Page 26 of Designs on You

“No. That’s not what happened. It was all one-sided, Hazel. It’s all in my head. I feel ridiculous.”

Hazel cocked her head to the side and shot her sister a look. “I seriously doubt it’s one-sided. He was just…giving you space and time.”

Natalie snorted out a laugh. “Please. He’s a hot, virile guy. Obviously used to making moves. He made zero moves on me.”

“Bullshit.”

Natalie’s eyes widened. “Excuse me?”

Hazel picked up Freddie, kissed the top of his head, and put him down on the ground. He happily scampered off to join the rest of the dogs. “I’ve watched him around you. He teases you. No guy does that unless he’s interested.”

“But—”

“Nat. He’s interested. He didn’t try anything because he didn’t want to rush you. Excuse me for being blunt, but he doesn’t consider you a one-time fuck. That’s called respect.”

The thought had never occurred to her. Her only thought—and granted, it had been an inebriated one—was that he wasn’t interested.

“Oh. Maybe.”

“Just give him another chance, okay? If he doesn’t seem like he’s into you after that, then let it go.”

She took a deep breath, then let it out. “Fine. Also, if you’re going to groom the dogs out here, you need a designated area, notyour back patio. Cuz that’s also where you grill food, and swim, so that’s gross.”

Hazel laughed. “Okay. Well, I do sweep and vacuum up all the hair, but I agree with you. What do you suggest?”

She pulled her sketchbook out of her tote and took a look at the backyard. “We haven’t really discussed back here yet, but I think you’d need something beyond the pool area. But definitely shady because you don’t want to get sweaty, and you don’t want the dogs to get hot. Plus you need access to water to bathe them.” She jotted down notes. “Oh, and you’ll need a bathing pool. Something to contain the animals, plus a designated table for grooming.”

“Aww. You’re so smart, Nat. You think of everything.”

“Probably not everything, but give me some time to wander the property back here and see what might fit. Then I’ll do up a proper sketch for Linc to build something for you.”

Hazel laughed. “I’m sure he’ll love that.”

Natalie shrugged. “He loves you. You know he’ll do it.”

“Yeah. He will.”

Natalie noticed the sparkle in her sister’s eyes when she talked about Linc. She was so in love it was ridiculous.

Natalie had thought she was in love once. No, she had been in love. Sean and she had been good at the beginning. They’d had similar ideals for their future. The only problem was Sean had been the only one who’d realized all his goals, while Natalie had only been able to achieve one of hers—to have her two beautiful children. But her professional goals? Those had been put on hold in order for Sean to achieve his. She hadn’t even realized ithad happened until year after year, Sean had asked more and more of her but had given nothing back.

Her dissatisfaction was partly her fault, though. She hadn’t sat down and talked to Sean about how she felt, what she wanted. She’d allowed herself to be completely swept up in his life, fulfilling all of his dreams, and somewhere along the line, the future she’d envisioned for herself had totally disappeared.

Not anymore. Now she had her kids, and they were settled and happy. She had a job she loved. She had goals, and she wouldn’t allow anyone to disrupt her goals for her future ever again.

However, that didn’t mean she wasn’t allowed to have some fun. Like her sister said, she was overdue. And it was high time she indulged.

So she’d test the waters with Eugene and see what happened.

CHAPTER NINE

After an intensely busy week, Eugene was more than ready for the weekend. He wrapped things up at work, then decided to stop by and see how Linc and his crew were doing on his house. Of course, he didn’t need to worry because the reno was going great, and he was impressed by how efficient his brother was.

Not that he’d tell him that.

“How’s the new job going?” Linc asked.

Eugene looked down at Linc, who was busy pulling up the crap flooring throughout the house. Since there were several workers assisting him, there was dust flying everywhere. “The job’s amazing.”

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