Page 36 of Cold Case, Warm Hearts

A moment passed before she said, “My father took risks. Every restaurant was a risk. He opened a second location in Kona, and it failed. But that didn’t stop him from trying again.”

Garrett nodded, though he was praying she’d choose his design over hers, for both their sakes.

“Okay. Okay, we’ll do your design.”

“You’re sure?” His heart pounded. “I really don’t mean to pressure you.”

“It’ll be beautiful, and if your real estate agent is right, I’ll make back every penny and more. It’s not like I need the proceeds immediately. I have the luxury of time. The more I think about it, the more I’m convinced that your plan seems like the best course of action.”

He barely resisted pumping a fist in victory. “I think that’s the right choice.”

“Good.” She lifted her phone. “I made a list of the rooms that need to be dealt with as soon as possible. At this point, the kitchen is the most pressing. If you could start there, I’d really appreciate it.”

“Uh… It doesn’t work that way. We’ll just have to?—”

“No, no. It needs to work that way. The kitchen is dingy and gross, and I really need it to be cleaned up if I’m going to livethere. So start there, and then move on to…” She rattled off the list of the rooms in the order that she wanted him to do them.

“There are supplies that need to be purchased,” he said carefully. “And subcontractors to hire. Those things might not fit into your plan.”

“You’ll figure it out. I mean, there’s some wiggle room. If you’d rather do the office before the living room, that’s fine. And the bedrooms upstairs can be done in any order you want, as long as they’re done one at a time. And I’m going to help with the painting, so that’ll make it easier.”

Cheaper for her, but not easier for him. He’d planned to hire a professional to paint.

“If you want it done quickly?—”

“Speed isn’t the most important thing,” she said. “I have time.”

“My time matters too.”

“It won’t makethatbig of a difference.”

He loved the confidence in her voice, especially coupled with the fact that she had no idea what she was talking about.

Her plan wasn’t going to work, but he didn’t want her to change her mind about his design. Rather than argue further, he simply nodded, turning into the entrance to his condo complex.

“Where are we going?”

If he picked up a hint of nervousness in her voice, he figured it was about to get worse.

Remembering her reaction when he’d suggested it earlier, he sent a smile her way to soften the blow. “We’re here to get you a handgun.”

CHAPTER TEN

By the time Aspen’s phone, internet, Wi-Fi, and alarm system had been installed on Friday night, it was well past dinnertime. Trudy’s nephew had helped Garrett deliver Aspen’s furniture from the thrift store while the phone installers were still there. When everyone else was gone, Garrett had stood in her living room looking as nervous to leave her alone as she’d felt. But with her new phones, not to mention the security system and motion-sensor lights he’d installed all around her house and even along the driveway, she’d be safe. She’d shooed him out and promised to see him Sunday.

She wasn’t going to think about the handgun she had stowed in her nightstand drawer, nor the holster he’d convinced her to order online. She’d argued that she couldn’t carry a concealed weapon without a permit, but apparently, New Hampshire didn’t require a permit. Quite a change from Hawaii, where one couldn’t carry a concealed weapon at all.

Did Garrett really think she was going to walk around packing heat like Annie Oakley?

On Saturday, although she’d wanted to start digging through the stuff in the junk room, instead she spent the day cleaning. The kitchen was the worst, grimy in spots that required lots ofelbow grease, and the bathrooms had needed a good scrubbing as well. She’d thought she’d spend a couple of hours at that task and was shocked when it was four o’clock by the time she finished and plopped down on her new sectional.

She’d never been more thankful for a couch in her life.

The furnace man had come by that afternoon, tinkered in the basement, and then spent ten minutes explaining what he’d done, none of which she understood. He’d told her the furnace was in perfect working order and the bigger problems were the insulation and windows. Until she took care of those, the temperature might go a few degrees higher, but that was as good as it was going to get. When he mentioned that her oil tank was full, she’d worked hard to pretend she’d known shehadan oil tank.

These were the kinds of conversations she’d never needed to have in Hawaii.

As promised, the temperature in her house rose about two degrees.

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