Page 80 of The Knitting Club at Wagtail Ridge

It took a few moments for him to answer.

‘No. No. Nothing. It’s just a bit …’

‘I know.’ She took his hand and squeezed it. ‘You and Vicki will be fine, Matt. You’ll get past this.’

As she turned away, she wondered whether she meant the issues with Sally or his ongoing grief for Kim.

CHAPTER

31

‘So, what shall it be? Raspberry Smooch or Ballerina Blush?’

Rose started to giggle. She couldn’t help herself. Those words spoken in Mike’s deep, rough voice, as he stood there looking incredibly masculine and sexy in his jeans and T-shirt, were more than she could take.

‘What? Don’t you think I can handle pink?’ He grinned at her and winked, which only made her laugh louder.

‘I’m pretty sure you can handle anything you choose.’ She went over to where he stood holding a paint chart against the wall and kissed him briefly.

‘Well, now …’ He slid his arms around her and pulled her closer.

Rose gave herself up to the moment, then finally pushed him away. ‘Enough of that. We’ve got work to do.’

‘Is it safe to come in?’

A voice from the open doorway made them turn.

‘Hi, Jake,’ Rose said. ‘Come on in. We were talking about paint colours.’

‘Of course you were.’ Jake grinned. ‘That’s exactly what it looked like to me.’

Rose wasn’t too old to blush.

Jake and Mike shook hands and Jake looked around the interior of the shop.

‘It needs a bit of work.’

‘It needs a lot of work,’ Rose said. ‘We’re keen to get the shop up and running as soon as we can. And the cottage needs work too. When can you start?’

‘I’ve got a few days’ work booked over the next couple of weeks, then nothing much after that, so whenever the sale is finalised and you want me to start.’

‘That would be now.’ Rose noticed the surprise on both men’s faces. ‘Matt is very efficient. And when you’ve got as many lawyers in the family as I do, paperwork doesn’t take long.’

‘All right. So tell me exactly what you’re looking for.’ Jake pulled a small notebook out of the back pocket of his jeans.

‘Let’s start here in the shop. Bree and I have talked about this. We’re going to need shelving along that wall—box shelves for the yarn. And another counter there towards the back. I’m already looking for a big table to go in the centre for the knitting club. The bathroom and kitchen need work too. And everything needs painting. That’s why Mike and I were looking at colours.’

Jake blinked. ‘That’s a lot of work. The sooner I get started, the better.’

‘And once the store is up and running properly, the cottage behind needs a lot of work too before I can move out of Bree’s place.’

Rose could see Jake starting to calculate time and money.

‘I’ll give you the best price I can, Rose, but this much work is not going to be cheap.’

‘I do expect the best price. And the best work.’ Rose smiled to take any sting out of her words. ‘And I’m happy to pay for it.’

Jake nodded, but she could see his mind was already on the job as he began taking measurements and jotting down notes. She looked for Mike, who was leaning casually against the edge of the old shop counter. His brow was creased.

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