Page 67 of Wild Justice

Her mother liked the color red, and her dad the color blue. That meant there were splashes of each throughout the house that was mostly beige as the backdrop. It had worked fine, too.

Brianna and Amanda both had a real eye for color - especially Amanda - and they’d offered to come help her decorate her new place. Amanda had even gone shopping with Lulu for the furniture. She’d wanted something attractive and functional without breaking her bank account.

But even without furniture, Lulu was thrilled. The maple hardwood floors gleamed, and the dark granite countertops were perfect with the farmhouse white kitchen cabinets. The fireplace was the centerpiece of the living room, and Lulu was looking forward to many evenings curled in front of it.

Her aunt and uncle had taken care of the home when they’d lived there, taking pride in their well-kept surroundings.

It had been Lulu’s grandparents’ greatest wish that all of their children had a house of their own on the ranch. Her parents did, her other aunt and uncle did, and now Chase had taken over their grandparents’ house. There was something about having family so close that made it feel truly like she was finally home after a long journey.

She heard a vehicle pull into the driveway and it sounded like the delivery truck. She hurried outside to see the men already opening the back of the truck to unload her furniture. It was finally happening. She would be sleeping in her new house tonight.

There were three men, and they knew what they were doing. Before she knew it, they’d unloaded the furniture in the long driveway and piece by piece were bringing it into the house. She was inside instructing the men where to place her couch and two armchairs when she heard Kai’s voice calling from outside.

“Hey,” he said, dropping a brief kiss on her lips. “Looks like I’m just in time to put some furniture together.”

“There’s coffee on the counter and pastries from the coffee shop. Help yourself,” she said.

After all the build-up and months of waiting, the delivery was done in a short amount of time. She was waving goodbye to the men as they drove away before nine in the morning.

“That went more smoothly than I anticipated,” Lulu said when they went back inside. “I was sure something was going to go wrong.”

She’d told him her tale of woe regarding the furniture order. Nothing had prepared her for the runaround she’d received from the company - giving one delivery date and then telling her they’d never given her a date. It had all been stressful and frankly, a pain in the ass.

“It’s finally here so now you can breathe easier. What’s first on the agenda? Putting the beds together?”

Most of the furniture was in one piece, but the beds and the kitchen table had to be assembled. Kai had shown up with a toolbox, ready to work. Bless him, because Henry wasn’t great with tools, but Chase would have done it if she’d asked but it would have been later after work.

“First, we finish our coffee, eat our pastries, and then we put the furniture together.”

“I like that you have your priorities straight. Caffeine, first. Work, second.”

There were cinnamon rolls in the pastry box along with a cruller, two chocolate frosted donuts, and a couple of cranberry scones. They could snack on this all day long. Chase had outdone himself this morning.

They were both sitting on the brand-new barstools at the kitchen island enjoying their breakfast. Kai’s gaze was running over the room and taking in all the details. She couldn’t help but wonder what he thought about her mediocre decorating skills. For some reason - that she didn’t want to ponder too hard - it was important to her that he was comfortable and at home here.

“You already have the television set up?”

The television was hung over the mantle of the fireplace which was the focal point of the great room. She had her kitchen at one end and the fireplace at the other with the living room furniture in between.

“Henry and Chase did it about a week ago. They wouldn’t take no for an answer when they offered. I think they did a pretty decent job. They even set up my streaming channels for me. They would have helped with the furniture, too, I just would have had to wait until tonight.”

“No sense in waiting. I’m here,” Kai said with a grin. “Wait, does this recliner do what I think it does?”

Ah, the recliner. Butter-soft brown leather that a person could sink into.

It had been a huge splurge on her part. Her mom and dad had one years ago, and she and her brothers had fought over who would get to sit in it. It was supposed to be her dad’s Christmas present that year, but everyone, including the dog, wanted to use it.

Eventually, her mother had declared the chair off-limits for any kids unless they were hurt or sick. That had been the best part of having a cold - getting to lie in that damn recliner. It had broken a few years back, and her parents had never replaced it.

But now Lulu had.

“Massage and heat,” Lulu confirmed. “My parents had one just like it. I always said that when I had my own home, I was going to get one. So, I did. It was my splurge. And now I don’t have to share it with my brothers, the dog, or my mom and dad. It’s all mine.”

“You won’t share?” Kai playfully put on a sad face. “How cruel. Can I try it out?”

She wouldn’t mind curling up in it with him.

“You can, but I warn you, you may never want to get out of it and become a productive citizen in society. Its seduction might make you a slave to its three levels of heat and full-body shiatsu massage.”

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