroom. It came in, finally.”

  “Okay, well, I can leave my notes and he can call me. If he has trouble, I can just do it for him. It’s no big deal. We’ve worked together a million times before.”

  “I guess you were busy.”

  Knox looked up and turned toward her. “Huh?”

  “Ed gave me your name first. But I guess you were busy.”

  “Oh. Yeah. I had some custom orders to finish.”

  “Maybe next time.”

  What was she saying? It sounded like she was asking him out on a date! “I mean, I hope to flip another house soon and I’ll need a contractor. I mean, if Jerry’s busy.” She added.

  Kayla piped up. “I have that listing copy for the newspaper for you to look at.”

  Madeline felt her cheeks redden. She’d forgotten the other woman was even in the room. “Great!”

  She quickly scanned the copy of the listing as she willed the blood to drain from her cheeks.

  “Now, I just need to get my pictures uploaded and we’ll be set.”

  “Okay. As soon as the arch is done, you have the green light.” Madeline answered, relieved to have something else to focus on.

  “I’ll let you get back to work.” Knox said as he returned his tape measure to his tool belt. “Here are my notes. Have Jerry call if he needs a hand.”

  Madeline reached out and took the paper from him, wincing when she realized her scar was in full view. She waited for the widening of the eyes that usually accompanied the moment, but it never came.

  “Thanks. I really appreciate this.”

  “Can I show Knox the kitchen? It’s so beautiful, and it’s what I want to do in my kitchen.”