Page 6 of One Touch

Duke stared hard across the street.

Only minutes later Katie came out with a tool belt in hand and a power drill box with a bright-red Milwaukee logo across it.

At least she has good taste in tools.

Duke sighed. “Jesus Christ.”

I stifled a laugh. “She’s welcome to try to do the reno herself.”

I’d never known Kate to have a backbone—quite the opposite, really. Pretty eyes and a great ass? Sure. But a spine? Never. Surely she’d realize that modernizing a dilapidated farmhouse by herself was completely out of the question.

Duke eyed me before tracking his sister as she loaded the items into her white Jeep. “She sure must be pissed at you if she thinks this is a better option.”

“Pissed at me? What did I do?”

The corner of Duke’s mouth lifted. “Unfortunately for all of us, it’s what your brother did.”

I nodded. I had always known Declan was an asshole. A smooth talker. The life of the party, when really it was all bullshit. He steamrolled anyone in his path with a flashy smile and false promises. The fact that Kate would ever be with someone like that was pathetic.

The topic of my family was typically off limits with Duke and me. Our friendship was rooted in his acceptance that I was the black sheep of my family—more like a Sullivan than I’d ever been like the prestigious Millers.

Initially I’d been pissed when Declan had set his sights on the littlest Sullivan. Anyone could have predicted that it would end with him breaking Kate’s heart. But she’d had years to walk away, and she never did. That was on her.

“Are you going to stop her?” Duke looked at me like I should storm over there and put an end to her YouTube renovation dreams.

“Nope.”

“She’s going to screw something up.”

I smirked. “Probably.”

Duke shook his head and sighed as the server brought my refill. “I don’t know what happened in Montana. She’s not normally so hardheaded.”

I took a sip and let the bubbles burn down my throat. “Just call me before she breaks something expensive. You know where to find me.”

* * *

It took onlythree days to get the call from Duke.

“Are you still in town?” He was pissed and more than a little frustrated.

“At the house.” I sat on the sprawling back porch of my family’s vacation home, looking out over Lake Michigan. The house was rarely used anymore. Its cold, modern exterior was a travesty against the natural beauty of Michigan’s dune-covered shoreline. My parents had built it as an investment property, and while we used it every summer growing up, or as a place for my father to go when Mom had uncovered yet another affair, it was largely unused.

I stood and walked through the door to the wide-open lofted living room. The wall of glass that looked out onto the lake could have been stunning, but the builder had focused only on sharp lines and cold, hard materials. It felt too open. Exposed.

“Beck, she really fucked up. Something with the water lines in the downstairs bathroom.”

I bit back a shittyof course she didand slipped my feet into work boots. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

I pulled my work truck down the familiar winding driveway to Tootie Sullivan’s farmhouse. Duke’s truck was parked to the side, and his dog, Three-legged Ed, chased my truck tires until I came to a stop. When I climbed out, Ed gave me a throaty bark and then ran off in search of a new adventure.

In the yard, Wyatt was kicking a soccer ball with his little girl, and I offered a friendly wave but focused my attention on the run-down farmhouse.

From the porch, I could hear shouting, so I slammed the truck door shut and stomped my way up the porch steps, then let myself into the house. Inside was pure chaos. Down a long, narrow hallway, shouts erupted from the small bathroom, and I could make out Kate and Duke arguing. As I walked in, Tootie was sitting, and laughing, at the kitchen table, sipping tea. I nodded a greeting and followed the raised voices.

“I don’t know what to do!” Kate yelled over the sound of spraying water.

“To theleft!”

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