Page 32 of Idle

She places her wineglass onto the counter, which prompts me to pick up the bottle. “White, right?”

“Please.” I pour her beverage while she continues, “Frank asked you how you came up with the stackable idea.”

“Oh.” I place the bottle down. “Wasn’t my idea.”

Mary Ellen pauses in taking a sip. “Sucks that they’re out together, doesn’t it?”

Preach, sister. I keep my mouth zipped shut, knowing she’s probably hurting worse than I am. After all, she wasmarriedto the southern un-charmer. I pour myself a cup of coffee, even though I’m well-aware caffeine won’t do me any favors later.

When I don’t respond, she continues, “Don’t worry. He’ll tire of her soon. That’s his M.O.”

Swallowing the hot beverage, I reply, “Paige and I aren’t dating. She’s my best friend’s little sister, who also happens to be an interior designer. That’s all.” More accurately, she’s my best friend’s little cousin and friend’s little sister, but details shmetails.

She sets her wine glass down with a clink. “Really? You might want to rethink that, given the look on your face when Bo asked her out.”

“You’ve misread the situation.” I cuddle my coffee against my chest.

“If you say so.” She runs the pad of her finger around the lip of her wine glass. “Want to join us? We’re going to play a game of backgammon.”

“I’ve never played.”

“I’ll teach you. Although, I suspect the guys are sharks.” She whinny-laughs.

The distraction from dwelling on whatever Paige and Bo are doing sounds nice. Not that I’ve caught any feelings for my teammate.None. At. All.Homer’s warning surges to the forefront, reminding me never to mix business with pleasure—and always place my career first. I have to get out of my head. “Sure. Sounds like it could be fun.”

She leads me back into the living room, where Robbie explains the rules of the game. Even though they sound complicated, I decide to push forward. What else do I have to do?

Rounds of the game pass, during which I start to get a handle on it. I surprise myself by executing a tricky play, receiving congratulations from everyone. While I lose badly, I have to admit it was fun. Robbie is a good sport about winning, which makes it even better.

After Mary Ellen and I pack up the game as our penance for coming in the bottom two, everyone yawns.

“It’s been a long day,” Frank says. “Congrats on making it to the next round, everyone. We’re proud to be in this with both of your teams.”

“As are we,” I reply. An idea for the third bedroom came to me during the game, and I want to sketch it before I forget. Standing, I address Mary Ellen. “Mind if I go into your room to get Paige’s design book? I need to draw something.”

“Sure thing.” I take a step toward the girls’ bedroom when her voice reaches me. “Be warned, though. You might not find what you’re looking for on the first try.”

What does she mean? I wave my hand and continue to the hallway. When I enter the ladies’ bedroom, I understand her warning. The room is identical to ours, with three bunkbeds. One is stripped of all linens, which had to have been Marion and Peyton’s. One is tidy, with the top bunk stripped—guess that was Nancy’s. The other looks like a tornado hit. Well, only half a tornado. The lower level’s pristine while the upper-level sports twisted bedsheets and even a pillow curled into a ball. At the foot, next to the dresser, are two opened Louis Vuitton suitcases with clothes and accessories spilling from them.

Adorable.

What?

With a huff, I rummage through Paige’s things and retrieve her sketch pad, plus a couple of pencils, underneath the pants she wore today. Despite my best efforts not to, I grab her pillow and fluff it, then toss the sheets and comforter over her bed. There. At least it appears less chaotic than when I walked in here.

Shaking my head, I return to the living area and hold up my prize. “Got it.”

Mary Ellen glances at the oversized clock hung above the entry to the kitchen. “It only took you fifteen minutes. I’m impressed.” She gives me a thumbs up.

Tucking the pad between my arm and torso, I say, “It’s a gift. Well, I’m going to work on my design so have a good night.”

Without a backward glance, I choose to go into the game room, where I can spread out. I spend the next half-hour drawing my idea for a desk that’ll transform the bedroom into an office. Satisfied, mostly, with my design, I make a couple of additional tweaks then drop Paige’s pencil. I’ll run this by her in the morning. She’ll probably have several ways to improve it, but at least I got my thoughts down on paper.

She’s still out. What are she and Bo doing now?

Don’t go there, Jesse.

Grabbing Paige’s things, I rush to my feet and walk to the bedroom. When I enter, Frank pulls away from Robbie. They’re both in their pajama bottoms and breathing hard.Shit.

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