Page 155 of The Re-Proposal

“I don’t think I can take anymore,” Maggie croaks, her voice lost and her eyes swelling like a cartoon dolphin’s. “Everything is just so beautiful. It feels like I’m in someone else’s house. I can’t… I can’t take anymore.”

“I’m afraid I have bad news. We’ve got one more place to go.” I gesture down the hallway. “The backyard.”

As soon as I open the door, Sara screams and rushes to the play area.

Maggie’s jaw hits the ground.

Every inch of the cramped backyard has been organized and designed to perfection. The sunshine spotlights the gorgeous layout.

“Just imagine, in the evening, after a successful day at work,” I lead the group, “you can watch Sara play on the swings while you relax in these chairs by the bonfire and sip a glass of wine.”

“Oh wow.” Maggie says, wiping her wet cheeks.

“What’s that?” Sara points at the shed near the fence.

“That,” I grin, “is your mommy’s shed.”

“Ooh,” Sara coos.

“This way.” I lead them into the large shed. On the walls are racks of colorful yarn, a state of the art sewing machine, and large windows to let in the sunshine. Shag rugs on the floor invite us to kick off our shoes and dive deep into creativity.

Sunny was most excited about the kitchen, but her second favorite project was this shed. And it shows.

Maggie sniffs. “This is amazing. Spectacular. Oh my goodness.”

“You like it?”

“I love it!” She shrieks.

“I wasn’t sure because you aren’t crying,” I joke.

“Trust me. I’d be crying if I had any more water left in my eyes.” Maggie sniffs again. “Thank you. Thank you so much, Clarissa.”

She hooks her arms around me. While we’re hugging, my gaze connects with Cody’s and he motions to the door. Vargas is right behind him, a tense look on his face.

I pull away from Maggie and smile tightly. “Go ahead and explore. It’s all for you. This is the key.” I slip it out of my pocket and put it in the palm of her hand.

“Mommy! Mommy, look!” Sara pulls Maggie away.

While she’s distracted, I follow behind Cody and Vargas.

“Where are you going?”

His fingers land on my hip. “I have a bunch of demanding lawyers waiting at the office.”

“Okay,” I whisper.

Cody keeps looking down at me. “Ireallydon’t want to leave.”

“But you have to,” Vargas pipes up.

Cody gives him a sharp look.

Vargas pins his lips together. “I’ll, uh, head out first.”

“Thank you, Vargas.”

He lifts his hands in a backward wave as if he wasn’t the furniture genius last night. No wonder he and Cody get along. They both help people secretly and don’t really like to talk about or get acknowledgement for it.

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