Page 15 of Daddy By Design

She blocked me when I tried to go to pick another piece. “I know that. I was just surprised to see someone had bought it. It’s not like I’d ever have been able to afford it without the help of the lottery, but this is the next best thing for me. You need me.”

I went around her. “I don’t need you or anyone.”

“I’ll change your mind. And I’ll make sure she’s grand again.”

“I don’t want to just pay someone to do it.” I fisted my hands at my sides. “I want to be a part of it.” I needed to be a part of it. I needed something to fill my days. They were eternal these days.

She chewed the inside of her cheek. “It will take a lot of people to get this done, so I’m sure we can find somewhere to put you so you can help out. We’ve had clients help out to keep the cost down. Not that this is exactly the same thing.”

“Nonnegotiable.”

She held out her hand. “Then we have an agreement, Mr... You gotta give me your name sooner or later.”

I took her hand, and this time, I was prepared for the zing. I wasn’t disappointed. Her softness was backed by steel as she shook my hand firmly. But there was a part of me that wanted to pull her in closer as much as I wanted to send her off the property and never see her again. “Nolan Devereaux.”

Her eyes widened. “Devereaux?”

I was going to have to get used to that look. Crescent Cove was a small town, and my sister was a large part of it.

“Any relation to?—”

“Macy’s my sister.”

“Well, shit.” She looked back at the house then to me. “That tracks. This job just got a helluva lot more interesting. I didn’t think that was possible.”

“Why is that?”

“Does Macy know you’re in town?”

“She will.” I let her hand go. “And I’m here to stay.”

Whether my sister would be happy about that fact or not remained to be seen.

FIVE

Nolan Devereaux.

How on earth did that happen in this life? One of my first major clients had been Macy. Even before we’d established Designing Women, I’d been doing interior design on my own. I’d helped her overhaul the café and her offshoot Halloween-themed restaurant, The Haunt, as well as her apartment.

The apartments over the café were blank canvases and Gavin Forrester, the owner, had allowed for a lot of leeway with his tenants. We hadn’t done a lot of structural changes in the apartment, but I’d definitely leaned into Macy’s love for Halloween and horror. Since we both shared an affinity for it, we’d formed an easy relationship that had only grown stronger as Macy settled into the Cove.

We weren’t quite as close as we used to be, thanks to our demanding businesses and her growing family. Macy, who’d been the poster child for no kids, now had a stepdaughter and a son. No one had seen that coming, including me, but love did crazy things in Crescent Cove, that was for sure.

“Being related to Macy would normally be a good referral. If she’d ever mentioned you.”

His eyebrow arched in that way that made me want to slug him and... other things that I didn’t want to think about. Especially now that I’d felt every freaking inch of him. Mercy.

Since he didn’t seem inclined to elaborate, I tamped down my frustration. “I know. I’m the one who has to sell myself, Mr. Devereaux.”

He just narrowed his eyes at me.

“You know what I mean.” I huffed out a sigh. Getting information out of him was like using a crowbar for a pistachio. “If you’d follow me to my car, we can exchange information.”

“Nope.”

“What do you mean ‘nope’?”

“You know where I am.” He put the mask back on and flung another rotted board into the Dumpster.

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