Page 24 of Beautiful Dreamer

Devyn hesitated. What was she supposed to do with that? She had tosell out that building inthreemonths instead of four or lose the biggest listing of her career. The one thatwould put her at the top, where she’d worked tirelessly to be. It would bepulling a rabbit from a hat, but she had to try. “Jill, I can’t workeffectively from here.”

“Okay. I guess I’ll be all right, and of course you need to gohome. Your life shouldn’t be put on hold. I just misunderstood is all.”

Like a knife in her heart. She’d never seen her sister look sodejected, and it just wasn’t fair after all she’d already been put through. IfDevyn stayed and devoted the same kind of attention to Jill as she had thusfar, she’d never get anything done. What was the compromise here?

She set the bag of pasta on the counter and rounded the counterinto the living room. “What if I stayed a little longer. Another few weeks?”

Jill seemed to perk up. Her green eyes glimmered again. “Thatwould be wonderful, if you could manage it.”

“What if we had someone part-time, though, which would give me thechance to steal away and still do my job?”

Her sister nodded, taking what was offered. “I don’t love the ideaof a stranger, but I suppose I could get used to it.”

Devyn remembered the business card in her back pocket. “What aboutElizabeth?”

“Liz?” Jill considered this. “You think she’d be up for it?”

“Doesn’t she do this kind of random request for a living? Plus,you guys have great rapport. You laugh together like lunatics, and she’s wellversed on your condition because of how often she visited.”

Jill considered this. “If she’d be game, I’d love that.”

Devyn ripped open the bag of pasta with gusto and stared at Jillin determination. “Leave this to me.”

Chapter Nine

Elizabeth had been born in the mid-eighties and wished to hellshe’d been old enough to fully enjoy it. To make up for it, she passionatelyembraced the time period now. With Duran Duran in her earbuds, she rode herlongboard to Jill Winters’s home that Thursday morning, waving to the neighborsshe passed along the way, high-fiving that ninth grader, Jimmy Rodriguez, as heset up his family’s sprinkler near the curb.

“Lookin’ solid on that board, Ms. Draper.”

“Thanks, Jimmy. I’m not great at it, yet, but I’m working at it.Life’s too short to walk everywhere, ya know?”

“Preach,” he called after her.

The longboard was something she’d picked up on a whim once shenoticed folks on the boardwalk whizzing by on the things. They looked like fun,and she was always up for extra fun whenever she could find it. She’d taken afew informal lessons from teenagers at the beach and hopped on her own boardwhenever possible to keep her newfound skill set intact. Today seemed like theday for it.

She arrived at Jill’s house and leaned her board against the brickwall of the porch, smiling at the spring flowers that Jill had meticulouslyspaced and planted in the garden out front. Perfect color combination of pinksand purples and yellow. She took out her phone and snapped a photo.

“Are you stalking the flowers? Some sort of flower paparazzi?”

She turned and smiled at Devyn. “No. It’s just that they’rebeautiful. I’m putting them on my Instagram so more people can see them. Anyonewho needs to be cheered up could use a dose of these colorful guys.”

“Instagram cheer, huh?” Devyn asked, stepping back from thedoorway so Elizabeth could enter the house.

“It’s really very effective.” A pause. “Wow. You look…nice.” Sheblinked and took a moment to absorb the image of Devyn in front of her in dark,slim jeans with a sharp plaid blazer with a tapered waist. Her blond hair wasdown but had a little tousle to it. The look was…okay, a really, really goodone. Elizabeth swallowed and smiled. “Well done.”

Devyn glanced down. “Thanks. Not too dressy, but put togetherenough to make me feel ‘on’ while I work. It’s a whole psychological thing.Don’t get me started.”

“Whatever it is, I’m sure it will work out just fine for you,looking like that. I mean, in your snazzy work outfit.” She covered her faceand hoped to die right there.

Devyn regarded her with a curious smile, and Elizabeth hoped shehadn’t been that obvious in checking Devyn out, emphasis onobvious, because shehad been checking her out and tended to wear any and all emotion on her face.

“So, what’s on tap for this morning?” Elizabeth asked, with toomuch gusto, attempting to rebound. “I can stay until noon.” When Devyn hadcalled and offered her the temporary job of caring for Jill, she’d immediatelysaid yes. It meant she’d have to delegate more of the incoming jobs to hersmall staff, but KC had already stepped up to the plate and offered to playpoint person and assign tasks to the runners during the first half of the day.She’d also pulled in two extra runners to cover the gaps.

Devyn flashed a smile. “First of all, thank you for agreeing tohelp out.”

“You don’t have to thank me. I’m happy to help Jill. You knowthat. Plus, you’ve officially hired me, so no volunteering required.”

Devyn chuckled. “That part’s true.”

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