Page 41 of Renewal After Dark

“You’re good with him.”

“I’m lucky that he’s an easy baby. Now, anyway. At first, he wasn’t at all, but we figured it out, didn’t we, buddy?”

“Yayayayaya.”

“Ya is his first word.”

“He’s a cutie.”

“So’s Sierra. She’s freaking gorgeous.”

“Yes, she is. The guys that work for me follow her around like puppies.”

“But you don’t?”

The question surprised him. Was she asking if he and Sierra were a couple, or was he reading too much into an innocent question? “Nah, we’re just friends. Have been for years.”

“I see.”

He had so many questions he didn’t dare ask her, but all at once, he needed some air. “What do you say we head home and see what we can salvage from the cabin?”

“That’d be great. Thanks for showing me your studio. It’s absolutely amazing.”

He thought she was absolutely amazing. “My pleasure.”

Chapter9

McKenzie had experienced the oddest feeling of jealousy or something like that when Sierra had walked into Duke’s studio as if she owned the place. She’d been friendly and said such nice things about McKenzie’s grandmother, so why had her hackles gone up the second she came in?

For one thing, Sierra was the kind of fierce, confident woman McKenzie wished she could be. What would it be like to be that comfortable in your own skin? McKenzie wouldn’t know because she’d never been comfortable in hers. In addition, Sierra’s easy camaraderie with Duke had made her wonder if the two of them were more than just friends and fellow business owners.

He said no, but she wasn’t sure she believed him. Although why would he lie to her about that? The internal debate was stupid, especially since she had many more pressing things to think about besides wondering if Duke was romantically involved with the sexy woman who worked next door to him.

What did it matter to her if he was? It didn’t. If only she could get the message to her raised hackles to simmer down and mind their own business.

She’d been blown away by his hip, stylish studio, as well as his incredible artwork. Since the natural-talent train had managed to ride past her, she was always amazed by people who could draw, paint, sing, write or create something from nothing. She’d gotten none of those things. Her one skill, if you could call it that, was an affinity for numbers that had served her well in a variety of jobs, even if she couldn’t add or subtract in her head to save her life.

Once a boss found out she was good at math, she inevitably was asked to take on more of the admin tasks, which made her feel good about herself, even if it didn’t come with more money. One of the store managers she’d worked for had sent her to the QuickBooks class, and she’d found she genuinely enjoyed bookkeeping—as long as a computer did the math for her.

“I bet there’s plenty of businesses on this island, besides mine and Sierra’s, who’d kill for a bookkeeper who knows QuickBooks.”

“You think so?”

“I’m sure of it. You could have yourself a nice little business and work from home with Jax.”

She glanced over at him in disbelief. “You really think so?”

“Absolutely. There’s no one out here who does anything like that, but there’re a ton of small businesses who need the help. We all muddle through, but I’m sure many of them make a mess of it the same way I do.”

“How big of a mess are we talking?”

“It’s pretty bad. You’ll probably be appalled.”

“I’m sure I can straighten it out for you in no time.”

“That’d be such a relief. I stress out about it because I know I’m not doing it right, and I worry about the IRS knocking on my door.”

“I’ll take a look when Jax goes down for a nap, if you’d like.”

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